A literary trope (from
Greek "τρόπος" - "tropos" "turn" related to the root of "τρέπω" - "trepō" "to turn, to direct, to alter, to change") is a common pattern,
theme,
motif in literature, or a term often used to denote figures of speech in which words are used in a sense different from their literal meaning.
1
A
Metaphor – a word ofr a phrase that means one thing and is used for referring to another thing in order to emphasize their similar qualities.: That man is a pig (using pig instead of unhygienic person. An unhygienic person is like a pig, but there is no contiguity between the two).
Metonymy - ("a change of name") is a
figure of speech used in
rhetoric in which a thing or concept is not called by its own name, but by the name of something intimately associated with that thing or concept.: The White House supports the bill (using The White House instead of the President. The President is not like The White House, but there is contiguity between them). The word “crown” may stand for 'king or queen”, “cup or glass” for 'the drink it contains'
Irony (from the
Ancient Greek εἰρωνεία eironeía, meaning hypocrisy, deception, or feigned ignorance) is a
literary or
rhetorical device, in which there is an
incongruity or
discordance between what one says or does and what one means or what is generally understood. Irony is a mode of expression that calls attention to the character's knowledge and that of the audience. “incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs.”: as clear as mud
B
In case of polysemy, we deal with modification of the content plane. Different meanings of one & the same word are closely interrelated. All these derivative meanings interweave with the primary one & this network of meanings constitutes a SD which may be called – the polysemantic effect.
Zeugma is the use of a word in the same grammatical, but different semantic relations to two adjacent words in the context, the semantic relations being on the one hand literal and on the other, transferred.: Pickwick took his hat and his leave'
The pun IS another stylistic device based on the interaction of two well-known meanings of a word or phrase. It is difficult do draw a hard and fast distinction between zeugma and the pun. The only reliable distinguishing feature is a structural one: zeugma is the realization of two meanings with the help of a verb which is made to refer to different subjects or objects (direct or indirect). The pun is more independent.: Oscar Wilde's plays, "The Importance of Being Earnest" has a pun in it, inasmuch as the name of the hero and the adjective meaning 'seriously-minded' are both present in our mind.
C
Epithet expresses a characteristic of an object, both existing and imaginary. Its basic feature is its emotiveness and subjectivity: the characteristic attached to the object to qualify it is always chosen by the speaker himself. Many fixed epithets are closely connected with folklore and can be traced back to folk ballads (e.g. "true love", "merry Christmas", etc.).: "the smiling sun", "the frowning cloud", "the sleepless pillow", "the tobacco-stained smile", "a ghost-like face"
Oxymoron is lexical stylistic device the syntactic and semantic structures of which come to clashes (e.g. “cold fire”, “brawling love”). The most widely known structure of oxymoron is attributive. But there are also others, in which verbs are employed. Such verbal structures as “to shout mutely” or “to cry silently” are used to strengthen the idea. Oxymoron may be considered as a specific type of epithet.
D
Antonomasia is a lexical stylistic device in which a proper name is used instead of a common noun or vice versa. Logical meaning serves to classify individual objects into groups (classes) with the aim of singling it out of the group of similar objects, of individualizing one particular object. The word “Mary” does not indicate if the denoted object refers to the class of women, girls, boats, cats, etc. But in example: “He took little satisfaction in telling each Mary, something…” the attribute “each”, used with the name, turns it into a common noun denoting any woman. Here we deal with a case of antonomasia of the first type. Another type of antonomasia we meet when a common noun is still clearly perceived as a proper name. So, no speaker of English today has it in his mind that such popular English surnames as Mr.Smith or Mr.Brown used to mean occupation and the color. While such names as Mr.Snake or Mr.Backbite immediately raise associations with certain human qualities due to the denotational meaning of the words “snake” and “backbite”.
2
Simile - Two things are compared directly by using 'like' (A is like B.).:The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel ;Personality is to a man what perfume is to a flower. (Charles Schwab);My friend is as good as gold.
Periphrasis - The substitution of a descriptive word or phrase for a proper name (a species of
circumlocution); or, conversely, the use of a proper name as a shorthand to stand for qualities associated with it.: In the TV show "Dinosaurs" the infant dino called his father, "Not-the-Mama." ; He's no Fabio to look at; but then, he's no Woody Allen, either.
Euphemism is a word or phrase used to replace an unpleasant word or expression by a conventionally more acceptable one.:the word 'to die' has bred the following euphemisms: to pass away, to expire, to be no more, to depart, to join the majority, to be gone, and the more facetious ones: to kick the bucket, to give up the ghost. So euphemisms are synonyms which aim at producing a deliberately mild effect. Euphemism is sometimes figuratively called "a whitewashing device".
Hyperbole. Another SD which also has the function of intensifying one certain property of the object described is h y p e r b o I e. It can be defined as a deliberate overstatement or exaggeration of a feature essential (unlike periphrasis) to the object or phenomenon. In its extreme form this exagge-' ration is carried to an illogical degree, sometimes ad absurdum. : 'A thousand pardons'; 'scared to death', 'immensely obliged;' ' give the world to see him.'
Understatement - weaken or soften a statement.A statement is deliberately weakened to sound ironical or softened to sound more polite. It is a common feature of the English language (especially British English) used in everyday-life situations.:I know a little about running a company. (a successful businessman might modestly say.); I think we have slightly different opinions on this topic. (instead of: I don't agree with you at all.)
3
Allusions - indirect reference to a person, event or piece of literature. Allusion is used to explain or clarify a complex problem. Note that allusion works best if you keep it short and refer to something the reader / audience is familiar with, e.g.:famous people, history, (Greek) mythology, literature, the bible: to meet one’s Waterloo (allusion on Napoleons defeat in the Battle of Waterloo)
to wash one’s hands of it. (allusion on Pontius Pilatus, who sentenced Jesus to death, but washed his hands afterwards to demonstrate that he was not to blame for it.)
Onomatopoeia - the use of words whose sounds imitate those of the signified object or action, such as "hiss", "bowwow", "murmur", "bump", "grumble", "sizzle" and many more. Imitating the sounds of nature, man, inanimate objects, the acoustic form of the word foregrounds the latter, inevitably emphasizing its meaning too. Thus the phonemic structure of the word proves to be important for the creation of expressive and emotive connotations.: the famous lines of E. A. Poe: ...silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain...
Alliteration is a phonetic stylistic device which aims at imparting a melodic effect to the utterance. The essence of this device lies in the repetition of similar sounds, in particular consonant sounds, in close succession, particularly at the beginning of successive words: "The possessive instinct never stands still. Through florescence and feud, frosts and fires it follows the laws of progression." (Galsworthy)
L i t o t e s is a stylistic device consisting of a peculiar use of negative constructions.. Litotes is a deliberate understatement used to produce a stylistic effect. It is not a pure negation, but a negation that includes affirmation. So the negation in litotes must not be regarded as a mere denial of the quality mentioned. The structural aspect of the negative combination backs up the semantic aspect: the negatives no and not are more emphatically pronounced than in ordinary negative sentences, thus bringing to mind the corresponding antonym.The stylistic effect of litotes depends mainly on intonation. If we compare two intonation patterns, one which suggests a mere denial (It is not bad as a contrary to It is bad) with the other which suggests the assertion of a positive quality of the object (It is not bad==it is good), the difference will become apparent.: 'My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun' (Shakespire)
Parallel constructions – using parallel sentence structure. Successive clauses or sentences are similarly structured. This similarity makes it easier for the reader / listener to concentrate on the message.: The mistakes of the fool are known to the world, but not to himself. The mistakes of the wise man are known to himself, but not to the world. (Charles Caleb Colton); Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I may remember. Involve me and I will learn. (Benjamin Franklin)
Anaphora - successive clauses or sentences start with the same word(s).The same word or phrase is used to begin successive clauses or sentences. Thus, the reader's / listener's attention is drawn directly to the message of the sentence.:Every child must be taught these principles. Every citizen must uphold them. And every immigrant, by embracing these ideals, makes our country more, not less, American; If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome. (Anne Bradstreet); The beginning of wisdom is silence. The second step is listening. (unknown)
Repetition - repeating words or phrases. Words or phrases are repeated throughout the text to emphasise certain facts or ideas. : Down, down, down. Would the fall never come to an end! »I wonder how many miles I've fallen by this time?« she said aloud. […]Down, down, down. There was nothing else to do, so Alice soon began talking again. […]; America, at its best, matches a commitment to principle with a concern for civility. A civil society demands from each of us good will and respect, fair dealing and forgiveness. […]America, at its best, is also courageous. Our national courage […]America, at its best, is compassionate. In the quiet of American conscience, we know that deep, persistent poverty is unworthy of our nation's promise. […]
Antithesis - contrasting relationship between two ideas. Antithesis emphasises the contrast between two ideas. The structure of the phrases / clauses is usually similar in order to draw the reader's / listener's attention directly to the contrast.: That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind. (Neil Armstrong); To err is human; to forgive, divine. (Pope); It is easier for a father to have children than for children to have a real father. (Pope)
Asyndeton - The omission of conjunctions between clauses, often resulting in a hurried rhythm or vehement effect.: Veni, vidi, vici (Caesar: "I came; I saw; I conquered")
Polysyndeton - Employing many conjunctions between clauses, often slowing the tempo or rhythm.: I said, "Who killed him?" and he said, "I don't know who killed him but he's dead all right," and it was dark and there was water standing in the street and no lights and windows broke and boats all up in the town and trees blown down and everything all blown and I got a skiff and went out and found my boat where I had her inside Mango Key and she was all right only she was full of water.—Ernest Hemingway, "After the Storm."
2.1 Stylistic Inversion
“Inversion is a SD in which the direct word order is changed either completely so that predicate precedes the subject or partially so that the object precedes the subject-predicate pair.”
33 For example, Never had Henry Pootel-Piglet run so fast as he ran then. (A. Miln) We should remember that the stylistic device of Inversion should not be confused with grammatical inversion which is a norm in interrogative construction: Is he still hesitating?
2.3 Climax
“Climax is an arrangement of sentences, or the homogeneous parts of sentences which secures a gradual increase in significance, importance or emotional tension in the utterance”
36 as in:
He (Piglet) threw the bottle as far as he could throw – splash! – and in a little while it bobbed up again on the water and he watched it floating slowly away in the distance, until his eyes ached with looking and sometimes he thought it was a bottle, and sometimes he thought it was just a ripple on the water which he was following and then suddenly he knew that he would never see it again and that he had done all that he could do to save himself. (A. Miln)
The repetition of “he thought”, then the using of the words “he knew” makes the reader anticipate the outcome of this passage. And, eventually, the reader sees it: “he had done all that he could do to save himself.”
2.4. Anticlimax
“Climax suddenly interrupted by an unexpected turn of the thought which defeats expectations of the reader and ends in complete semantic reversal of the emphasized idea is called Anticlimax.”
37 For instance,
So he (Pooh) started to climb out of the hole. He pulled with his front paws, and pushed with his back paws, and in a little while his nose was out in the open again… and then his ears… and then his front paws… and then his shoulders and then – “Oh, help”, said Pooh, - I’d better go back.”(A.Miln)
2.6. Ellipsis
Ellipsis is a typical phenomenon in conversation arising out of the situation. Ellipsis, when used as a SD, always imitates the common features of colloquial language where the situation presupposes the omitting certain member of sentence. “In Ellipsis which is an omission of one of the main members of a sentence we must differentiate the one used in author’s narration to change its tempo and condense its structure from the other used in personage’s speech to reflect, to create the effect of naturalness of the dialogue.”
39 For instance,
“Ow!” said Tigger
He sat down and put his paw in his mouth
“What’s the matter?” asked Pooh
“Hot!” mumbled Tigger (A. Miln)
2.7. Break-in-the-Narrative (Aposiopesis)
This SD promotes the incompleteness of sentence structure. It is used mainly in the dialogue or in other forms of narrative imitating spontaneous oral speech. It reflects the emotional or psychological state of the speaker. A sentence may be broken because the speaker’s emotions prevent him from finishing it. For example, Piglet tries to describe the Heffulump to Christopher Robin.
“What did it look like?
“Like-like-It had the biggest head you ever saw, Christopher Robin. A great enormous thing, like – like nothing. A huge big- well, like a- I don’t know – like au enormous big nothing, like a jar!”By using Aposiopesis the author manages to express perfectly Piglet’s emotions. Beside that, this SD helps the author to convey the broken rhythm of Piglet’s speech: the latter is out of breath and scare
