This study provides insight into aging through an examination of the metaphors older people used to describe their lives and mindsets. This research also adds to the body of knowledge on the process of metaphorical communication. Data was gathered through interviews with 20 volunteer participants (age 66 to 90, 10 from retirement communities and 10 from the general community). Personal narratives of aging contributed in the first set of interviews included 131 metaphors. In second set of interviews, each participant was specifically asked to create metaphors about aging and they collectively contributed 141 created metaphors. The follow-up interviews also allowed for the participants to each help explain and categorize their own metaphors from the first interview. The 271 metaphors were analyzed to determine what frameworks (the idea, object, experience, or emotion that the supplier assumed that his/her listener or reader would understand which served as the basis for a comparison). The major categories of the frameworks were: (1) Travel; (2) Nature; (3) Animals; (4) Work; (5) School; (6) Leisure Activities; (7) Sports; (8) Historical Events; (9) People; and (10) Objects. Metaphorical analysis revealed eight major themes about aging: (1) Daily Life; (2) The Special Qualities of Older People; (3) Devalued or Ill-treated; (4) Health; (5) Death; (6) Time; (7) Appearance; and (8) Reflection. Analysis included a review of participants' thoughts on metaphors and their feelings about their participation. Some specific topics of metaphor examined included the observed differences between narrative metaphors and created metaphors as well as the benefits or shortfalls of endeavoring to extend the metaphors or return to root metaphor when analyzing a new data set of contributed metaphors. The evaluation of the process of metaphorical research included a look at the impact of revealing the unconscious use of metaphorical models as well as the advantages of the twopart interview design of this study. It was concluded that researchers will better understand metaphorical usage if the two-part interview is used.
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