What Happens When a Tidal Wave Meets a Prairie Fire?
Trail Mix, always fascinated by political metaphors, was amused by some of the figurative language chosen by candidates in the wake of last night’s Iowa caucus results. It seems that metaphor can be used either to add flourish to a victory or mask a disappointing finish.
John Edwards, for instance, employed one of his oft-repeated aquatic images, saying in a speech to supporters that they have created a
tidal wave of change that began tonight in Iowa and will sweep across America.
Mike Huckabee, the Republican winner, preferred fire over water and opted to stay on rhetorical dry ground. In a metaphor perhaps more fitting to landlocked Iowa, he likened his victory to the start of
a new prairie fire of hope and zeal across the nation.
Mitt Romney, who is known for his management of the Salt Lake City Olympics, delved into sports imagery. Initially, his campaign downplayed Romney’s second-place finish by calling the Iowa caucuses
the first inning of a 50-inning baseball game,
but perhaps realizing that not too many baseball games last 50 innings, Romney soon switched to a more Olympian metaphor. He said in a speech:
You win the silver in one event, it doesn’t mean that you won’t come back and win the gold in the final event. And that we’re gonna do.
Gold medals all around for such creative straining to speak in clichés. Trail Mix would like to point out that Barack Obama, whose victory speech was widely regarded as the best of the night, never seemed to need a metaphorical crutch.
