Silver bullet
The metaphor of the silver bullet applies to any straightforward solution perceived to have extreme effectiveness. The phrase typically appears with an expectation that some new technology or practice will easily cure a major prevailing problem.
The term originates from folklore. Traditionally, the silver bullet is the only kind of bullet for firearms that is effective against a witch, vampire, monster, or a person living a charmed life.
In folklore
The best known magical creature which is vulnerable to a silver bullet is a werewolf. The werewolf's vulnerability to silver actually dates back to the legend of The Beast of Gévaudan in which a gigantic Wolf is killed by a person wielding a gun loaded with silver bullets.
In different traditions, silver is thought to be the metal associated with the moon and with the human soul. It is likely that these associations have contributed to the legend of the silver bullet.
In pop culture
As a more modern popular culture example, the Lone Ranger used silver bullets.
The American beer Coors Light is often referred to as the "Silver Bullet" as a reference to the color of the canned version of the product.
Actual silver bullets
Functionally, though slightly lighter than lead, pure silver is an adequate bullet material, being hard enough to resist scuffing in a gun bore at high velocity, unlike lead. However, casting the bullet must take into account that silver shrinks while cooling. The terminal effects are not unlike a full-metal jacketed bullet; however, a silver bullet tends not to fragment or deform even at rifle velocities, and does tend to over-penetrate. Because of its higher melting temperature and hardness, it requires more sophisticated casting and forming techniques than lead for quality bullets. Crude bullets can be cast in a pinch, but a temperature of about 1000°C (bright-orange hot) is necessary to get good flow for casting. Also, perhaps most importantly, silver is a precious metal, while lead and copper are relatively cheap. Hence, in reality, silver bullets are rarely used.
Usage as a metaphor
Apparently miraculous drugs such as salvarsan and penicillin are sometimes referred to as "silver bullets." The term is also used to humorously refer to colloidal silver. Experts often use the term more cynically to dampen unreasonable expectations. Doctors, for example, will often readily characterise the latest fad diet as "no silver bullet." A silver bullet is a key metaphor in Eugene O'Neill's 1920 play, The Emperor Jones. Brutus Jones, ex-Pullman Porter, has fostered the illusion among the superstitious folk of the island he rules as "emperor" that he can only be killed by a silver bullet. He himself has forged such a bullet, in case he is eventually faced with the necessity of committing suicide. Instead, the natives revolt; Jones sets out to escape but becomes lost within himself, in the maze of his own darkness, before being struck by the silver bullet of the natives.
The US Army's M1A1/A2 Abrams tank fires (among others) the M829 APFSDS round. It is nicknamed the 'Silver Bullet' by its tank crews due to its effectiveness at knocking out Iraqi T-72 tanks during the first Gulf war. However, since the round is made from depleted uranium, its color might have been a factor.
See also
External links
- More on the confusion between silver bullet and magic bullet here
- Another site on Silver Bullets