Re: PROPOSED CHANGE TO GISMU BASELINE -- PLEASE READ & RESPOND!

[prc.unisys.com!dave]

> I believe that the use of "metaphor" to translate "tanru" is both misleading
> and inaccurate.

If Cowan's interpretation of "tanru" is correct, then I have certainly
been misled by the translation "metaphor."  However, I'm a rank
beginner and don't know enough lojban to know whether he's right.  His
posting makes sense, and he is certainly correct about the meaning of
the work "metaphor."

The understanding I got from reading the first few lojban chapters was
that the language got by with a relatively small vocabularly because
everything was to be taken metaphorically--if something shared a few
key characteristics with the literal meaning of a tanru, then the
tanru could be used for it (e.g. Carter's example of "chick" for
"nubile woman.")

So which is it?  Are lojban tanru to be taken literally or metaphorically?