Figurative Language - Newport Independent Schools
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Transcript Figurative Language - Newport Independent Schools
Imagery & Figurative Language
An “image” is “a word or sequence of
words that refers to any sensory
experience”
Imagery
What are your five senses? Sight,
Hearing, Touch, Taste, and Smell
An image conveys a sense
perception , i.e., a visual picture, a
sound, a feeling of touch, a taste, or
an odor
Figures of Speech
Figurative language uses figures of speech to
convey unique images and create some sort of
special effect or impression.
A “figure of speech” is an intentional difference
from the ordinary usage of language.
Poetry works by comparison
Poets often create images or enhance
meaning by comparing one thing to
another for special effect.
Simile
A simile is a type of metaphor, a figure in which
an clear comparison is made using the
comparative words like, as, resembles, than.
Similes are easy to spot.
(X is like Y: X is compared to Y in order to illustrate X
more fancifully, poetically, or effectively. But Y is not a
literal representation of X, not actual.)
The team’s center looked like a skyscraper.
My love is like a red, red rose.
We were as quiet as frightened mice.
More similes
Dumb as a door knob
As good as gold
Like a bat out of hell
Tough as nails
Working like a dog
Larger than life
Metaphor
A metaphor also compares, but a metaphor is a bit
more sophisticated than a simile.
For one thing, in a metaphor, the words
like or as are missing. So readers have to
recognize the comparison on their own without
those easy words which help us to spot a simile so
quickly.
Metaphor (continued)
In a metaphor, a poet writes that X is Y. Readers
understand that we are not to take the comparison
literally, but that the metaphor helps us to see X in
a new way.
My brother is a prince.
Paul Brown Stadium was a slaughterhouse.
More metaphors
Jimmy was a lion in the fight.
Her eyes are dark emeralds.
Her teeth are pearls.
There are plenty of fish in the sea
Personification
Another kind of comparison is
called personification. Here,
animals, elements of nature, and
objects are given human qualities.
-The full moon smiled down at me
– An angry wind slashed its way
across the island.
More on Figurative Language
The three main uses of figurative language
needed to read poetry are the previous:
– Simile
– Metaphor
– Personification
– But there are many other poetic devices
used. The more you recognize, the richer
your reading experience can be.
Hyperbole
Hyperbole is intentional exaggeration
or overstating, often for dramatic or
humorous effect:
Your predicament saddens me so
much that I feel a actual flood of
tears coming on:
Symbol
A symbol is a person, place, an
object, or an action that stands for
something beyond itself.
A dove is a symbol for peace.
In slave code songs, a drinking
gourd is a symbol for the big
dipper.
The End………