Figurative Language versus Literal Language

Figurative Language versus Literal Language

Introduction

Figurative language is also called “figure of speech”. It is a type of language which is used to produce a specific portrayal and it reveals people's emotions. It contains words that create an association or thought of what author intends to let known his readers. It plays an important role in daily use of language. On the other hand, literary language is consisted of words which precisely express what author wants its readers to know. This paper will outline those phrases that are used in literal and figurative language.

Discussion

Idiom

Idiom is a set of expression of two or more words which means something else that the actual meaning of the words used in it. The listener might make a mistake in understanding the idiom as it does not mean what is says (Guerra-Ramos, 2011). People often use idioms to give their language a richer look and also to communicate the subtle shades of intention or meaning. These idiomatic phrases can be more particular that the literal words in which, more is said in little words.

Example

A man of his words - it means that the person is trustworthy, and one can depend on him. Hands full - it means that the person is very busy, so he cannot do more work.

Analogy

According to Harre (1972, cited in Guerra-Ramos, 2011) a relationship between two processes or entities is called analogy. It allows people to make inferences about one of the two things, generally about the one we least know, on the basis of what we know about the other. The fictional use of analogy aims at clarification where something new made easier through a judgment with something familiar with which it has similarity and resemblance.

Example

Science is built up with facts as a house built with stones. Here, science is compared with the construction of the house. This is an analogy which used in both the literary description and in argument. Even sometimes it is difficult to differentiate between a literary use and argumentative use.

Metaphor

The metaphor expresses its force cognitive strength in the transfer of meaning between the two elements or subjects. The paradox of metaphor is that if we imagine the structure of these elements within the semantic fields, the metaphorical sense does that create a third field emerged from the tension between the first two. Aristotle and Fontanier (Figures of Speech, 1968) closer metaphor comparing and define it as a figure of representing an idea by another most striking and best known (Guerra-Ramos, 2011).

Example

“My sister was boiling mad”, here it does not mean that the sister was actually boiling but it means that she was angry. Another example is that “it is going to be a clear sky now”. Here sky is used as a metaphor for clearance of any threat. In a very common sentence that is, life is a journey, here it means that life goes on, and a lot of ups and downs are a part of ...