Learn some figures of speech

Learn some figures of speech

Figures of speech or figurative language refers to the use of language not in its literal sense, but in a metaphorical or imaginative way. Although you may associate figures of speech primarily with poetry, prose writers also use them to give immediacy or drama to their writing or to create a striking visual image that the reader can “see.” A pleasing figure of speech can give the reader an entirely new perspective on an otherwise commonplace idea.

To analyze any figure of speech, you must know what is being compared to what. The following are some commonly used figures of speech.

l Simile—an explicit or direct comparison of one thing to another, normally introduced by “like” or “as”, sometimes by “as though”, “as if”, “seem”, etc. The two things compared must be similar. Look at the following example:

He notices how much the town has changed. Subdivisions are spreading across western Kentucky like an oil slick. (subdivision: an area of land that has been subdivided for building houses on)

Here the author is comparing residential sprawl, especially, new housing subdivisions, to an oil slick (海上浮油 ). What does the simile mean? An oil slick is a kind of pollution, the result of oil’s leaking from a tanker and covering a large area of ocean. Not only is it unattractive to look at, it also harms the natural environment and is difficult to control. These are the associations the author intends you to have: housing subdivisions cover the landscape and form a kind of visual pollution in the same way that oil slicks pollute oceans and kill sea life. The simile is effective because it makes us think and consider the effects of paving over farmland to build housing developments in a new way.

In another example, Paul Theroux, in his book To the Ends of the Earth, describes a river in India, using a simile: “The river itself made no sound, though it moved powerfully, eddying (起漩涡) like a swarm of greasy snakes in the ravine (=deep or narrow valley or gorge深谷,山涧).” The word eddying means moving against the main current. Theroux intends us to see how the water swirls around and moves in a circular fashion as a swarm of greasy snakes would. The visual picture is disturbing but powerful.

More examples:
1) The tree bent in the wind like an old man praying. (The tree is being compared to an old man at prayer.


2) I worked like a dog last night. (The speaker wants to show how hard he worked and how it made him feel, so he compares himself to a dog.)



3) The moon looked as white as a skull. (The moon’s color is being compared to the color of a skull.)

l Metaphor—an implied comparison between two (or more) unlike things achieved by identifying one with the other. It is considered (by many) the most important and basic poetic figure and the commonest and most beautiful. When you say “I told him to stop bugging me,” you are not really talking about bugs; you are comparing someone to an insect, even though you really are talking about a person. The expression “bugging me” suggests that the person is behaving like an annoying bug—a mosquito, perhaps, or an ant .

eg 1) His blackberry eyes darted nervously. (The eyes are being compared to blackberries

so that you can picture them as small and black.)

2) A brown, withered leaf of a hand fluttered gently on her lap and then lifted up to wipe a tear away. (The hand is being compared to a withered leaf so that you can picture a frail person approaching the end of life.)

3) The farmer’s leathery, lined face revealed years of toil in the sun.
(The speaker is comparing the farmer’s skin to leather, suggesting that the man’s skin is browned, thick and tough—the characteristics of leather.)

4) Ocky Milkman, drowned asleep in Cockle Street … (The man deeply asleep is being compared to a drowned man.)

5) Bear in mind
That death is a drum
Beating forever
…
--Langston Hughes

l Pun – a play on words based on similarity of sound and sharp difference in meaning.
e.g. 1) Seven days without water make one weak.
2) One shop announced: Darwin is Right—Inside.

(Darwin: British naturalist, father of the theory of evolution.)
l Sarcasm—a cutting remark, a verbal sneer designed to cut or give pain. It’s a form of irony in which apparent praise conceals another, scornful meaning. Sarcasm pretends to disguise its meaning, but does not intend to be misunderstood. For example, a sarcastic remark directed at a person who consistently arrives fifteen minutes late for appointments might be, “Oh, you've arrived exactly on time!”
Here is another example of sarcasm: Joe came to work, and instead of beginning to work, he sat down to rest. His boss noticed his behavior and said, “Joe, don’t work too hard.” Did the manager believe Joe was working hard? (Meaning: “You’re a real slacker!”) Here is a neutral example: “Joe came to work and immediately began to work. His boss noticed his behavior and said, “Joe, don’t work too hard!” Did the manager believe Joe was working hard? (Meaning: “You’re a hard worker!”)
Here the same remark shows different attitudes of the speaker. If someone has a problem understanding a social situation, he/she may fail to understand the literal language. Thus understanding of sarcasm often depends on our social cognition. See the relation between language and social cognition?

l Personification—a figure that endows objects, animals, ideas, or abstractions with human form, character, or sensibility. It is to treat a thing or an idea as if it were human or had human qualities, or to give nonhuman things human features. There are three chief kinds of personification:
A. That produced by the use of adjectives and adverbs:
the blushing rose; the thirsty ground; the angry waters (wild situation); Dusk came stealthily.
B. That produced by the use of verbs:
- The kettle sings.
- The waves danced.
- Thunder roared and a pouring rain started.
- This time fate was smiling to him.
- The match will soon be over and defeat is staring us in the face.
C. That produced by the use of nouns:
- the smiles of spring
- the whisper of leaves
- Little ghosts of wind whispered secrets in the treetops.
- The sun yawned through the trees. (The sun is being compared to a person yawning.)
- An idea spoke within him, racing through
his mind. (The idea has the quality of a
living thing: it can speak and race.)

l Symbol—a thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract. Symbols are even more abstract and indirect than similes and metaphors. There are universal symbols — symbols that are understood by most people everywhere. The yearly cycle of birth, fruition, harvest, and death are represented by the natural elements—the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. The dove is a universal symbol of peace and love.

A personal symbol is defined by individual experience; anything can be symbolic to one but unknown to others. Mary’s pink sweater, for example, is her symbol of happiness, and John’s Audi is a symbol of his wealth and authority. Your black fountain pen may be …

A conventional symbol varies from culture to culture, depending on customs. It can have a conventional or customary effect on us. The national flag , for example, is supposed to bestir our patriotic feelings. It is a symbol: a visible object that suggests something further meaningful in addition to itself. By custom, our society expects a standard response to it. Fire can symbolize punishment (eternal burning in Hell for one’s wrongdoings on earth.) or perhaps ritual purification, as in India. In western culture the color red can symbolize violence (because of its association with blood) or passion, as we see in Valentine cards
. In China, red symbolizes happiness; traditional Chinese brides wear red wedding dresses, and children receive “lucky money” in red envelopes for the New Year.

In American culture, green suggests verdant (青翠的) vegetation—the rebirth of life during spring. But green can also symbolize jealousy, as in Shakespeare’s Othello, where jealousy is represented symbolically as a “green-eyed monster.” In English, we also have the related cliché—“green with envy (非常嫉妒的).”
(Also the Christian cross.)

Symbols are often at work in proverbs, as in the old saying “The pen is mightier than the sword (文字的力量胜于武力).” “Pen” symbolizes the persuasive power of writing, and “sword” symbolizes the power of military. Translated into literal terms, it means that one can exert more influence over others by writing than by using physical coercion. We know that the words “pen” and “sword” in this proverb refer to abstractions and are not to be taken literally.

l Alliteration—The repetition of sounds in nearby words; it usually involves the initial consonant sounds of words. We recognize alliteration by sound, not by spelling: know and nail alliterate, but know and key do not.
Alliteration is used often in poetry to give emphasis to words that are related in meaning and sometimes used in prose for the same effect—to join two or more related words. It should be used only when the writer makes a strong emotional response to his subject. In the past, some cultivated it, but today good prose writers usually avoid alliteration; Poetry, too, contains less alliteration today than it usually contained formerly.
e.g. 1. We felt strong, smug, secure.
(smug: self-satisfied)
2. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. (a well-known tongue twister)