Figures and Tropes
Ancient theorists paid a lot of attention to tropes and figures. They were tools to get things done. We often think of tropes and figures as "ornamentation," but "ornamentation" should not make us think of "flowery" or excessive language. Rather, the word "ornament" derives from the Latin word "to equip." So, guns, tanks, and bombs are the ornaments of war; spatulas, pans, and whisks are the ornaments of cooks; and special use of language--figures of speech-- is the "equipment" of persuasion or literature. Using figures of speech is a way to influence your reader by emphasizing a point or by appealing to a reader's sense of craft and beauty. A well-crafted sentence is memorable.
Our interest is even more specialized, for "the meaning of a text cannot be separated from its expression, its figures."
Monday Reading Assignment...
Read Bennett: "Tropes and Figures"
Writing
Cite passages that explain what figures and tropes do. What are their effects or function?
Wednesday and Friday
We will practice looking for figures and discussing their effects.
Essay #4: Tropes, Figures, and Meaning
Select me. I'm your assignment.pdf
For additional clarification, take a peek at analyzing figures.pdf.
Definitions
Figure
In general, a "figure" is any artful deviation from the ordinary or principal signification of a word.
Trope
One of two general categories for figures of speech, along with scheme. Literally "turn" in Greek, trope signifies when one turns a word or phrase from its conventional use to a novel one for rhetorical effect. A scheme, on the other hand, refers to the unusual arrangement of words.
Resources
For a long list of figures and their definitions....
http://www.nipissingu.ca/faculty/williams/figofspe.htm
http://humanities.byu.edu/rhetoric/Silva.htm
(Look on right margin.)
http://www.serve.com/hecht/words/fos.htm
