英语常见的修辞格

英语常见的修辞格

Figures of speech (修辞)are ways of making our language figurative. When we use words in other than their ordinary or literal sense to lend force to an idea, to heighten effect, or to create suggestive imagery, we are said to be speaking or writing figuratively. Now we are going to talk about some common forms of figures of speech.

语义

1) Simile：(明喻）

It is a figure of speech which makes a comparison between two unlike elements having at least one quality or characteristic (特性) in common. To make the comparison, words like as, as...as, as if and like are used to transfer the quality we associate with one to the other.

For example, As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.

2) Metaphor：(暗喻）

It is like a simile, also makes a comparison between two unlike elements, but unlike a simile, this comparison is implied rather than stated.

For example, The world is a stage.

3) Analogy: (类比）

It is also a form of comparison, but unlike simile or metaphor which usually uses comparison on one point of resemblance, analogy draws a parallel between two unlike things that have several common qualities or points of resemblance.

For example, Beauty without grace is the hook without the bait.

4) Personification: (拟人）

It gives human form of feelings to animals, or life and personal attributes(赋予) to inanimate (无生命的) objects, or to ideas and abstractions(抽象).

For example, The wind whistled through the trees.

5) Hyperbole: (夸张）

It is the deliberate use of overstatement or exaggeration to achieve emphasis.

For instance, He almost died laughing.

6) Understatement: (含蓄陈述，轻描淡写）

It is the opposite of hyperbole, or overstatement. It achieves its effect of emphasizing a fact by deliberately(故意地) understating it, impressing the listener or the reader more by what is merely implied or left unsaid than by bare statement.

For instance, It is no laughing matter.

7) Euphemism: (委婉）

It is the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive(无冒犯) expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant.

For instance, we refer to "die" as "pass away".

8) Metonymy (转喻）

It is a figure of speech that has to do with the substitution of the mane of one thing for that of another.

For instance, The pen (words) is mightier than the sword (forces).

9) Synecdoche (提喻）以局部代全部或全部代局部

It is involves the substitution of the part for the whole, or the whole for the part.

For instance, They say there's bread and work for all.

She was dressed in silks.

10) Antonomasia (换喻）

It has also to do with substitution. It is not often mentioned now, though it is still in frequent use.

For example, Solomon for a wise man; Daniel for a wise and fair judge; Judas for a traitor.

11) Pun: (双关语）

It is a play on words, or rather a play on the form and meaning of words.

For instance, A cannon-ball took off his legs, so he laid down his arms. (Here "arms" has two meanings: a person's body; weapons carried by a soldier.)

12) Syllepsis: (一语双叙）

It has two connotations.

In the first case, it is a figure by which a word, or a particular form or inflection of a word, refers to two or more words in the same sentence, while properly applying to or agreeing with only on of them in grammar or syntax(句法). For example, He addressed you and me, and desired us to follow him. (Here us is used to refer to you and me.)

In the second case, it a word may refer to two or more words in the same sentence.

For example, While he was fighting, and losing limb and mind, and dying, others stayed behind to pursue education and career. (Here to losing one's limbs in literal; to lose one's mind is figurative, and means to go mad.)

16) Sarcasm: (讽刺）

It Sarcasm is a strong form of irony. It attacks in a taunting and bitter manner, and its aim is to disparage, ridicule and wound the feelings of the subject attacked.

For example, laws are like cobwebs, which may catch small flies, but let wasps break through.

13) Zeugma: (轭式搭配）

It is a single word which is made to modify or to govern two or more words in the same sentence, wither properly applying in sense to only one of them, or applying to them in different senses.

For example, The sun shall not burn you by day, nor the moon by night. (Here moon is not strong enough to burn) 18) Oxymoron: (矛盾修饰）

It is a compressed paradox, formed by the conjoining(结合) of two contrasting, contradictory or incongruous(不协调) terms as in bitter-sweet memories, orderly chaos(混乱) and proud humility(侮辱).

19) Antithesis: (对照）

It is the deliberate arrangement of contrasting words or ideas in balanced structural forms to achieve emphasis.

For example, Speech is silver; silence is golden.

14) Irony: (反语）

It is a figure of speech that achieves emphasis by saying the opposite of what is meant, the intended meaning of the words being the opposite of their usual sense.

For instance, We are lucky, what you said makes me feel real good.

15) Innuendo: (暗讽）

It is a mild form of irony, hinting in a rather roundabout (曲折)way at something disparaging(不一致) or uncomplimentary(不赞美) to the person or subject mentioned.

For example, The weatherman said it would be warm. He must take his readings in a bathroom.

17) Paradox: (似非而是的隽语）

It is a figure of speech consisting of a statement or proposition which on the face of it seems self-contradictory, absurd or contrary to established fact or practice, but which on further thinking and study may prove to be true, well-founded, and even to contain a succinct point.

For example, More haste, less speed.

21) Climax: (渐进）

It is derived from the Greek word for "ladder" and implies the progression of thought at a uniform or almost uniform rate of significance or intensity, like the steps of a ladder ascending evenly.

For example, I came, I saw, I conquered.

22) Anti-climax or bathos: (突降）

It is the opposite of Climax. It involves stating one's thoughts in a descending order of significance or intensity, from strong to weak, from weighty to light or frivolous.

For instance, But thousands die, without or this or that, die, and endow(赋予) a college, or a cat.

23) Apostrophe：(顿呼，呼语）

In this figure of speech, a thing, place, idea or person (dead or absent) is addressed as if present, listening and understanding what is being said.

For instance, England! awake! awake! awake!

24) Transferred Epithet: (转类形容词，转移修饰）

It is a figure of speech where an epithet (an adjective or descriptive phrase) is transferred from the noun it should rightly modify(修饰) to another to which it does not really apply or belong.

For instance, I spent sleepless nights on my project.

语音

25) Alliteration: (头韵）

It has to do with the sound rather than the sense of words for effect. It is a device that repeats the same sound at frequent intervals(间隔) and since the sound repeated is usually the initial consonant sound, it is also called "front rhyme".

For instance, The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew, the furrow followed free.

26) Onomatopoeia: (拟声）

It is a device that uses words which imitate the sounds made by an object (animate or inanimate), or which are associated with or suggestive(提示的) of some action or movement.

For instance, Baa, baa, black sheep, Have you any wool? Yes, sir, yes, sir, Three bags full.

Suggested Reading List:

李国南，辞格与词汇，上海外语教育出版社，2001

张文庭熊建国，英语修辞及惯用法，湖南师范大学出版社，1996

秦秀白，英语文体学入门，湖南教育出版社，1986

徐鹏，英语修辞，商务印书馆，1996

谢祖钧，英语修辞，机械工业出版社，1988

赵政清，英语修辞学原理，西南交通大学出版社，1996

冯翠华，英语修辞大全，外语教学与研究出版社，1995

冯翠华，《英语修辞大全》，前言

长期以来，我一直在大学里教中国学生作为外语的英语。在此过程中，我常常遇到这样一种现象：在阅读的时候，学生们能够分析句子的语法成分，但要领会或欣赏修辞好的句子或段落却有困难。在写作文的时候，他们虽然能够造出语法正确的句子，但要写出修辞和文体好的句子或段落却困难很大。这是一种现象的两个方面，反映出他们的英语知识存在着一个共同的缺陷——他们不知道或不大知道英语里有着大量的修辞手段，他们不知道或不大知道这些手段能在口语或笔语中，尤其是在笔语中，起着有效传递思想、感情和事情的作用。同时，我还发现，中国现有的关于英语作文和英语修辞的书籍，几乎不能提供有关修辞手段的足够和充分的知识。一些从国外进口的英语修辞教科书，包含了某些修辞手段的，特别是修辞格的用词，但也常常不大充分。显而易见，需要在这一方面提供更多的、更充分的知识，需要更加系统地介绍英语的修辞手段。

本书就是为了满足这种需要。我研究了过去和现在关于英语修辞手段分类的理论和实践，在此基础上将其分成五种类型：句法手段，词法手段，语音手段和文章节律，修辞格，以及典故和“断章截句的“引语”。本书并不想详尽无遗地列举英语里使用的每一种修辞手段，只是选择了最重要、最常用的部分。这完全是我自己选定的，因此是比较主观的。关于修辞格的那一章，很大程度上基于我1983年出版的那本小册子《修辞格》，但作了修订和更新。多数例句取自散文作品，但也有相当数量取自诗歌，因为有些修手段，比如修辞格，在诗歌中十分常见，非常典型。

本书使用的语法术语，很大程度上是传统的语法术语，但根据伦道夫·夸克等人所著的《综合英语语法》（1985年）中使用的新概念，按照需要作了修订。比如，我接受了名词短语（NP）和动词短语（VP）是句子两个基本成份的概念，以及名词短语通过后修饰可以包含定语从句或同位语从句的观点。这意味着，下列的一类句子，传统上认为是复合句，现在却被看作是简单句：a. The man who came today is his uncle. b. The rumour that he had won the bet was confirmed. 然而，我保留了有关动词不定式短语和分词短语是“短语”的看法，因为如果像夸克等人所主张的那样把它们看作是非限定式从句，就会在中国学生中引起混乱。中国学生觉得传统的术语在逻辑上更能接受。另外，英语从句和句子结构的成分，保留了大家熟悉的名字，即主语（S），动词（V），状语（A），宾语（O），和补足语（C）。为了参阅方便，用下列陈述句来说明基本句型：SV The birds sang. SV A She drove at full speed. SVC He looked (became) angry. He was sad. SVO I bought a book. SVOiO I bought my sister a book. SVOA They sent the parcel by airmail. SVOC They elected him captain. 熟悉这些句子成分和句型是非常重要的，因为在语法可以接受的种种情况下，许多修辞手段需要使用它们。

本书适用于大学英语专业的本科学生和研究生，对其它专业的学生以及自学英语者也有很大的参考价值。

冯翠华