Figures of Speech – Metaphor, Smile, and Euphemism

Figures of Speech – Metaphor, Smile, and Euphemism

Figure 1: vagina Figure 2: pomelo

The use of metaphor works because there are some features that the fruit pomelo and the vagina share, such as the complex structure. The chef mentions that if the pomelo is not processed properly, it can give an unpleasant smell (1:05), which implies that if the vagina is not appropriately cleaned, it will give out an unusual odor. The chef also says that the pomelo is prone to go bad (1:16), which is referring to the fact that some vaginal illnesses are common. The structure of a pomelo is complicated as it has many layers inside (1:28), which also resembles the layered structure of the vagina; therefore, dirty things can get in and accumulate (1:31). To sum up, it is very convenient for the video-makers to use pomelo as a metaphor because it shares many characteristics with the vagina.

However, some features do not belong to the fruit pomelo, but the video maker still adds them in to educate people about the vagina. For example, the fruit pomelo does not secret semi-transparent liquid, nor does it produce red liquid regularly, but the vagina does produce vaginal discharge and period. The pomelo does not have hair grown around it, but the vagina is usually protected by pubic hair. The chef explains that the “hair” of the pomelo can protect the delicate fruit flesh when collided with other fruits (2:39), which means pubic hair can protect the vagina during intercourse. By giving the fruit pomelo these characteristics can actually help the audience better understand that the video is not about how to clean a fruit, but vagina.

Although unlike the Chinese sex education video, the American one is not designed using metaphor, another of speech is present in it, simile. A simile is a stated comparison between two fundamentally dissimilar things that have certain qualities in common. Unlike a metaphor, a simile is more explicit as it is usually formed with "like" or "as". For example, Leci says in the video that the vagina is like a sock (0:17). A sock and a vagina are fundamentally dissimilar but they share common qualities. Both a sock and a vagina are flat when there is nothing in it and they are closed at the top (0:28).

Another distinct figure of speech used in the Chinese video is the euphemism, which is the substitution of an inoffensive term for one considered offensively explicit. In the title of the video, there is an expression “little sister”, which is a euphemism for vagina. In the Chinese language, it is still considered "offensively explicit" to name genital parts of the human body. Thus, euphemism, such as "little sister", referring to the vagina and "little brother" for the penis, is commonly used in daily communication. Similar expressions exist in the English language. For example, some American people use the word “little” with a person’s name such as “Jack”, “little Jack” to refer to Jack’s genital part. Euphemism is a useful rhetorical tool that allows people to talk figuratively about the sex. The reason why sex education video makers use figures of speech will be examined later in the next section.