The therapist's use of metaphor

A linguistic perspective is applied to the therapist's use of original metaphors in psychoanalytically oriented psychotherapy. I present a review of the literature along with a view of psychotherapy and metaphor from a linguistic perspective. Three examples from psychotherapy are used to illustrate properties of metaphorical interpretations. An examination of the portion of the hour that precedes the therapist's metaphor suggests the importance of context in reducing the dangers of misunderstanding inherent in the use of metaphor.