The Meaning of Clichés

The concept of the cliché occupies a place at the periphery of our critical vocabulary. Reviewers, critics, editors, and teachers of composition frequently speak of clichés, but dictionaries of critical terms and handbooks of literary and cultural studies almost never provide entries on the word. This paper asks whether pointing out clichés can be seen as a form of critique or whether it is just quibbling, and how we draw the line between serious scrutiny and mere pedantry. It further suggests that complaints about clichés are often used to mark subtle breakdowns of communication, moments in which the reader or listener feels disrespected. Such a view of the cliché goes some way toward uncovering its neglected rhetorical and political dimensions.

Journal of Creative Writing Studies, 2017

Harper, in On Creative Writing (2010) claims that we should "correctly view Creative Writing as acts and actions" (76), arguing that "completed works do not constitute Creative Writing" (8). Whatever the ultimate validity of this position, in comparison to traditional post-facto criticism it does emphasise the processes and considerations creative writers might engage with when they write. In consideration of any particular literary technique or narrative device, we might then not only ask what the likely effect would be on a reader or readers, we might also ask about the knowledge and competencies the writer might have to possess (or lack) in order for them to engage in the use of that technique or device. The effect or technique that this paper will consider is cliché. It will argue that cliché is not simply symptomatic of unimaginative and overly standardised writing, rather that it is an inhibitor to thinking in our reading and writing and that cliché, from an informational as well as an 'aesthetic' point of view, presents logical and ethical challenges that are relevant to creative writers and those who teach creative writing. In the first section I discuss what cliché is, why it is a problem and what kind of a problem it is. Here I am indebted to Schultz's (2014) paper which argues that cliché is not simply an expressive problem, but is suggestive of cognitive processes and habits of thought which present creative and ethical challenges. In the second section I focus on what I argue is an important characteristic aspect of cliché: That they are superficial, or informationally impoverished. I show this in a positive way by giving examples of how logically altering a cliché offers a proliferation of information. In the third section I build on this account by delineating two kinds of cliché found in creative writing: 'external' clichés and 'internal' clichés. The latter are of particular relevance for the creative writer because they are less obvious than external clichés, though still possesses the same characteristic features and problems. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to creative writers' understanding of a (by definition) frequent feature of literary art and also to raise awareness of a topic that, despite its frequency in creative practice and in the products of those practices, is underrepresented in CW pedagogy and theory. This paper attempts to show how cliché is a more important and complex phenomenon than it might first DIGITAL AND MULTIMODAL/MULTIMEDIA THEORY, CULTURE, AND CRAFT 1 Jordan-Baker: On Cliché: Expression, Cognition and Understanding Published by RIT Scholar Works, 2016

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Literature, 2020

A term deriving from the sound of the mechanical printing process able to provide cheap and fast reproductions of literary works, the cliché is at once both a foundation of modern culture, and its constant adversary. Denoting a lack of originality, thought or effort, clichés appear to be the very opposite of literature’s aspirations, and there is no end to the warnings for writers to avoid them at all costs. However, few theorists have spent sustained time detailing the workings of the cliché, outside of criticising their use. Indeed, the cliché seems to resist being thought about too much. At the same time, this resistance to theory can also obscure a range of issues that the cliché raises as a problem for literature. Unpacking these problems suggests that the cliché is not simply an issue of unoriginal thought, but arises from, and is perpetuated by, a number of tensions within the production and circulation of writing itself. These include tensions between artistic worth and literary ownership; between organic creation and technologies of reproduction; between localised communications and universal truth; and concerning the status of the intellectual in relation to the masses, and the place of authenticity in late-modern culture.

2017

This paper argues that cliche is not simply a problem of language and expression, but rather a cognitive problem or one of understanding. It locates several distinctive features of cliche, namely their characteristic superficiality (low informational content) and the typically low cognitive effort they require to understand. It then argues for a distinction between ‘external’ and ‘internal’ cliches, where the former are the well-known phrases commonly recognised as cliches, but the latter are not recognised as cliches but nevertheless function as cliches within a specific literary work.

Forum University of Edinburgh Postgraduate Journal of Culture the Arts, 2014

In: The International Encyclopedia of Linguistic Anthropology. Edited by James Stanlaw, John Wiley & Sons, 2021

A scholarly treatment of cliché needs to consider the connection between the perceived non-originality of form and the ensuing negative evaluation. The key role in this process belongs to pragmatic meta-awareness because, when referencing a cliché, speakers demonstrate their familiarity with the underlying stylistic norms and point out other interlocutors' failure to meet them. Though cliché often originates in linguistic creativity, its semantic trajectory is one of decline, as evidenced by the negative reactions clichés normally receive; see also its typical synonyms such as hackneyed phrase, trite expression, stock phrase, dead metaphor, verbal crutch, perpetually misused expression, platitude, etc. From a semiotic perspective, a cliché is any sign or form of meaning-making that is patently non-original and that, without engaging the original source in some kind of reflective criticism, implicit commentary, or creative reuse, is also typically subject to the characteristic negative evaluation stemming from the non-originality of its formal components.

ABSTRACT Creativity–whether in humans or machines–is more than a matter of simple creation. To be “creative” implies an ability to do more than invent, but an ability to recognize and appreciate the inventions of others. After all, the ability to recognize surprising value in the efforts of others is the same ability we use to guide our own creative efforts. Solipsistic creativity is rare indeed, and most creativity relies on an audience that is creative enough to value our efforts.

2018

Noting the persistent imagery of overuse and exhaustion that surrounds the concept of the cliché, this paper argues that linguistic statements can suffer from a “tragedy of the commons,” according to which a shared resource will inevitably be spoiled by a community in the absence of constraints on use. Each verbal cliché is the result of a tragedy of the commonplace, the overexploitation and depreciation of an initially valued and widely used expression. The measures often taken to avert overexploitation of the commons – privatization and government intervention – fail to work in the case of overused phrases, since language cannot be divided up for the exclusive use of particular individuals and the repetition of statements cannot quite be censored just because it produces tedium. The tragedy of the commonplace reveals the radically social and un-ownable character of language.

Failure Pedagogies: Learning and Unlearning What it Means to Fail, 2020

Examining familiar writing pedagogy injunctions to avoid cliches, Alford reclaims the inventive form of the cliche for both writing and teaching.