Definition of Figure of Speech

A figure of speech is a phrase or word having different meanings than its literal meanings. It
conveys meaning by identifying or comparing one thing to another, which has connotation or
meaning familiar to the audience. That is why it is helpful in creating vivid rhetorical effect.

Types of figure of speech

1] Simile
A simile is a figure of speech that uses comparison. In a simile, we use two specific words “like”
and “as” to compare two unlikely things, that actually have nothing in common. This is done to
bring out the dramatic nature of the prose and invoke vivid images and comparisons. It is one of
the most common forms of a figure of speech and is used in everything from day-to-day talk to
poems.

Let us see some examples of simile. “She is as brave as a lion”. Here you will notice a girl and
her bravery are being compared to a lion. this is an unusual and illogical comparison, but it brings
out the vivid imagery and lyrical quality in the sentence. The literal sentence would have read
“She is brave”, but using the simile makes it sound much better. Other such examples can be

quite like a mouse

as tall as a mountain

as strong as an ox

precious like an angel

2] Metaphor
A metaphor and a simile are quite similar actually. A metaphor also uses compares to things that
are in no way similar. It does so to bring out the symbolism. A metaphor is a word or phrase used
to show its similarity to another thing. It helps to explain an idea, but if you take a metaphor at its
literal meaning it will sound absurd.

An example of a metaphor is “Alex is a chicken”. Literally, this sounds so very absurd. But this is
a metaphor which suggests that Alex is a coward, or frightened. It compares or implies that Alex
is a chicken to bring out the symbolism. Some other examples are ‘love is a battlefield”, “all the
world’s a stage”, “that technology is a dinosaur” etc.

3 ELEGY
Definition of Elegy
An elegy is a mournful poem, usually written in remembrance of a lost one for a funeral or as a
lament. An elegy tells the traffic story of an individual, or an individual’s loss, rather than the
collective story of a people, which can be found in epic poetry. An elegy generally combines three
stages of loss: first there is grief, then praise of the dead one, and finally consolation.

The word elegy comes from the Greek word elegeia, which means “lament.”

Example

(“Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” by Thomas Gray, 1750)

This poem is a famous example of elegy written by Thomas Gray after the death of his friend, the
poet Richard West. “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” is a meditation on death that opens
in a solemn churchyard. The above excerpt is the opening stanza of the poem, and the scene for
grief and loss.

4 Epic
a long narrative poem in elevated style recounting the deeds of a legendary or historical hero

Definition of Epic
The word epic is derived from the Ancient Greek adjective, “epikos”, which means a poetic story.
In literature, an epic is a long narrative poem, which is usually related to heroic deeds of a person
of an unusual courage and unparalleled bravery. In order to depict this bravery and courage, the
epic uses grandiose style.

exple

paradise lost poem

5 Definition of Comedy
Comedy is a literary genre and a type of dramatic work that is amusing and satirical in its tone,
mostly having a cheerful ending. The motif of this dramatic work is triumph over unpleasant
circumstance by creating comic effects, resulting in a happy or successful conclusion.

Thus, the purpose of comedy is to amuse the audience. Comedy has multiple sub-genres
depending upon the source of the humor, context in which an author delivers dialogues, and
delivery methods, which include farce, satire, and burlesque. Tragedy is opposite to comedy, as
tragedy deals with sorrowful and tragic events in a story.

types of comedy
Romantic Comedy
Romantic comedy involves a theme of love leading to a happy conclusion

Comedy of Humors
The term humor derives from the Latin word humor, which means “liquid.” It comes
from a theory that the human body has four liquids, or humors, which include phelgm,
blood, yellow bile, and black bile

Comedy in Manner
This form of dramatic genre deals with intrigues and relations of ladies and gentlemen
living in a sophisticated society. This form relies upon high comedy, derived from sparkle
and wit of dialogues, violations of social traditions, and good manners, by nonsense
characters like jealous husbands, wives, and foppish dandies

Sentimental Comedy
Sentimental drama contains both comedy and sentimental tragedy.

Tragicomedy
This dramatic genre contains both tragic and comedic elements. It blends both elements
to lighten the overall mood of the play. Often, tragicomedy is a serious play that ends
happily.

6 Tragedy Definition
Tragedy is a type of drama that presents a serious subject matter about human suffering
and corresponding terrible events in a dignified manner.

Greek Tragedy
The term is Greek in origin, dating back to the 5th century BC, when it was assigned by
the Greeks to a specific form of plays performed at festivals in Greece. The local
governments supported such plays, and the mood surrounding the presentation of these
plays was that of a religious ceremony, as the entire community, along with the grand
priest, attended the performances.

The subject matter of Greek tragedies was derived chiefly from Homer’s Iliad, and
Odyssey, which included misfortunes of heroes of history and religious mythology. The
three prominent Greek dramatists were Aeschylus (525–456 BC), Sophocles (496–406
BC), and Euripides (480–406 BC).

English Tragedy
Shaped on the models of Seneca, the first English tragedy appeared in 1561, written by
Thomas Norton and Thomas Sackville. The play chose the story of a British king and his
sufferings at the hand of his two disobedient sons as a subject matter. The importance of
the play lies in the fact that it transformed the style of English drama, from morality and
mystery plays, to the writing of tragedies in the Elizabethan era.

Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy

Aristotle defines Tragedy in his famous work Poetics as:

“Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is admirable, complete (composed of an

introduction, a middle part and an ending), and possesses magnitude; in language made
pleasurable, each of its species separated in different parts; performed by actors, not
through narration; effecting through pity and fear the purification of such emotions.”

The Difference Between Greek and English Tragedies

We notice the following differences between the tragedies by the Greek playwrights, and
those written by English playwrights:

Device

Theme/Plot
GT>> Focused on a single theme and plot

ET>> Have several story lines developing at the same time into plots and sub-plots

Character Origins
GT>> “great” characters were mortals who were equal to gods in their
significance

ET>>> Heroes come from all walks of life

Subject Matter
GT>>>Serious, treated in a dignified manner

ET>> Mixed tragic with comic

(Modern playwrights argue that such depiction is nearer to life as our life is a mixture of
good and bad fortunes.)

Purpose/Objective
GT>>Religious teaching

ET>>Instructive of a religious or ethical issue, though their primary objective is to

entertain.

7 Allegory Definition
Allegory is a figure of speech in which abstract ideas and principles are described in
terms of characters, figures, and events. It can be employed in prose and poetry to tell a
story, with a purpose of teaching or explaining an idea or a principle. The objective of its
use is to teach some kind of a moral lesson.

Faerie Queen (By Edmund Spenser)

Faerie Queen, a masterpiece of Edmund Spenser, is a moral and religious allegory.

8 Definition of Sonnet
The word sonnet is derived from the Italian word “sonetto,” which means a “little song”
or small lyric. In poetry, a sonnet has 14 lines, and is written in iambic pentameter. Each
line has 10 syllables. It has a specific rhyme scheme, and a volta, or a specific turn.

Generally, sonnets are divided into different groups based on the rhyme scheme they
follow. The rhymes of a sonnet are arranged according to a certain rhyme scheme. The
rhyme scheme in English is usually abab–cdcd–efef–gg, and in Italian abba–abba–cde–
cde.

Types of Sonnet
Sonnets can be categorized into six major types:

·0 Italian Sonnet

·1 Shakespearean Sonnet
 ·2 Spenserian Sonnet

·3 Miltonic Sonnet

·4 Terza Rima Sonnet

·5 Curtal Sonnet

9 Definition of Imagery
Imagery means to use figurative language to represent objects, actions, and ideas in such
a way that it appeals to our physical senses.

Example
: Romeo and Juliet (By William Shakespeare)

Imagery of light and darkness is repeated many times in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Consider an example from Act I, Scene V:

“O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright!

It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night

Like a rich jewel in an Ethiope’s ear …”

10 Elegy Definition
Elegy is a form of literature that can be defined as a poem or song in the form of elegiac
couplets, written in honor of someone deceased. It typically laments or mourns the death
of the individual.

Elegy is derived from the Greek work elegus, which means a song of bereavement sung
along with a flute. The forms of elegy we see today were introduced in the 16th century.
Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, by Thomas Gray, and When Lilacs Last in the
Dooryard Bloom’d, by Walt Whitman are the two most popular examples of elegy.

11 Couplet
A couplet is a literary device that can be defined as having two successive rhyming lines
in a verse, and has the same meter to form a complete thought. It is marked by a usual
rhythm, rhyme scheme, and incorporation of specific utterances.
It could be an independent poem, and might be a part of other poems, such as sonnets in
Shakespearean poetry. If a couplet has the ability to stand apart from the rest of the poem,
it is independent, and hence it is called a “closed couplet.” A couplet that cannot render a
proper meaning alone is called an “open couplet.”

EXAMPLE

One of the commonly used couplet examples are these two lines from William
Shakespeare’s Hamlet:

“The time is out of joint, O cursed spite

That ever I was born to set it right!”

Types of Couplets
·6 Short Couplet

·7 Split Couplet

·8 Heroic Couplet (Closed and Open Couplets)

·9 Shakespearean Couplet

·10 Alexandrine Couplet

·11 Qasida

·12 Chinese Couplet