英语修辞格简介

Figures of Speech in English

英语修辞格简介

1. Simile 明喻

A simile is a figure of speech in which two quite different things are compared because they appear to be similar at least one characteristic.

-- My heart is like a singing bird. —––– Rosetti: A Birthday

-- A word and stone let go cannot be recalled. —––– Proverb

-- I wandered lonely as a cloud. —––– Wordsworth: The Daffodils

-- The ruby shall be redder than a red rose, and the sapphire shall be as blue as the great sea.

-- He had no more idea of money than a cow.

-- A doctor must have the heart of a lion and the hand of a lady.

-- Love and cough cannot be hid. —––– Proverb

2. Metaphor暗喻，隐喻

Metaphor is a figure of speech in which one thing is described in terms of another. In a metaphor, a comparison is usually implicit; whereas in a simile it is explicit.

-- Because of his wealth, he was a fountain of generosity to his relatives and friends.

-- Some books are to be tasted, others swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.

-- In foreign policy, flying solo can be risky business.

-- He was such a marvelous teacher that whenever he recognized a spark of genius, you should be sure he would water it.

3. Analogy类推；比喻

Analogy is a figure of speech which draws a parallel between two different types of things, and uses one (usually familiar to the reader) to explain the other (usually unfamiliar to the reader). The function of an analogy is to deepen the reader’s understanding of the writer’s point.

For instance, we can use Post Office to explain Email, where analogy is adopted (Post Office ---- Email). And in the essay “Cyberspace: If You Don’t Love It, Leave It”, the author draw a parallel between Real Estate and Cyberspace, while in “The Case Against Man”, the author uses Human Body as a comparison to explain the relationship between different life forms on the planet.

4. Metonymy借代

Metonymy is a figure in which the name of one thing is used to stand for another thing. The two things involved in a metonymy are not of the same kind but are closely related.

-- Have you ever read Shakespeare?

-- The whole city went out to see the victorious general.

-- Moscow and Washington will hold talks on this question.

-- She was, to be sure, a girl who excited the emotion, but I was not to let my heart rule my head.

-- The kettle is boiling.

-- Please drink a cup or two.

5. Antithesis反对；对语，对照

Antithesis means contrasting ideas sharpened by the use of opposite or noticeably different meanings. It can result in linguistic brevity and rhythmic harmony.

-- American imperialism is the strongest in history and also the weakest in history. The skyscraper is highest but the foundation is

shakiest. —––– Anna. L. Strong

-- Any man or state who fight on against Nazidom will have our aid.

Any man or state who marches with Hitler is our foe.

—–––Winston Churchill

-- It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. —–––Charles Dickens -- And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. —––– J. Kennedy