Blog 3

Khullars ‘The Trouble With Medicine’s Metaphors’ Summary 

In Dhruv Khullars article titled The Trouble With Medicine’s Metaphors, the use of military language connected to illness is explored. Examples of studies including social and physical warmth, the Macbeth Effect, and treating cancer as an enemy are used to provide the reader with more information on why there may be issues with relating illness to a negative connotation. In the closing paragraphs of the articles the idea that each individual patients background and beliefs are the main sources of understanding what could be a  “good” and “bad” use of a medical metaphor. Each patient may have a different reaction to hearing “cancer is a battle”, and it is important for the healthcare provider to understand what that boundary is.

I believe that Khullar is correct in many of his points. It is imperative as a healthcare provider to understand how their words may influence emotional responses from patients. The power of a metaphor in medicine stems much deeper than a political metaphor or even a sports-related metaphor will for most. In my personal experience, I have witness individuals who are completely proud to claim that their cancer has been a battle that they were able to overcome. While at the same time, I know people with extreme illnesses who would rather see their illness as something minor in their life that they just happen to be living with. I strongly agree with Khullars emphasis on the fact that a metaphor can be seen in positive and negative ways solely depending on who the metaphor is being told to.

James Geary: “Metaphor matters because it creates expectations.”: Metaphor is a very personal experience and when Geary says that metaphor creates expectations, I think he is referring to the fact that each person’s personal background related to a metaphor will in turn end with very different interpretations of a metaphor.

Michael Erard: “Once we lose a metaphor into the world, it will be blocked by other ways of thinking that change its meaning or disrupt its interpretation.”: According to Erard, this uncertainty is a very dangerous thing for metaphor creators to be aware of because the different possibilities could completely skew the initial intentions.

Dhruv Khullar: “But when the purpose of treatment is no recovering from a cold, but living with cancer, should the military metaphor be retired?”: This quote overall speaks to me because I believe it encompasses the thoughts on how easily metaphors can be interpreted in different ways, such as the willingness of patients to accept a cold versus cancer being related to a battle.