CONTEXTUAL STUDIES: METAPHOR & MEANING

What is a metaphor?
- Originally in english literature, a figure of speech in which a word or phrase makes an implicit, implied or hidden comparison between two things that appear unrelated but share some common characteristics. Shakespeare once said 'All the world's a stage...'

- A creative means to stimulate audience by getting them to think in new ways

- To look into metaphors, we watched the first episode of the Netflix Marvel series 'Jessica Jones'.

Jessica Jones is a series about a woman called 'Jessica Jones' who has supernatural powers, she tried being a hero once but we learn that didn't go well and instead she became a Private Investigator. We see that there is a Villain called 'Killgrave' who has the ability to control people simply by telling them what he wants them to do.
This series is based off the Marvel comic book character. Although  grounded in realism, TV series acknowledge superhero powers.

Metaphor or allegory? Allusion or analogy?
- Allegory - an extended or complex metaphor, or connected series of metaphors
- An allegory usually has two meanings: literal and symbolic (or metaphorical)
- Alien is regarded as a feminist/freudian allegory, using visual sexual metaphors

- Allusion - an indirect or passing reference, usually with no metaphorical intent
- Often used as homage or nod to a related show or film or writer/directors' inspirations

- Analogy - a literal compassion without further meaning (a metaphor uses analogy with greater meaning)
- Forest Gump's 'Life is like a box of Chocolates'

Metaphor in TV and Film
- While writers may use verbal or literary metaphors, most metaphors in film & TV will be visual
- Metaphors generally need to be constructed of familiar visual symbols and references, and cannot be overly complex
- Like a verbal metaphor, they will break down if there are too many analogies to process at once. But there needs to be enough detail that the metaphor is recognisable and easily understood

Jessica Jones
- Dominant narrative theme is power and control
- Dominant narrative metaphors illuminate theme of power and control:
- Rape and PTSD
- Child Abuse
- Addiction: drugs and alcohol
- 'Superpowers' - externalise characters interior trauma and struggle

Abuse as metaphor
- Killgrave's sexual abuse/control of Jessica is both explicit and literal in original comic
- TV Series uses kilgrave's mind control and Jessica's PTSD as a broadcer metaphors for abusive relationship
- TV series also expands abuse metaphor further than source material
- Jessica's friend Trish (a former TV child star) is a victim of childhood abuse (physical and drugs) by showbiz mothers
- Kilgrave's new backstory reveals him to be a victim of abusive childhood medical experiments

Addiction as Metaphor
- Addiction/substance abuse becomes a metaphor for both control and loss of control
- Jessica's alcohol abuse as coping mechanism
- Former soldier Simpson abuses 'red pills' that give him superpower
- Jessica's addict friend is made stalk her by Kilgrave in return for drugs

Surveillance as metaphor 
- Stalking and surveillance as also used as metaphors for abuse and control
- Jessica's surveillance work is an expression of her needs to control
- Kilgrave stalks Jessica by surveillance and, when discovered, forces her to self-surveil by sending selfies

Superpowers as metaphor
- Superpowers are not just a physical manifestation of control, but metaphor for 'the other'
- Mrs Eastman's attempt to kill Jessica is motivated both by revenge and fear of 'the gifted' (or 'other')
- Marvel's X-men have been interpreted as a metaphor/allegory for civil rights struggles ad LGBT issues

Visual metaphor in Jessica Jones
- The cockroach scenes that bookend Episode 2 are examples of visual metaphor
- At the beginning or episode, Jessica looks at a cockroach while thinking about Kilgrave's capacity for survival
- By the end of episode, Jessica has reconciled to confront Kilgrave, and symbolically crushes the cockroach in sink

Static vs dynamic metaphor
- The cockroach scenes are examples of static metaphor
- A static metaphor is a metaphor whose meaning is obvious and constant (like using red to signify sexuality). It usually reflects one characteristic and one character
- A dynamic metaphor is one that provides new information.