Literal and gurative language

Literal and gurative language is a distinction within

some elds of language analysis, in particular stylistics,
rhetoric, and semantics.

as white as the snow." (emph added)Clement

Clark Moore[12]

A metaphor[13] is gure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are shown to have a type of resemblance or create a new image.[14] The similarities between
the objects being compared may be implied rather than
Figurative (or non-literal) language uses words in
directly stated.[14]
gures of speech.
Literal language uses words directly according to
their proper meanings (signied).

Example: Fog comes on little cat feetCarl

Literal usage gives words their proper meanings, in the
Sandburg[15]
sense of the meaning they have by themselves, outside
any gure of speech.[1] It maintains a consistent meaning regardless of the context,[2] with the intended mean- An extended metaphor is metaphor that is continued over
[16][17]
ing corresponding exactly to the meaning of the individual multiple sentences.
[3]
words. Figurative use of language is the use of words
or phrases that implies a non-literal meaning which does
Example: The sky steps out of her daymake sense or that could [also] be true.[4]
wear/Slips into her shot-silk evening dress./An
entourage of bats whirr and swing at her hem,
Aristotle and later the Roman Quintilian were among the
...Shes tried on every item in her wardrobe.
early analysts of rhetoric who expounded on the dierDilys Rose[18]
[5]
ences between literal and gurative language.
In 1769, Frances Brooke's novel The History of Emily
Onomatopoeia is a word designed to be an imitation of a
Montague was used in the earliest Oxford English Dictiosound.[19]
nary citation for the gurative sense of literally; the sentence from the novel used was, He is a fortunate man to
Example: Bark! Bark! went the dog as he
be introduced to such a party of ne women at his arrival;
chased the car that vroomed past.
it is literally to feed among the lilies.[6] This citation was
also used in the OEDs 2011 revision.[7]
Personication[20] is the attribution of a personal nature
Within literary analysis, such terms are still used; but
or character to inanimate objects or abstract notions,[21]
within the elds of cognition and linguistics, the basis for
especially as a rhetorical gure.
identifying such a distinction is no longer used.[8]

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.[21]

Figurative language in literary

analysis

Figurative language can take multiple forms such as simile or metaphor.[4] Merriam-Websters Encyclopedia Of An oxymoron is a gure of speech in which a pair
Literature says that gurative language can be classied of opposite or contradictory terms is used together for
[22]
in ve categories: resemblance or relationship, emphasis emphasis.
or understatement, gures of sound, verbal games, and
errors.[9]
Examples: Organized chaos, Same dierence,
Bittersweet.
[10]
A simile
is a comparison of two things, indicated by
some connective, usually like, as, than, or a verb
A paradox is a statement or proposition which is selfsuch as resembles to show how they are similar.[11]
contradictory, unreasonable, or illogical.[23]
Example: His cheeks were like roses, his nose
like a cherry.../And the beard on his chin was
Example: This statement is a lie.
1

Hyperbole is a gure of speech which uses an extravagant

or exaggerated statement to express strong feelings.[24]

REFERENCES

4 See also
Biblical literalism

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.

Figures of speech
Frances Brooke
Imagery
Linguistics

Example: A single step can take you through

the looking glass if you're not careful.
An idiom is an expression that has a gurative meaning
unrelated to the literal meaning of the phrase.
Example: You should keep your eye out for
him.
To keep an eye out for someone means to watch
out for them.
A pun is an expression intended for a humorous or rhetorical eect by exploiting dierent meanings of words.
Example: I wondered why the ball was getting
bigger. Then it hit me.
Then it hit me. has two dierent meanings

Philosophy of language
Rhetoric
Semantics
Semiotics
Trope (literature)

5 References
[1] Jaszczolt, Katarzyna M..; Turner, Ken (2003-03-01).
Meaning Through Language Contrast. Volume 2. John
Benjamins Publishing. pp. 141. ISBN 9781588112071.
Retrieved 20 December 2012.
[2] Glucksberg, Sam (2001-07-26). Understanding Figurative Language:From Metaphor to Idioms: From
Metaphor to Idioms. Oxford University Press. ISBN
9780195111095. Retrieved 20 December 2012.

Standard pragmatic model of

comprehension

[3] Harley, Trevor A. (2001). The Psychology of Language:

From Data to Theory. Taylor & Francis. pp. 293. ISBN
978-0-863-77867-4. Retrieved 20 December 2012.

Prior to the 1980s, the standard pragmatic model of

comprehension was widely believed. In that model, it was
thought the recipient would rst 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 gurative interpretation that would allow
comprehension.[25] Since then, research has cast doubt on
the model. In tests, gurative language was found to be
comprehended at the same speed as literal language; and
so premise that the recipient was rst attempting to process a literal meaning and discarding it before attempting to process a gurative meaning appears to be a false
premise.[26]

[4] 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 9780415346337. Retrieved
23 December 2012.
[5] http://books.google.com/books?id=SUEtEa9nUWQC&
pg=PA129&dq=%22figurative+language%
22+literary+analysis&hl=en&sa=X&ei=
jUXXUOTLF6yA2QXkrYG4Dw&ved=
0CDoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=figurative&f=false.
Missing or empty |title= (help)
[6] http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=5914
[7] http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=5914

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 gurative mode of language.[27]

[8] Barber, Alex; Stainton, Robert J (2009-11-20). Concise

Encyclopedia of Philosophy of Language and Linguistics.
Elsevier. pp. 230. ISBN 9780080965000. Retrieved 23
December 2012.
[9] Merriam-Webster, inc. (1995). Merriam-Websters Encyclopedia Of Literature. Merriam-Webster. p. 415. ISBN
9780877790426. Retrieved 23 April 2013.

[10] Origin: 13501400; Middle English < Latin: image, likeness, comparison, noun use of neuter of similis similar.
Simile. simile, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
[11] Kennedy, X. J., and Dana Gioia. An Introduction To Poetry. 13th ed. Longman Pub Group, 2007. Pg 594.
[12] Terban, Marvin; joi, Giulio Maestro, (1993). It Figures!:
Fun Figures of Speech. Houghton Miin Harcourt. pp.
12. ISBN 9780395665916. Retrieved 23 December
2012.
[13] Origin: 152535; < Latin metaphora < Greek metaphor
a transfer, akin to metaphrein to transfer. See meta-, phoreMetaphor. metaphor, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
[14] Miller, Carol Rawlings (2001-03-01). 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 9780439098441. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
[15] Fandel, Jennifer (2005-07-30). Metaphors, Similes, And
Other Word Pictures. The Creative Company. pp. 30.
ISBN 9781583413401. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
[16] metaphor Extended Metaphor.
Dictionary.com.

extended metaphor.

[17] Oliver, Mary (1994). Poetry Handbook. Houghton Miin

Harcourt. pp. 103. ISBN 9780156724005. Retrieved 6
March 2013.
[18] Liddell, Gordon F.; Giord, Anne (2001-07-26). New
Scottish poetry. Heinemann. pp. 131. ISBN
9780435150983. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
[19] Origin: 157080; < Late Latin < Greek onomatopoia
making of words = onomato- (combining form of noma
name) + poi- (stem of poien to make; see poet) + -ia
-iaOnomatopoeia. onomatopoeia, n. Oxford English
Dictionary.
[20] Origin: 174555; personi(fy) + -cationPersonication.
personication, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
[21] Moustaki, Nikki (2001-04-01). The Complete Idiots
Guide to Writing Poetry. Penguin. pp. 146. ISBN
9781440695636. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
[22] Origin: < post-classical Latin oxymorongure of speech
in which a pair of opposed or markedly contradictory
terms are placed in conjunction for emphasis (5th cent.;
also oxymorum) < ancient Greek -oxy- comb. form1+
dull, stupid, foolish (see moron n.2).Oxymoron.
oxymoron. Oxford English Dictionary.
[23] Origin: < Middle French, French paradoxe(1495 as noun;
13724 in plural paradoxesas the title of a work by Cicero;
paradoxon(noun) philosophical paradox in post-classical
Latin also a gure of speech < ancient Greek ,
especially in plural Stoical paradoxes, use as
noun of neuter singular of (adjective) contrary
to received opinion or expectation < -para- prex1+
opinion (see doxology n.), after ancient Greek
contrary to expectationParadox. paradox, n. Oxford English Dictionary.

[24] Origin: < Greek excess (compare hyperbola n.), exaggeration; the latter sense is rst found
in Isocrates and Aristotle. Compare French hyperbole(earlier yperbole).Hyperbole. hyperbol e, n. Oxford English Dictionary.
[25] Katz, Albert N. (1998). Figurative Language and
Thought. Oxford University Press. pp. 166. ISBN
9780195109634. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
[26] Eysenck, Michael William; Keane, Mark T. (2005).
Cognitive Psychology: A Students Handbook. Taylor &
Francis. pp. 369. ISBN 9781841693590. Retrieved 20
December 2012.
[27] Ortony, Andrew (1993-11-26). Metaphor and Thought.
ISBN
Cambridge University Press.
pp.
204.
9780521405614. Retrieved 20 December 2012.

6 External links
The Word We Love To Hate. Literally. from Slate
Magazine
Figures of Speech from Silva Rhetoricae

7 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

7.1

Text

Literal and gurative language Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literal_and_figurative_language?oldid=675738888 Contributors:

Toby Bartels, Ryguasu, Thomas Mills Hinkle, Ixfd64, Nine Tail Fox, Docu, Jstanley01, Marshman, Haeleth, Neilc, Wkdewey, Thorwald,
Discospinster, Bobo192, Alansohn, Wtmitchell, LFaraone, Mindmatrix, A3r0, Fleetham, Cuvtixo, BD2412, Sjakkalle, KYPark, Quiddity,
Nihiltres, Pathoschild, Jrtayloriv, David91, Bgwhite, Anetode, Brbigam, Wknight94, Pegship, Arthur Rubin, Allens, CIreland, That Guy,
From That Show!, SmackBot, Prodego, Gailtb, WookieInHeat, Mdd4696, Gilliam, Teemu08, Persian Poet Gal, Jerome Charles Potts,
AWeenieMan, Colonies Chris, TheGerm, Dbdb, Cicatriz, Scientizzle, Tomlee2060, Werdan7, EddieVanZant, Iridescent, Emote, Wolfdog, Dycedarg, El aprendelenguas, Gregbard, Sir Tristram, Equendil, A Softer Answer, Pascal.Tesson, Tawkerbot4, Barticus88, Daniel,
Mojo Hand, Krilnon, AntiVandalBot, Jjoyce1978, Time3000, Kipholbeck, VoABot II, Animum, JaGa, Acdixon, MartinBot, Tgeairn,
J.delanoy, Rlsheehan, Shadow Scythe of Strongbadia?!, Gurchzilla, Ilikerps, Pdcook, Useight, Quiet Silent Bob, Fr33kman, VolkovBot,
Zidonuke, Clarince63, Onore Baka Sama, Madhero88, Gavin.collins, Ttony21, Hobartimus, TheInnityZero, YellowJello620, ClueBot,
SummerWithMorons, Fyyer, The Thing That Should Not Be, Excirial, Jusdafax, NuclearWarfare, Arjayay, TheRedPenOfDoom, Rui
Gabriel Correia, Thingg, Versus22, Burner0718, SoxBot III, Editor2020, Little Mountain 5, Mitch Ames, WikHead, Noctibus, Addbot,
Chamal N, Roux, Jchherm, Tide rolls, Ez1828, ZX81, 2D, Denispir, Wikipedian2, AnomieBOT, Materialscientist, ArthurBot, Addihockey10, Spike-from-NH, Lild67, Nikil44, Someguy0214, FrescoBot, Oldlaptop321, Shanerossfeld, HamburgerRadio, A8UDI, Trappist
the monk, LaughingLoner, Luver Bunny, Ammodramus, Tbhotch, J36miles, EmausBot, Jargoness, Eilbertn, Ravihanda, Wayne Slam,
Knarnie, Dante8, Donner60, 28bot, Rocketrod1960, Yafet14, ClueBot NG, Rich Smith, Gareth Grith-Jones, Aaronweeks, 149AFK,
Sagegerard, Widr, Exadrid, ENGL9, Calabe1992, RovingPersonalityConstruct, MusikAnimal, Rm1271, Mirage465, Kangbaeko, MrBill3,
Glacialfox, ULTRASTAR123, EuroCarGT, Lugia2453, SteenthIWbot, Xwoodsterchinx, Warp Dragon, Carter.thomas0406, Eyesnore, Human1x, Desertfox892, Suelru, Anthonyburbury, Steviejiber, T1Biscuit, Cuilleree and Anonymous: 356

7.2

Images

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7.3

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