Penasquitos Stake Institute

Parable: A parable is a short fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or a religious principle. The word is related to the Latin parabola, indicating a comparison. In math, a parabola is a two-dimensional, mirror-symmetrical curve. Parabolic objects have the property that, if they are made of material that reflects light, then any light which enters the parabola travelling parallel to its axis of symmetry is reflected to its focus. It seems an apt image to describe the teaching stories of the Savior. We may receive light through study of his parables, and achieve greater focus for our own lives.

 

Allegory: Related to parables, allegories are stories or long poems which express truths or generalizations about the human experience by means of symbols or fictional figures. As a literary device, an allegory is simply an extended metaphor. The word allegory comes from Latin and Greek for "veiled language, figurative." In LDS scripture,  Zenos' allegory of the wild and tame olive trees in Jacob 5 is an excellent example of this literary form.

 

Simile: A simile is a figure of speech comparing two unlike things using the words "like" or "as." This device is used in scripture to good effect. For example: "As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones" (Psalm 109:18).  Or Isaiah 59:11, "We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves...."

The Savior often opened a parable with a simile like this one: "The kingdom of heaven is likened unto...."

 

Metaphor: A metaphor is a figure of speech in which two unlike things are compared without the words "like" or "as." A metaphor is considered more forceful than a simile - as it doesn't just assert a similarity, it states that one thing IS another. One striking example from the scriptures is in James 3:6, which states, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity...." An allegory is an extended metaphor. 

 

Analogy: Parables often contain analogy, the comparing of similar features in two dissimilar things, ideas, or situations. Analogy is the basis for simile and metaphor. It is the ability to compare or infer likeness based on the idea that if two things agree with each other in one or more respects, they will probably agree in other respects.

 

Object Lesson: An object lesson utilizes material objects to illustrate a principle or moral lesson. One can imagine many of the parables of the Savior fitting into this category. As he taught the parable of the sower, did he motion toward workers in a nearby field? Were shepherds tending their flocks nearby when he spoke of the lost sheep? Certainly the items discussed in all Jesus' parables were familiar to his listeners.

 

Fable: A fable is a fictional story that features animals, mythical creatures, plants, or forces of nature which are given human qualities. Fables usually illustrate a moral lesson and are often concluded with a pithy maxim.