The Profound Metaphorical Implications of the Achilles Heel - Research Paper Example

Metaphors apply in many instances in language to represent certain ideas in life, and they are traditionally part of the figurative language alongside similes, whose metaphorical interpretation yields further meanings beyond the obvious outer meanings implied. People from all over the world use metaphors to describe their environment and situations in their life, and though the metaphorical words and expressions used may vary significantly across different languages, some metaphors do connect universally in meanings and representations. For instance, conceptual metaphors, whose metaphorical interpretation represents universally accepted or shared knowledge and notions, can be found in diverse languages across the world (Lv & Zhang 355); generally, diverse languages will have similar conceptual metaphors about same ideas such as for happiness, time, and purpose, among other things. Metaphors from all over the world share a number of commonalities, which technically comprise universality in metaphorical thought; for instance, metaphors are not only conceptual and linguistic, they are also neural, bodily, and social. That not notwithstanding, metaphors also vary along two main domains, both the cross-cultural domain and within-culture domain, which includes the social; regional, and ethnic domains, among others. Perhaps one of the most universally recognized metaphor is the Achilles heel metaphor, whose metaphorical representation can be found in almost all areas of life and in all cultures of the world, from the west to the east, up further to the north and south. The Achilles heel metaphor has a profound history, with origins in the Greek mythology and literature in the classical period, and a wide application up to date, as a figurative expression symbolizing vulnerability of any kind, within an individual, a system, or anything else. The Achilles heel of a person is their greatest weakness or vulnerability through which they can easily be destroyed or brought down to obsoleteness; this metaphor alludes to the famous Greek warrior Achilles who was known for his overwhelming intelligence and impeccable strength in the Trojan War. Achilles, whose name was derived from the Greek Achilleus was indestructible and nearly immortal, except that his only weakness was in the heel and because of this ancient history, the expression Achilles heel or heel of Achilles took on the meaning of vulnerability. Achilles heel is perhaps one of the most common metaphors in modern English due to its universal acceptance and application as a metaphor for vulnerability; this metaphor has a much deeper interpretation that implies the strong losing guard. In that case, the heel has been chosen deliberately and carefully especially because, apart from being the farthest point from a man’s senses, it is also the strong tendon adjoining the muscles in the calf of the leg to the bone that supports the heel. In that case, it is easy for one to overlook their heels, or to be reckless in guarding their heels because they are located furthest in the body, yet they are the most painful part of the body due to numerous nerve endings; consequently, the heel, despite being a strong tendon, is actually a weakness. The location of the heel at the extreme end of a man’s senses implies that it is a natural physical blind spot that can easily be overlooked, and it corresponds to a psychological blind spot that every person will have in the form of a deadly weakness that is part of his/her nature. It is usual for a person to have a chief weakness that defines his psychology, which primarily they cannot see because it is hidden from them, thus, they become heedless to it and even denying its existence despite it being common knowledge among other people. This metaphor has a great significance because it highlights the need for people to know their psychological weaknesses, though, few people can master the courage to conduct any due diligence about their internal dispositions impartially. Similarly, not many people have the humility to shed light on their dark psychological weaknesses, thus they live in ignorance of their Achilles heel, which ultimately becomes their downfall when disaster strikes. The Greek in this case, have a great hero that embodies invincibility, yet he has one fatal weakness that is irreversible, which implies that even the strongest are susceptible to defeat and failure due to fatal mistakes or blind error. This ancient symbolic interpretation of this metaphor has a universal significance in diverse languages from around the world because it scorns the negligence of the mighty, which eventually brings them down, as the mortal Paris brought down the immortal Achilles. Research has indicated that mental representation is partly metaphorical because certain relations and concepts are too abstract and complex to comprehend naturally (Murphy 174); thus, metaphors act as modes of thought and representation (Rizzuto 18). For instance, the aspect of vulnerability of the strongest or the mightiest Greek warrior is represented metaphorically in the Achilles heel metaphor because it is a more concrete concept. The universal significance of this metaphor can be attributed to the universality of certain aspects of culture and societies (Kurtz 480) such as the idea of vulnerability, which often results to failure or defeat; the world associates the notion of defeat with weaknesses or fault lines; thus, leading to the emergency of the Achilles heel metaphor. However, given that languages differ across the world, then it follows undeniably that the universal conceptual metaphor will be stated in varying linguistic expressions, but will still express the same conceptual metaphor (Glynn 544). In that regard, the same Achilles heel metaphor can be found in figurative expressions in other languages of the world other than English but those expressions will still bear the same conceptual metaphor and they will still represent the same idea of vulnerability. Different languages will have their own equivalents of metaphorical expressions expressing the idea of vulnerability that will correspond to the English version of the Achilles heel. Nonetheless, the bottom line will remain the same, that every strong person has a weakness that can be exploited by the enemies to destroy them; in this regard, the aspect of universality in metaphorical representation comes in play so powerfully so that it cannot be ignored. The wisdom of the Achilles heel metaphor, therefore, is timeless, from the ancient classical Greek period to date; this conceptual metaphor still applies to human kind in all spheres of life, because it is human nature to err, especially due to human weaknesses, which they hardly acknowledge. Unfortunately, human vulnerabilities usually are exposed in time of conflict, when the aggressor either purposely or inadvertently exploits them to destroy the opponents. In this regard, this metaphor is a universal warning that even amidst intense strength or exceptional fortitude; there exist an Achilles heel, that single weakness or vulnerable spot that can sink a whole ship. The Achilles heel will most likely lead to or be directly responsible for downfall, and the profound metaphorical implications of this metaphor have led to its wide application in many social situations and cultural contexts. For instance, the Achilles heel metaphor has traversed many languages as a conceptual figurative expression that has been used aptly in reference to politicians, church leaders, and other figureheads, in addition to events. Ultimately, the Achilles heel of individuals is always hidden from them, thus, they do not pay attention to it, and it being their greatest vulnerability, it predisposes them to destruction at the hands of the enemy. The greatest wisdom that can be distilled from this metaphor, therefore, is the need for individuals to understand themselves better, to be aware of their vulnerabilities; shedding light on one’s own dark psychological weaknesses fortifies their guard against destruction from the enemy. Works Cited Glynn, Dylan. Love and Anger: The grammatical structure of conceptual metaphors. Style, 36.3 (2002), p541-559. Kurtz, P.J. "Metaphor in Culture: Universality and Variation." Choice, Volume 43.Issue 3 (2005): p 480.  Lv, Zitu., & Zhang, Yining. Universality and variation of conceptual metaphor of love in Chinese and English. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 2.2 (2012), 355-359. Murphy Gregory L. On metaphoric representation. Cognition 60 (1996). 173-204. Rizzuto, Ana-Maria. Metaphoric process and metaphor: The dialectics of shared analytic experience. Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 29.1, (2009), 18-29. Read More