14. Lexico – syntactical stylistic devices ( simile, periphrasis, represented speech)

Simile

сравнение

an imaginative comparison of two unlike objects belonging to two different classes on the grounds of similarity of some quality

The one which is compared is called the tenor, the one with which it is compared, is called the vehicle. The tenor and the vehicle form the two semantic poles of the simile, which are connected by one of the following link words: “like”, “as”, “as though”, “as if”, “as like”, “such as”, “as ... as”, etc.

e.g. She is like a rose.

e.g. He stood immovable like a rock in a torrent. (J.Reed)

characterisation of one object by bringing it into contact with another object belonging to an entirely different class of things

- excludes all the properties of the two objects except one which is made common to them;

- forcibly set one object against another regardless of the fact that they may be completely alien to each other;

e.g. Maidens, like moths, are ever caught by glare. (Byron)

e.g. Other words live but a short time and are like bubbles on the surface of water – they disappear leaving no trace of their existence. (I.R.G.)

(logical) comparison

(логическое) сопоставление

a) an ordinary comparison of two objects belonging to the same classes (V.A.K.)

e.g. She is like her mother.

b) weighing two objects belonging to one class of things with the purpose of establishing the degree of their sameness or difference

- takes into consideration all the properties of the two objects, stressing the one that is compared

e.g. The boy Seems to be as clever as his mother.

we can infer the function of similes both in our everyday life as well as in literature. Using similes attracts the attention and appeals directly to the senses of listeners or readers encouraging their imagination to comprehend what is being communicated. In addition, it inspires life-like quality in our daily talks and in the characters of fiction or poetry. Simile allows readers to relate the feelings of a writer or a poet to their personal experiences. Therefore, the use of similes makes it easier for the readers to understand the subject matter of a literary text, which may have been otherwise too demanding to be comprehended. Like metaphors, similes also offer variety in our ways of thinking and offers new perspectives of viewing the world.

Periphrasis

Circumlocution

перифраз

a) using a roundabout form of expression instead of a simpler one

b) using a more or less complicated syntactical structure instead of a word

They are classified into <figurative periphrasis> (<metaphoric periphrasis> or <metonymic periphrasis>) and <logical periphrasis> (<euphemistic periphrasis>)

a device which, according to Webster’s dictionary, denotes the use of a longer phrasing in place of a possible shorter and plainer form of expression

- aims at pointing to one of the Seemingly insignificant or barely noticeable features or properties of the given object, and intensifies this property by naming the object by the property;

- makes the reader perceive the new appellation against the background of the one existing in the language code and the twofold simultaneous perception secures the stylistic effect;

- like <simile>, has a certain cognitive function inasmuch as in deepens our knowledge of the phenomenon described;

e.g. the cap and gown (student body); a gentleman of the long robe (a lawyer); the fair sex (women); my better half (my wife)

Figurative periphrasis( Metaphoric periphrasis or Metonymic periphrasis)

перифраз фигуральный (метафорический, метонимический)

a <periphrasis> that is made of phrase-metonymies or phrase-metaphors (V.A.K.)

- is to convey a purely individual perception of the described object

e.g. The hospital was crowded with the surgically interesting products of the fighting in Africa. \[=wounded\] (I.Shaw)

e.g. His huge leather chairs were kind to the femurs. (R.P.Warren)

e.g. I took my obedient feet away from him. (W.S.Gilbert)

Logical periphrasis (Euphemistic periphrasis, Euphemism)

перифраз логический (эвфемистический)

a phrase synonymic with the words which were substituted by <periphrasis> because the direct nomination of the not too elegant feature of appearance was substituted by a roundabout description

- offers more polite (euphemistic) qualification instead of a coarser one

e.g. Mr. Du Pont was dressed in the conventional disguise \[the suit \] with which Brooks Brothers cover the shame of American millionaires \[the paunch (belly)\]. (The Morning Star)

e.g. I am thinking an unmentionable thing about your mother. (I.Shaw)