Abstract:
Our research involved interpretation of metaphors found in the Sons; of Songs. This issue emerges from the fact that religious discourses, whether oral or written, mostly employ metaphors among other stylistic features. Secondly, metaphors have hidden meanings. While interpreting a metaphor, a multiplicity of meanings emerges depending on experience, worldviews, needs and contexts of the persons concerned. This condition implies that, metaphors create ambiguity of interpretation as evidenced the Song of SonRS. This research is a contribution to the few existing interpretations this song and hence becomes important to l3ible readers and interpreters. It has also contributed to areas of discourse and textual analysis. Through this study, varied metaphorical meanings from the Song of SonRS were established on religious and literal perspectives and it was also proved how these religious metaphors could be used in implied social contexts. This was content - analysis research. Therefore, data was collected through reading and analyzing Biblical content with a bias to the Song Songs and different Bible commentaries. The data was analyzed descriptively. The result of this study is that different metaphorical meanings from this song have been established through religious and literal perspectives. Also, despite being religious, it was revealed how these metaphors can be used in a variety of implied social contexts. Considering the nature of the results, the study has concluded that the interpretation of any metaphor greatly depends on contexts and needs of individual participants. To interpret the metaphors of this song on one perspective only (religious) is to lessen their issues
