So what IS a metaphor, really?
I was resisting the use of a metaphor (specifically, “folder”) to describe hierarchical levels of directories on my computer, when it occurred to me that all language is a metaphor. We developed “words” to replace pointing, other body language, and grunting, but the names we gave to objects and actions were arbitrary, and they were effectively metaphors for the objects and actions themselves.
Did language come before cave paintings, or after them? Maybe when I get A Round Tuit, I’ll look it up…