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Written Communication
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Neither Confusing Cacophony Nor Culinary Complements

A Case Study of Mixed Metaphors for Genomic Science

Leah Ceccarelli

University of Washington

This article undertakes a close rhetorical reading of the speeches given by Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Francis Collins, and Craig Venter on June 26, 2000, at the White House ceremony announcing the completion of the Human Genome Project. Specifically, it looks at the metaphors used by each speaker to describe the activity of genomic scientists. Scientific activity regarding the genome was metaphorically compared to such actions as producing a map, opening a frontier, unlocking a vault, drawing a blueprint, reading an instruction manual, and learning a language. This article argues that these metaphors and the way in which they interact with each other can oversimplify the subject matter under discussion and can conflict with the ethical goals that the authors explicitly proclaim. An examination of the interaction between metaphorical vehicles in this particular case study amends some earlier claims that the author made in a theoretical reflection on the problems and the possibilities of mixed metaphors in genomic science.

Key Words: rhetoric of science • mixed metaphors • genomics • Bill Clinton • Tony Blair • popular science • public address

Written Communication, Vol. 21, No. 1, 92-105 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/0741088303261651
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