Can AI-Translation Convey The Actual Meaning OF Metaphors?

Script:

• • A metaphor is a figure of speech that implicitly compares two unrelated things.
  • Metaphors can be used to create vivid imagery, exaggerate a characteristic or action, or express a complex idea. They are commonly used in literature, advertising, and everyday speech
  • The Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT) states that metaphor is a cognitive process that is reflected in language structures.
  • According to this theory, conceptual metaphor represents the interaction of two cognitive structures (or domains): the source domain and the targt domain.
  • The target domain is structured similarly to the source domain through metaphorical mappings that are established between them.
  • Conceptual metaphor is expressed both by verbal and non-verbal means – arts, music, gestures, etc.
  • This poses the question of whether or not AI is able to understand metaphors.
  • To understand this matter better, a human-composed text filled with conventional metaphoors was presented to CHATGPT and DeepL.
  •  The same text was input twice to better identify whether or not the software can identify metaphors and convey their message accordingly into target languages.
  • CHATGPT Resutlts: The first time the text was put into the software, the AI program translated metaphorsword-to-word without being able to convey their actual meaning.
  • The second time the text was input, AI was able to identify them as metaphors but was not able to convey their actual meaning.
  • DeepL Results: The same metaphors were presented to DeepL. The program failed to find a corresponding metaphor in the target language as well.
  • Conclusion: Metaphors are a huge part of our daily day lives and shape our understanding of our surroundings.
  • Even the most advanced self-learning software such as ChatPT and DeepL struggle to identify the corresponding meaning of even the most conventional metaphors.
  • AI still has long way to go before fully being able to capture the meaning and essence of metaphorical language.
  • Clearly, at present, only humans can understand the nuances of language, especially metaphors.

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