The Necessity of Metaphors in Life & the Danger of Erasing Them in Translation

Metaphors are necessities, not frivolities. We depend on them in everyday life (i.e., to discuss emotions). Also, metaphors are liberally sprinkled throughout the Old & New Testaments quite purposefully. Erasing them in Bible translation blinds us to the connected themes in God's story and even obstructs nuances of meaning. After introducing a neurocognitive definition of metaphors, I will discuss the irreplaceable necessity of metaphors in many domains of life and ministry. I will frame the real-time processing of novel metaphors using cognitive terminology and demonstrate how even the least-educated among us can calculate meaning from metaphors if given minimal support.

I will use the epistle from James to present how modern translations and Translators Notes suggest the erasing of metaphors with surprisingly high frequency. For example, often ‘stumbling’ and ‘straying’ is translated merely as 'sinning' (McElhanon 2006). This advice reflects a severe underestimation of the target recipients of Scripture. I will also connect metaphors in James to others spanning the OT & NT and modern day cultures.

Contributions from colleagues Ken McElhanon & Christy Hemphill in Mexico will also be integrated. Research needs to both catalogue metaphor networks and suggest successful translation strategies. I will raise a few possibilities for consideration. Even the catalogue of allegedly universal metaphors may be expanded beyond physical embodiment of emotions to include the possible embodiment of universal mechanisms of information processing.