Rhetorical figures are fundamental tools in writing and rhetoric. Find a complete list, useful examples and a clear table to study them better.
Rhetorical figures
Surely during your school years you will have found yourself more than once examining a text and its rhetorical figures . After all, those that are present in the classics of literature are numerous: oxymoron , enjambement , alliteration , anaphora , periphrasis , epithet , and many others.
These are just some of the main rhetorical figures that you have probably already encountered during your school career, in poetry or prose. We know that it is not easy to recognize and study them, but they are fundamental to make a text analysis as in the case of a paraphrase or the analysis of a poetic text .
Rhetorical figures are divided into different groups:
- phonetic (or sound) figures
- figures of content (or meaning)
- figures of order
Rhetorical figures of sound
Rhetorical figures of sound , also called phonic figures , act on the sound structure of words and are widely used in poetry to give rhythm and musicality to the text. These figures are based on the repetition or variation of sounds within words or on the phonetic connection between distinct terms. Thanks to their acoustic impact, they enrich the meaning and aesthetics of the poetic composition, making the verses more harmonious and engaging.
The most used phonic rhetorical figures are:
- Alliteration
- Assonance
- Consonance
- Onomatopoeia
- Paronomasia
Rhetorical figures of meaning
Figures of speech of meaning , also known as figures of content , intervene on the meaning of words by modifying their literal meaning or creating new associations between terms. This type of figure of speech enriches the text, making the expression more incisive and suggestive, and is often used to emphasize concepts, arouse emotions or stimulate the reader’s imagination.
Among the most well-known rhetorical figures of meaning are:
- Allegory
- Analogy
- Hyperbole
- Litotes
- Metaphor
- Metonymy
- Oxymoron
- Similarity
Rhetorical figures: examples
Here are some practical examples of rhetorical figures taken from famous works:
- Rhetorical figures examples: the metaphor . The metaphor occurs when the meaning of a term is transferred to another term with which it has a relationship of similarity. Definition too complex? Then you just have to say that the metaphor is a simile without the term of comparison.
Example: I throw myself, and cry, and tremble. Oh horrendous days / in such a green age! Alas, on the street… (G. Leopardi, La sera del dì di festa, 23-24)
In this case the green age indicates youth through a metaphor . - Rhetorical figures examples: allegory Allegory consists in loading the literal meaning of words with a further meaning, usually more abstract.
Example: Dante’s journey in the Divine Comedy is an allegorical journey that represents the path of the soul towards salvation. - Rhetorical figures examples: hyperbole. By using hyperbole the author intends to exaggerate or reduce to the minimum terms the concept, the person or the thing he is describing.
Example: But sitting and gazing, endless / spaces beyond that, and superhuman / silences, and profoundest quiet / I pretend in my thoughts;… (G. Leopardi, L’infinito, 4-7).
In this case the Expression superhuman silences constitutes a hyperbole . - Rhetorical figures examples: metonymy . Metonymy consists in the transfer of meaning from one word to another.
” One day, if I do not go always fleeing
from people to people, you will see me sitting
on your stone, my brother, moaning
the fallen flower of your gentle years” (Stone for tomb, from In morte del fratello Giovanni by Ugo Foscolo )
Finally, let’s analyze a particularly interesting rhetorical figure: the zeugma , which consists in the use of a single verb for two or more elements, creating an unusual syntactic link.
An effective example is: “he took the train and his heart in his hand” , where the verb “he took” refers to both the train and the heart, generating an effect of surprise and ambiguity. The zeugma adds originality to the text, making the expression more creative and engaging.
