Literal and figurative language

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Literal and figurative language is a distinction within some fields of language analysis, in particular stylistics, rhetoric, and semantics.

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Literal usage confers meaning to words, in the sense of the meaning they have by themselves, outside any figure of speech. [2] It maintains a consistent meaning regardless of the context, [3] with the intended meaning corresponding exactly to the meaning of the individual words. [4] On the contrary, figurative use of language is the use of words or phrases that implies a non-literal meaning which does make sense or that could [also] be true. [5]

Aristotle and later the Roman Quintilian were among the early analysts of rhetoric who expounded on the differences between literal and figurative language. [6] A comprehensive scholarly examination of metaphor in antiquity, and the way its early emergence was fostered by Homer's epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey , is provided by William Bedell Stanford, Greek Metaphor, [7]

In 1769, Frances Brooke's novel The History of Emily Montague was used in the earliest Oxford English Dictionary citation for the figurative sense of literally; the sentence from the novel used was, "He is a fortunate man to be introduced to such a party of fine women at his arrival; it is literally to feed among the lilies." [8] This citation was also used in the OED's 2011 revision. [8]

Within literary analysis, such terms are still used; but within the fields of cognition and linguistics, the basis for identifying such a distinction is no longer used. [9]

Figurative language in literary analysis

Figurative language can take multiple forms, such as simile or metaphor. [10] Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature says that figurative language can be classified in five categories: resemblance or relationship, emphasis or understatement, figures of sound, verbal games, and errors. [11]

A simile [12] is a comparison of two things, indicated by some connective, usually "like", "as", "than", or a verb such as "resembles" to show how they are similar. [13]

Example: "His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry.../And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow." (emph added)—Clement Clark Moore [14]

A metaphor [15] is a figure of speech in which two "essentially unlike things" are shown to have a type of resemblance or create a new image. [16] The similarities between the objects being compared may be implied rather than directly stated. [16] The literary critic and rhetorician, I. A. Richards, divides a metaphor into two parts: the vehicle and the tenor. [17]

Example: "Fog comes on little cat feet"—Carl Sandburg [18] In this example, “little cat feet” is the vehicle that clarifies the tenor, “fog.” A comparison between the vehicle and tenor (also called the teritium comparitionis ) is implicit: fog creeps in silently like a cat.

An extended metaphor is a metaphor that is continued over multiple sentences. [19] [20]

Example: "The sky steps out of her daywear/Slips into her shot-silk evening dress./An entourage of bats whirr and swing at her hem, ...She's tried on every item in her wardrobe." Dilys Rose [21]

Onomatopoeia is a word designed to be an imitation of a sound. [22]

Example: “Bark! Bark!” went the dog as he chased the car that vroomed past.

Personification [23] is the attribution of a personal nature or character to inanimate objects or abstract notions, [24] especially as a rhetorical figure.

Example: "Because I could not stop for Death,/He kindly stopped for me;/The carriage held but just ourselves/And Immortality."—Emily Dickinson. Dickinson portrays death as a carriage driver. [24]

An oxymoron is a figure of speech in which a pair of opposite or contradictory terms is used together for emphasis. [25]

Examples: Organized chaos, Same difference, Bittersweet.

A paradox is a statement or proposition which is self-contradictory, unreasonable, or illogical. [26]

Example: This statement is a lie.

Hyperbole is a figure of speech which uses an extravagant or exaggerated statement to express strong feelings. [27]

Example: They had been walking so long that John thought he might drink the entire lake when they came upon it.

Allusion is a reference to a famous character or event.

Example: A single step can take you through the looking glass if you're not careful.

An idiom is an expression that has a figurative meaning often related, but different from the literal meaning of the phrase.

Example: You should keep your eye out for him.

A pun is an expression intended for a humorous or rhetorical effect by exploiting different meanings of words.

Example: I wondered why the ball was getting bigger. Then it hit me.

Standard pragmatic model of comprehension

Prior to the 1980s, the "standard pragmatic" model of comprehension was widely believed. In that model, it was thought the recipient would first attempt to comprehend the meaning as if literal, but when an appropriate literal inference could not be made, the recipient would shift to look for a figurative interpretation that would allow comprehension. [28] Since then, research has cast doubt on the model. In tests, figurative language was found to be comprehended at the same speed as literal language; and so the premise that the recipient was first attempting to process a literal meaning and discarding it before attempting to process a figurative meaning appears to be false. [29]

Reddy and contemporary views

Beginning with the work of Michael Reddy in his 1979 work "The Conduit Metaphor", many linguists now reject that there is a valid way to distinguish between a "literal" and "figurative" mode of language. [30]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metaphor</span> Figure of speech of implicit comparison

A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas.

An oxymoron is a figure of speech that juxtaposes concepts with opposite meanings within a word or in a phrase that is a self-contradiction. As a rhetorical device, an oxymoron illustrates a point to communicate and reveal a paradox. A general meaning of "contradiction in terms" is recorded by the 1902 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary.

A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two things. Similes differ from metaphors by highlighting the similarities between two things using comparison words such as "like", "as", "so", or "than", while metaphors create an implicit comparison. This distinction is evident in the etymology of the words: simile derives from the Latin word similis, while metaphor derives from the Greek word metapherein. As in the case of metaphors, the thing that is being compared is called the tenor, and the thing it is being compared to is called the vehicle. Author and lexicographer Frank J. Wilstach compiled a dictionary of similes in 1916, with a second edition in 1924.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eponym</span> Person or thing after which something is named

An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include eponymous and eponymic.

An idiom is a phrase or expression that usually presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase. Some phrases which become figurative idioms, however, do retain the phrase's literal meaning. Categorized as formulaic language, an idiom's figurative meaning is different from the literal meaning. Idioms occur frequently in all languages; in English alone there are an estimated twenty-five million idiomatic expressions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Synonym</span> Words or phrases having the same meaning

A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words begin, start, commence, and initiate are all synonyms of one another: they are synonymous. The standard test for synonymy is substitution: one form can be replaced by another in a sentence without changing its meaning. Words are considered synonymous in only one particular sense: for example, long and extended in the context long time or extended time are synonymous, but long cannot be used in the phrase extended family. Synonyms with exactly the same meaning share a seme or denotational sememe, whereas those with inexactly similar meanings share a broader denotational or connotational sememe and thus overlap within a semantic field. The former are sometimes called cognitive synonyms and the latter, near-synonyms, plesionyms or poecilonyms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metonymy</span> Figure of speech in which something is referred to by the name of an associated thing

Metonymy is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Figure of speech</span> Change of the expected pattern of words

A figure of speech or rhetorical figure is a word or phrase that intentionally deviates from ordinary language use to produce a rhetorical effect. Figures of speech are traditionally classified into schemes, which vary the ordinary sequence of words, and tropes, where words carry a meaning other than what they ordinarily signify.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Synecdoche</span> Use of a term for a part of something to refer to the whole or vice versa

Synecdoche is a type of metonymy; it is a figure of speech in which a term for a part of something is used to refer to the whole, or vice versa. The term is derived from Ancient Greek συνεκδοχή (sunekdokhḗ) 'simultaneous understanding'.

<i>Pussy</i> Term with multiple meanings

Pussy is a term used as a noun, an adjective, and—in rare instances—a verb in the English language. It has several meanings, as slang, as euphemism, and as vulgarity. Most commonly, it is used as a noun with the meaning "cat", "coward", or "weakling". In slang usage, it can mean "vulva or vagina" and less commonly, as a form of synecdoche, meaning "sexual intercourse with a woman". Because of its multiple senses including both innocent and vulgar connotations, pussy is often the subject of double entendre.

Hyperbole is the use of exaggeration as a rhetorical device or figure of speech. In rhetoric, it is also sometimes known as auxesis. In poetry and oratory, it emphasizes, evokes strong feelings, and creates strong impressions. As a figure of speech, it is usually not meant to be taken literally.

In linguistics and philosophy, the denotation of an expression is its literal meaning. For instance, the English word "warm" denotes the property of having high temperature. Denotation is contrasted with other aspects of meaning including connotation. For instance, the word "warm" may evoke calmness or coziness, but these associations are not part of the word's denotation. Similarly, an expression's denotation is separate from pragmatic inferences it may trigger. For instance, describing something as "warm" often implicates that it is not hot, but this is once again not part of the word's denotation.

In literature and writing, stylistically elements are the use of any of a variety of techniques to give an auxiliary meaning, ideas, or feeling to the literalism or written.

A contronym, contranym or autantonym is a word with two meanings that are opposite each other. For example, the word cleave can mean "to cut apart" or "to bind together". This phenomenon is called enantiosemy, enantionymy, antilogy or autantonymy. An enantiosemic term is by definition polysemic.

In linguistics, semantic analysis is the process of relating syntactic structures, from the levels of words, phrases, clauses, sentences and paragraphs to the level of the writing as a whole, to their language-independent meanings. It also involves removing features specific to particular linguistic and cultural contexts, to the extent that such a project is possible. The elements of idiom and figurative speech, being cultural, are often also converted into relatively invariant meanings in semantic analysis. Semantics, although related to pragmatics, is distinct in that the former deals with word or sentence choice in any given context, while pragmatics considers the unique or particular meaning derived from context or tone. To reiterate in different terms, semantics is about universally coded meaning, and pragmatics, the meaning encoded in words that is then interpreted by an audience.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glossary of rhetorical terms</span>

Owing to its origin in ancient Greece and Rome, English rhetorical theory frequently employs Greek and Latin words as terms of art. This page explains commonly used rhetorical terms in alphabetical order. The brief definitions here are intended to serve as a quick reference rather than an in-depth discussion. For more information, click the terms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glossary of literary terms</span> Terms and concepts used in language, literature, and literary analysis

This glossary of literary terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts used in the discussion, classification, analysis, and criticism of all types of literature, such as poetry, novels, and picture books, as well as of grammar, syntax, and language techniques. For a more complete glossary of terms relating to poetry in particular, see Glossary of poetry terms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trope (literature)</span> Use of figurative language for artistic effect

A literary trope is the use of figurative language, via word, phrase or an image, for artistic effect such as using a figure of speech. Keith and Lundburg describe a trope as "a substitution of a word or phrase by a less literal word or phrase". The word trope has also undergone a semantic change and now also describes commonly recurring or overused literary and rhetorical devices, motifs or clichés in creative works. Literary tropes span almost every category of writing, such as poetry, film, plays, and video games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">English-language idioms</span> Common words or phrases with non-literal meanings

An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words. By another definition, an idiom is a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements. For example, an English speaker would understand the phrase "kick the bucket" to mean "to die" – and also to actually kick a bucket. Furthermore, they would understand when each meaning is being used in context.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trope (cinema)</span> Element of film semiology

In cinema, a trope is what The Art Direction Handbook for Film defines as "a universally identified image imbued with several layers of contextual meaning creating a new visual metaphor".

References

  1. ↑ "Figure of speech." Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Merriam-Webster, Inc. 2015.
  2. ↑ Jaszczolt, Katarzyna M..; Turner, Ken (2003). Meaning Through Language Contrast. Volume 2. John Benjamins Publishing. pp. 141–. ISBN   978-1588112071 . Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  3. ↑ Glucksberg, Sam (2001). Understanding Figurative Language:From Metaphor to Idioms: From Metaphor to Idioms. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0195111095 . Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  4. ↑ Harley, Trevor A. (2001). The Psychology of Language: From Data to Theory. Taylor & Francis. pp. 293–. ISBN   978-0863778674 . Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  5. ↑ Montgomery, Mar; Durant, Alan; Fabb, Nigel; Tom Furniss; Sara Mills (2007). Ways of Reading: Advanced Reading Skills for Students of English Literature. Taylor & Francis. pp. 117–. ISBN   978-0415346337 . Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  6. ↑ M.H. Abrams; Geoffrey Harpham (2011). A Glossary of Literary Terms (10 ed.). Cengage Learning. ISBN   978-0495898023.
  7. ↑ W. Bedell Stanford, Greek Metaphor (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1936)
  8. 1 2 "Language Log » Frances Brooke, destroyer of English (Not literally)".
  9. ↑ Barber, Alex; Stainton, Robert J (2009). Concise Encyclopedia of Philosophy of Language and Linguistics. Elsevier. pp. 230–. ISBN   978-0080965000 . Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  10. ↑ Montgomery, Martin; Durant, Alan; Fabb, Nigel; Tom Furniss; Sara Mills (2007). Ways of Reading: Advanced Reading Skills for Students of English Literature. Routledge. pp. 117–. ISBN   978-0203597118 . Retrieved 3 April 2013.
  11. ↑ Merriam-Webster, inc. (1995). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature. Merriam-Webster. p.  415. ISBN   978-0877790426 . Retrieved 23 April 2013.
  12. ↑ Origin: 1350–1400; Middle English < Latin: image, likeness, comparison, noun use of neuter of similis similar. "Simile". simile, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
  13. ↑ Kennedy, X. J., and Dana Gioia. An Introduction To Poetry . 13th ed. Longman Pub Group, 2007. p. 594.
  14. ↑ Terban, Marvin; joi, Giulio Maestro (1993). It Figures!: Fun Figures of Speech. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 12–. ISBN   978-0395665916 . Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  15. ↑ Origin: 1525–35; < Latin metaphora < Greek metaphorá a transfer, akin to metaphérein to transfer. See meta-, -phore "Metaphor". metaphor, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
  16. 1 2 Miller, Carol Rawlings (2001). Irresistible Shakespeare: 6 Sensational Scenes from Favorite Plays and Dozens of Fun Ideas That Introduce Students to the Wonderful Works of Shakespeare. Scholastic Inc. pp. 25–. ISBN   978-0439098441 . Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  17. ↑ I. A. Richards, The Philosophy of Rhetoric (New York: Oxford University Press, 1936), 119–127.
  18. ↑ Fandel, Jennifer (2005). Metaphors, Similes, And Other Word Pictures. The Creative Company. pp. 30–. ISBN   978-1583413401 . Retrieved 3 April 2013.
  19. ↑ "Extended Metaphor". Dictionary.com.
  20. ↑ Oliver, Mary (1994). Poetry Handbook. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 103–. ISBN   978-0156724005 . Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  21. ↑ Liddell, Gordon F.; Gifford, Anne (2001). New Scottish poetry. Heinemann. pp. 131–. ISBN   978-0435150983 . Retrieved 3 April 2013.
  22. ↑ Origin: 1570–80; < Late Latin < Greek onomatopoiía making of words = onomato- (combining form of ónoma name) + poi- (stem of poieîn to make; see poet) + -ia -ia "Onomatopoeia". onomatopoeia, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
  23. ↑ Origin: 1745–55; personi(fy) + -fication "Personification". personification, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
  24. 1 2 Moustaki, Nikki (2001). The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing Poetry. Penguin. pp. 146–. ISBN   978-1440695636 . Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  25. ↑ Origin: < post-classical Latin oxymoron, figure of speech in which a pair of opposed or markedly contradictory terms are placed in conjunction for emphasis (5th cent.; also oxymorum) < ancient Greek ὀξυ-oxy- comb. form1+ μωρόςdull, stupid, foolish (see moron n.2). "Oxymoron". Oxford English Dictionary.
  26. ↑ Origin: < Middle French, French paradoxe (1495 as noun; 1372–74 in plural paradoxesas the title of a work by Cicero; paradoxon (noun) philosophical paradox in post-classical Latin also a figure of speech < ancient Greek παράδοξον, especially in plural παράδοξαStoical paradoxes, use as noun of neuter singular of παράδοξος (adjective) contrary to received opinion or expectation < παρα-para- prefix1+ δόξαopinion (see doxology n.), after ancient Greek παρὰ δόξαν contrary to expectation "Paradox". paradox, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
  27. ↑ Origin: < Greek ὑπερβολήexcess (compare hyperbola n.), exaggeration; the latter sense is first found in Isocrates and Aristotle. Compare French hyperbole (earlier yperbole). "Hyperbole". hyperbol e, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
  28. ↑ Katz, Albert N. (1998). Figurative Language and Thought. Oxford University Press. pp. 166–. ISBN   978-0195109634 . Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  29. ↑ Eysenck, Michael William; Keane, Mark T. (2005). Cognitive Psychology: A Student's Handbook. Taylor & Francis. pp. 369–. ISBN   978-1841693590 . Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  30. ↑ Ortony, Andrew (1993). Metaphor and Thought. Cambridge University Press. pp. 204–. ISBN   978-0521405614 . Retrieved 20 December 2012.
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