Wisdom & Metaphor

by Jan Zwicky

This title is no longer available from Gaspereau Press.


“The shape of metaphorical thought is also the shape of wisdom,” states Jan Zwicky in her introduction to Wisdom & Metaphor , “What a human mind must do in order to comprehend a metaphor is a version of what it must do in order to be wise.” In this follow-up to her astonishingly original book Lyric Philosophy (1992), Zwicky sets out to explore the ways in which metaphorical thought links to “Those who think metaphorically are enabled to think truly,” suggests Zwicky, “because the shape of their thinking echoes the shape of the world.” Zwicky’s prose style is the very model of her thesis, echoing the measured, sure-spoken clarity of her poetry, guiding the reader through multiple layers of meaning in the right-hand/left-hand voice style that she employed so successfully in Lyric Philosophy . Wisdom & Metaphor is a stunning work that will engage a broad range of readers.

Genres: Philosophy, Poetry, Nonfiction, Writing, Theory, Art

Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Jan Zwicky’s books of poetry include Songs for Relinquishing the Earth, which won the Governor General’s Award, Robinson’s Crossing, which won the Dorothy Livesay Prize, and, most recently Forge, which was short-listed for the Griffin Prize. Her books of philosophy include Wisdom & Metaphor, Lyric Philosophy, and Alkibiades’ Love (forthcoming 2015).

Reviews

[James Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

"To be wise is to be able to grasp another form of life without abandoning one's own; to be able to translate experience into and out of two original tongues." Zwicky's statement, the essence of the book, appears late and is the result of a cumulative number of entries discussing different ways of understanding the world through metaphor.

Wisdom & Metaphor is another of Zwicky's books in the form of her own philosophical views on one page faced on the opposite by quoted sources which support her ideas. The structure of her discourse itself demonstrates what she's writing about, different perceptions leading to wisdom, or the ability to see wholes, which is wisdom.

Her aphoristic statements present ways of seeing leading us to accept metaphor as a form of reality. Metaphor is used to translate a reality into another angle of vision which becomes a part of the whole. That expansion of our perception leads to our achieving wisdom.

I found this to be a fascinating read. Admittedly, because I'm a short man, some of it went over my head, but I accept the challenge of what the book's offering to think about and of the opportunity to return to it. Zwicky, a poet and musician as well as philosopher, writes material as demanding and interesting and yet as comprehensible as anyone I know.

[Jules · Rating 5 out of 5]

To define metaphor, Zwicky uses epistemology, metaphysics, ontology, aesthetics and phenomenology. What ensues is an intellectually stimulating work that makes ample use of the white page. She balances her own reflections and ruminations with other philosophers, primarily Wittgenstein. Her book concerns itself with the whole (gestalt) and its parts. Metaphor is an elusive term by nature - it wants to conflate with another thing - become one. Essentially, a metaphor is a paradox, it both is and is not - it tugs and pulls - the language gets away from us (as Wittgenstein experiences). Why is metaphor wise and why should this book be read? Metaphors are natural. Humans communicate through comparison, setting one thing against another, hoping for understanding. The work is an amalgamation of other works, a could have been anthology, a carefully selected collection of excerpts. These extracted parts of various texts represent the whole of metaphor. Zwicky is not the main voice here, but the grounding anchor that pulls a thread through and unifies what would on its own be only fragments of wisdom - not Wisdom itself.

[James Klagge · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dialogical meditation and exploration of metaphor in ways inspired by Wittgenstein. Left-hand pages have rather brief reflections by the author, and right-hand pages have quotations from a vast variety of authors that illustrate or in some ways respond to the author's reflections. I appreciated the stylistic experiment. And I especially liked that the author used math and science examples to illustrate or reflect on the role of metaphor, since it is often thought only to be a literary phenomenon.

[Rhys · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was like a great ablution.

"To love wisdom is to find your way home in the protean phusis of what-is. It is to embrace the duende of language, the emptiness and fullness of things" (p.118). What a great way to define 'metaphor', and the power of metaphor to avoid the reification of thought (anti-wisdom): "To use language to undo certain spells it casts over us is to redeem it from cultural abuse" (p.84).

[Jim Coughenour · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes, rarely, I’m lucky to find a book that it seems I’ve been waiting for without knowing it existed. This month this is that book. I’ve been reading Jan Zwiscky’s books, off and on, since I came across her writing in the work of Robert Bringhurst and Iain McGilchrist, each time with sharper interest or as she might say, more resonance. The form of Wisdom & Metaphor no less than its content is a kind of invention. Each page spread opens with her short philosophical observations (call them moments or snapshots of her argument) on the left; on the right are sources she draws upon for the progress of her thinking, a kindred company of philosophers (chiefly Wittgenstein, who is sometimes corrected in her comments) and poets and mystics, each adding one more layer to her exploration of metaphor and wisdom. More resonance, more meaning.

For me this was book best absorbed early in the day, with my café cup of coffee before the work day kicked in and the mind still fairly free. A couple apothegms may convey its flavor:

From the Polish poet Adam Zagajewski:

To defend poetry means to defend a fundamental gift of human nature, that is, our capacity … to experience astonishment and to stop still in that astonishment for an extended moment or two.

The penultimate quote is from Zhuāng Zi:

Therefore understanding that rests in what it does not understand is the finest.

The book itself, the physical object, is a pleasure to hold and experience as well. Worth hunting down.

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gorgeous blend of insights from poets, phenomenologists, theologians, and mathematicians. Zwicky pares each of her own aphoristic insights with an excerpt from another poet/thinker (e.g. Wittgenstein, Weil, Levertov), creating a sense of ongoing dialogue that sets the book apart from more didactic forms of philosophy.

I lost the thread a few times – ancient Greek and math equations are not my forte – but the unique format made it possible to pick it up again a few pages on without feeling like I'd lost the argument entirely. You could read this from cover to cover (as I did) but you might also pick sections at random and read a few pages at a time. Zwicky provides brief nods towards the metaphysical, moral, and political aspects of metaphorical thinking, but I wish she developed these ideas further. In any case, this is a lovely, elegant, and demanding little book that I'm sure I'll return to.

[Oran]

Fantastic book by a deeply original mind; for what my opinion is worth, Jan Zwicky is one of the most interesting living philosophers. If you have read and enjoyed her magnum opus, _Lyrical Philosophy_, you will love this one too. Also strongly recommended: the collection of her shorter philosophical essays, _Alkibiades' Love_.

[Andrew Alkema · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book is excellent, although I admit there are parts that went over my head. I certainly took down some excellent quotes, I really liked this summary: "The experience of beauty is the experience of some form of relief from time.".

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

🤯

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, this is a hard 'book' to get into. At first I was not having any of it, with its confusing language, focus on description, semantics, boring ontological argument, and repetitive similar descriptions of metaphors. After focusing on the work for some hours, I now conclude that it is a work of artistic wonder, though still not wonderful enough to garner more than 3.5 stars. Zwicky eventually throws in some brilliant insights towards metaphor and her other terms (wisdom, lyricism, domesticity etc.) but the stars of this book are much more the included work from other authors than her own often redundant, confusing or precocious entries. She has placed some very thought-provoking poems, geometric proofs, stories, and 'aphoristic' expressions, which although often confusing or perhaps over my head philosophically, sometimes provide the beautiful metaphorical insight which the book seeks to champion and promote. 'Wisdom and Metaphor' is not amazing, and it does give off that 'anyone could do it/lazy/unorginal' aura which I see in a fair bit of modern art. Moreover, while I enjoyed learning what 'duende' means, I really don't like artsy types who through around cultural words to sound smarter and more sophisticated. That said, when followed through, the book manages to inspire and enlighten the reader as to the variety of metaphorical understanding, through use of metaphors, which produces a whole which is itself the culmination of metaphorical understanding and a 'gestalt' (or form). In that way this book is wonderful.
*Edit* I found myself drawn back to this book again, I figured out some more terms, and now rather enjoy a number of the subsections of the book, section 62 in particular. Really does shine with brilliance at times which really causes you to think, but still not good enough, with too much claptrap, overdone abstraction (despite criticizing abstract language-thought) and repetition. Half a star more though!