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    archivo de literary devices, literatura inglesa

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    archivo de literary devices, literatura inglesa

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    6 views4 pages

    Figurative Language Literature - PDF To Upload

    Uploaded by

    Natalia Lescano
    archivo de literary devices, literatura inglesa

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    of 4
    1a Fields of Vision boys . at What is Poetry? 5° Figures of speech EAH 9 A figure of speech is any us¢ of language which deviates from che obvious or ‘common usage in order to achieve a special meaning or effect. We use figures of speech in everyday conversation when we say, for example, ‘money talks’ (personification) or 've got butterflies in my stomach’ (metaphor) or ‘he's like a bull in a china shop* (simile). ‘The density and originality of a writer’s use of figures of speech is part of his characteristic style. ‘There are many different figures of speech. The most widely used are: ‘A simile figure of speech in which a comparison between two distinctly different Simile things s indicated by the word ‘like’ or as’. A simile is made up of three elements: + the tenor: the subject under discussion; + the vehicle: what the subject is compared to; ‘+ the ground: what the poet believes the tenor and the vehicle have in common, We can therefore analyse the simile ‘life is lke a rollercoaster’ as follows: tenor ground vehicle Life it has its ups and downs rollercoaster ‘A metaphor is an implied comparison which creates a total identification Metaphor between the two things being compared. Words such as ike! or ‘as’ are not used. Like a simile, a metaphor is made up of three elements: + the tenor: the subject under discussion; + the vehicle: what the subject is compared to; + the ground: what the poct believes the {enor and the vehicle have in common, We can analyse the metaphor ‘he's a live wire’ as follows: tenor ground vehicle he is full of energy/is very lively live wire 1s potentially dangerous In metonymy (Greek for ’a change of name’ the term for one thing is applied to Metonymy another with which it has become closely associated. ‘The crown’, for example, ‘can be used to refer to a king, In synecdoche (Greek for ‘taking together’ a part of something is used to signify Synecdoche the whole or vice versa, 2lthough the latter form is quite rare. An example of synecdoche from everyday speech can be found in the proverb ‘Many hands make light work, where the expression ‘many hands’ means ‘the labour of many people’ ‘An example of the whole representing a part can be found in expressions such as ‘Tm reading Dickens’, where an attuibute ofa literary work (.¢. it was written by Charles Dickens) is substituted for the work itself. Personification is a form of comparison in which human characteristics, such as personification ‘emotions, personality, behaviour and so on, are attributed to an animal, object or idea: ‘The proud lion surveyed his kingdom’ ‘The primary function of personification is to make abstract ideas clearer to the reader by comparing them to everyday human experience, Humanising cold and complex abstractions can bring them to life, render them more interesting and make them easier to understand. QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN ANALYSING FIGURES OF SPEECH, + Are comparisons drawn through metaphors or similes? What information, attitudes or associations are revealed through these associations? * Ase there any examples of synecdoche or metonymy? What is the writer’ purpose in using these figures of speech? How do they affect the style and tone of the poem? * Are animals, objects or ideas personified in the poem? How does personification contribute to our ‘understanding of the poem? Images are words or phrases that appeal to our senses. Consider these lines taken from Wilfted Owen's poem Dulke et Decorum Est. Rent double, lke old beggars under sacks, i Knock-kneed, coughing lke hags we cused though stadge. } The poet is describing his experience as a soldier during ~ ‘the First World War. Through his choice of words he : creates: «+ visual images: bent double, old beggars under sacks, knock-kneed; + aural images: coughing like hags, cursed: + a tactile image: sludge. If we replace the imagistic words that Owen uses with ‘more generic terms: Physically exhausted, the soldiers marched across the Wet terrain cursing their fate the impact on our senses is lost. A writer may use an image to help us: Fon bate ature + resive a sense experience that we have already had. We may be able to conjure | devastauon asthe battle up the sound of old women coughing or the sensation of walking through | of the Somme during the ‘mud from past experience; Fist Werts War + have a new sense experience. This is achieved when our sense memories are called forth in a pattern that does not correspond to any of our actual experiences. Exploited in this way, images allow us to see, hear, feel, smell and taste experiences that ate new to us. ‘We use the term imagery to refer to combinations ot clusters of images that are used to create a dominant impression, Death, corruption and disease imagery, for example, creates a powerful network in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. Writers often develop meaningful patterns in their imagery, and a writer’s choice and arrangement of images is often an important clue to the overall meaning of his work. (eWTaie Neen ENTE What does the writer want the reader to see, hear, taste, feet and smell? + What revealing details bring the place, the people or the situation to life? Does the writer use details that people woul wsually overlook? | + Which are the most striking and revealing images? Which images tend to linger on in our minds? Are they important to the overall meaning of the work? * Does the work appeal to one sense in particular orto ail the senses? + What emotions or attitudes do the images arouse in the reader? WET a Introduction te Literary Appreciation Symbols Le REHOME P A symbol is an example of what is called the transference of meaning. Writers take a concrete item ~ an object, a colour, a person, a place - and attribute a deeper meaning to it. A symbol may be a detail, an object, a character ot an incident. It exists frst as something literal and concrete in the work, but it also has the capacity to evoke in the mind of the reader a range of invisble and abstract associations. By definition symbols are open-ended. A given symbol will evoke different responses in different readers. There is, however, an acceptable range of possible readings and any interpretation of 2 symbol must be confirmed by the rest of the work ‘The identification and understanding of symbols demands awareness and intelligence of the reader. It involves the reader directly in the creative process, asking him to add his own intellectual and emotional responses. Through this collaboration the work is enriched and enlarged. ‘Many symbolic associations are widely recognised and accepted: the dawn with hope, the serpent with evil, the colour white with innocence, light with knowledge, dark with ignorance, Writers often make use of these cultural or shared symbols, Readers must not, however, automatically apply conventional meanings to these symbols. Sometimes writers will enlarge or narrow the ‘meaning of a cultural symbol. The reader must first carefully examine how the symbol is used in the text before assigning meaning Cultural or shared symbols Author also use their own orginal symbols, Personal or iterary symbols do not have pre-established associations the meaning that is atached to them emerges from the context of the work in which they occur. A particular landscape or | certain atmospheric conditions may become associated with a characters | emotional state. A colour or an object may take on a secondary meaning, A Literary or personal symbols recurring gesture or a character may be given symbolic meaning, Guidelines for When does an object, character or action cease to be just part of the story and identifying and under. begin to develop symbolic associations? There is no simple ansiver to this standing symbols question. Ultimately, the reader must develop his own awareness through | teceptive and responsive reading. There are, however, some broad guidelines he | can follow. || The principal techniques that writers use for cating symbols are: + repetition: the reader should take note of multiple references to a particular object or the recurrence of the same gesture; ‘+ emphasis: does the author seem (o pay particular attention to some element, describe it in detail or use poetic or connotative language when referring to it? + associations automatically made with shared symbols: the reader should try to understand if the author wishes him to make conventional associations with the symbol or if he has added his own personal significance. While there is a risk that a reader may not identify symbols, there is also the danger that he may see symbolic importance where the writer did not intend it. | ‘Symbol hunting’, Le. attributing symbolic status to objects, characters or actions | when there is little evidence in the text that they should be viewed as a symbol, should be avoided. IQUESTIONS TO ‘ASK WHEN ANALYSING SYMBOLS + Does the writer refer repeatedly to any objects or gestures in his work? ‘+ Does he make any concrete items in the story emerge and assume importance? + Does he use poetic or connotative language when describing particular objects or gestures? + Does he use any shared or cultural symbols? Does he attribute the conventional meaning to these symbals? + How does the use of symbols help the writer o convey the meaning of his work? 20 te UW es RRS OR Sound features CGONOOMEDNS ‘Think of a sound that makes you relax, like the gentle lapping of water against rocks, Now think of a sound that you cannot stand, perhaps the screeching of chalk against a blackboard. Different sounds have different effects on us. The sounds of language also create different responses in us and writers, especially poets, use this in their work. By choosing words for their sound as well as their meaning, writers create a musicality in their work that can evoke strong emotional responses and reinforce the meaning they wish to convey. ‘The most common sound features are rhyme, alliteration, assonance and ‘onomatopoeia. What is Poetry? ‘The term rhyme refers to the effect that is created when a poet repeats the same Rhyme sound at the end of two or more lines. Rhyme has several important functions: + it adds a musical quality to the poem; ‘it marks the end of each line; + it makes the poem easier to remember, + if affects the pace and tone of the poem. There are several different types of rhyme: single-syllable or masculine thyme: the beginning of the syllable varies while the rest stays the same, for example day/say ight/night; double-syilable or feminine rhyme matches two syllable words ot parts of ‘words: ocean/motion, pretending/bending; triple-syllable rhyme matches three-syllable words: beautiful/utiful, comparison/

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