英语修辞学 personification and apostrophe

1. Expressed by nouns
The anger of the tempest terrified him. The smiles of spring make every girl dance. The cruelty of war is beyond our imagination. Procrastination is the thief of time ——————是时光窃贼 Everywhere can be heard the whisper of leaves in forest in this season.
Different ways of expression
Personification describes something by using the nouns ,the verbs, the adjectives, or the pronouns which are originally only suitable for persons, and entrusts them with person’s characteristics, thought and behaviors, thus to achieve the aim of expressing the sentiment profoundly and describe the things vividly.
2. Expressed by verbs and adjectives
The flowers smile at every visitor. 花儿在向游客们微笑 On entering the room, we heard the kettle singing. The hungry flames tear up the buildings faster than anything I have seen. hungry flames------如恶狼般的火焰 The treacherous sea has ruined many a steamer.
Natural phenomenon
The personification of the natural phenomenon, such as time, weather, seasons, are entrusted with the vitality, pity and pleasure, annoyance and disgust. It no longer manifests the orderly natural changes, but manifests author’s emotional change. Example: The thirsty soil drank in the rain. 甘霖滋润了干涸的大地 Example: All the day the sea-waves sobbed with sorrow.
Inanimate objects
Personification may change dead things into living things and decayed things into mystery, which expresses the ugly aspects which people hate. It makes the language vivid, expresses the mood, discusses the sentiment and reasons to make people accept it easily. Example: Wine neither keeps secrets nor fulfills promises – Joseph Conrad
Functions of Personification
Abstraction Time Natural phenomenon Inanimate objects
Abstraction
Personification can treat abstract things or the concepts as human beings, entrust them with person’s characteristics, ways of behavior or thoughts, and so on. Example: Love, free as air, at sight of human ties, spreads his light wings, and in a moment flies.
3. Expressed by pronouns —Feminine and Masculine
Nature—Mother Nature Earth—Mother Earth Morning—Daughter of the dawn (used by Homer) The moon– Diana; queen of heaven, queen of night (used by Shakespeare) The sun– Apollo The river– the father of waters
Apostrophe
Definition Different ways of expression
Definition
Apostrophe is a figure of speech by which the speaker addresses a thing, place, idea or person (dead or absent) as if it is present, listening and understanding what is being said. It is often used in traditional poetic and dramatic language. The word comes from the Greek word “apostrephein”, meaning ”turning away”.
1. England! Awake! Awake! Awake! Jerusalem thy sister calls! (W.Blake) 2. O world, I cannot hold thee close enough!
Exercises
"Where, O death, thy sting? where, O death, thy victory?" "O eloquent, just, and mighty Death!" "Roll on, thou dark and deep blue Ocean -- roll!" "Well hello jet plane!", Caitlin Fitzgerald. "O My friends, there is no friend." "O black night, nurse of the golden eyes!“ 哦朋友，我许诺从此不再有！ 啊黑夜，你浓黑的眼睛眨出金色的光芒！
Expressed by persons
O Captain! My Captain; our fearful trip is done. The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won… --- Walt Whitman
Expressed by place and inanimate objects
Exercises
1. The match will soon be over and defeat is staring us in the face. 比赛马上就要结束了，失败正目不转睛的注视着我们 的脸颊。 2. This time fate is smiling to us. 命运在向我们招手。 3. The storm was raging and an angry sea was continuously tossing their boat. 暴风雨在怒吼，汹涌的海浪不停地撞击他们的船。
Time
Morning found them hanging on trees in once– peaceful forests. The year 1949 saw the founding of the People’s Republic of China. 1949年见证了中华人民共和国的成立。 Then night, like some great loving mother, gently lays her hand our fevered head, and turns our little tear– stained face up to hers, and though she does not speak, we know that she would say and lay our hot, flushed cheek against her bosom and the pain is gone.
Lexical Stylistic Devices
Personification Apostrophe
Personification
Definition:. Different ways of expression: Functions Some examples
Definition
Personification is that somethingis treated as the person and entrusted temporarily with person’s shape, characteristic or feeling.
Different ways of expression