What is a psychology-as-balance metaphor?

What is a psychology-as-balance metaphor?

Definition
	A conventional metaphor in which aspects of mind such as the emotions and the makeup of the personality are represented as forming balances, such that
	emotions may require suppression to maintain equilibrium and different activities or concerns must be given appropriate weight if the personality is to be properly balanced.

Examples
	Here are some examples in English:
	I told her to keep things in balance. He balances her out.

Generic
	A psychology-as-balance is a kind of
	What is a metaphor for mind?

Source
	Johnson 1987

Context for this page:

Concept module: psychology-as-balance metaphor
In modular book: Metaphors in English, by Eugene E. Loos (general editor), Susan Anderson (editor), Dwight H. Day, Jr. (editor), Paul C. Jordan (editor), and J. Douglas Wingate (editor)
In bookshelf: Lexicon

This page is an extract from the LinguaLinks Library, Version 4.0, published on CD-ROM by SIL International, 1999. [Ordering information.]

Page content last modified: 18 September 1998