Seminar 3

1. Figures of ambiguity. Speak on SDs known as “play upon words”. Describe the
difference between zeugma and pun.

The pun is stylistic device based on the interaction of two well-known meanings of a word or
phrase. A pun is usually used to create a comic or satirical effect

Puns are often used in riddles and jokes, for example, in this riddle: What is the difference
between a schoolmaster and an engine-driver? (One trains the mind and the other minds the
train.)

There are several kinds of puns:

1) pun based on Polysemy ( e.g. “Money doesn`t grow on the trees. But it blossoms at our
branches.”

2) based on complete or partial homonymy ( e.g. “More sun and air for your son and heir”)

3) based on phonetic similarity ( John said to Pete at dinner: “Carry on”. But Pete never eats
carrion.

4) based on parody ( “A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play”).

Zeugma is the use of a word in the same grammatical but different semantic relations to two
adjacent words in the context, the semantic relations being, on the on hand, literal, and, on the
other, metaphorical. e.g. : Peter drank tea with sugar, Sasha enjoyed it and Max with his wife.

Zeugma usually structurally consists of three elements : basic word and its use in two
combinations with different meanings. E.g. Silence was not broken by some time, but the soiles
were”.

He had (the main element) a good taste for wine and whiskey and emergency belt in his
bedroom (two adjuncts).

Purpose of Zeugma to relate two different ideas or subjects to one another.

2. Figures of identity

Simile – is a stylistic device based on partial identification of two unlike objects. It is the figure
of identity which consists in expressive comparison of two objects which have something in
common. e.x.: Her face was like a white sheet. Busy as a bee.

Simile should not be confused with logical comparison which is devoid of any stylistic
meaning.

The structure of Simile:

 the tenor
 the vehicle
 the ground of comparison
 e.g. She (the tenor) is as beautiful (the ground) as a rose the vehicle).

Simile is expressive, imaginative comparison of two unlike objects, belonging to two

differentclasses. This stylistic device consists of three components: the compared object (the
tenor), the object with which the first object is compared (the vehicle) and the linking element -
most often a conjunction as, like, as though, as if, мов немов, ніби, як, наче, неначе, etc.

Simile may be expressed by:

Conjunctions ‘as’ or ‘like’. Rosa is as beautiful as a flower.

Adverbial clauses of comparison (conjunctions “as”, “as if”, “ as though”) : Mary behaves as if
she were a child.

Adjectives in the comparative degree: “Ray behaves worse than a cut-throat”.

Adverbial word-combinations containing prepositional attributes. “With the thickness of a cat,

Samuel climbed up the tree”.

Simile may be implied, having no formal indications of comparison. “Odette had a strange
resemblance to a bird”.

Synonymy is the expression of the ‘same’ meaning by different words within a language. It is
very hard to list ABSOLUTE synonyms: words that are identical both in DENOTATION or
basic CONCEPTUAL meaning, and in their CONNOTATIONS, and so that can be
interchanged in all contexts. ex.:

Synonyms – substitutes ( replacers) are words used to denote object or thing, supplementing
new additional details. e.g. “The little boy was crying. It was the child`s usual time for going to
bed, but no one paid attention to the kid.”

Synonyms-specifires (specifying clarifying synonyms) – a chain of words which express

similar meaning. e.g. “ You sly, sinful, insidious hog, ‘ says I to Murkison.”

Exercise III, p. 44-45 (BPS).

Analyze various cases of play on words; indicate which type is used, how it is created what
effect it adds to the utterance.

1. After a while and a cake he crept nervously to the door of the parlour.(A.T.) - zeugma; creates
athoughtful/ironic effect by combining the words "nervous", which bears negative associations,
and "cake" thatis associated with celebrations and positivity.

2. There are two things I look for in a man. A sympathetic character and full lips. (I.Sh.) zeugma;
createshumorous effect.

3. Dorothy, at my statement, had clapped her hand over mouth to hold down laughter and
chewing gum. (Jn.B) zeugma/syllepsis; helps the reader to understand more about the character
of Dorothy, who is probably a childor just childish.

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4. (6) When I am dead, I hope it may be said: “His sins were scarlet, but his books were read.”
(H.B.) pun; creates a humorous/ironic effect (although the man probably led a sinful
life/committed some crimes, he was asuccessful author.

5. (7) Most women up London nowadays seem to furnish their rooms with nothing but orchids,
foreigners and French novels. (O.W.) zeugma/syllepsis; creates humorous effect.

6. (10) “Someone at the door,” he said, blinking. “Some four, I should say by the sound,” said
Fili (A.T.) pun,created through interrelation of some/one and some/four(in the meaning that there
are 4 people instead of 1 atthe door), adds humorous effect.

7. (14) My mother was wearing her best grey dress and gold brooch and a faint pink flush under
each cheek bone. (W.Gl.) zeugma/syllepsis; helps the reader understand the emotional state of
the mother.

Ex.1, p.51-52 (SS)

Indicate cases when a pun is created through homonyms and when through different
meanings of a polysemantic word.

1. (4) J.: …I’m starting work on Saturday.

H.: Oh, yes, she’s been called to the bar.

P.: What sort of a bar?

J.: The sort you’re always propping up. I’m carrying on the family traditions.

2. (5) Did you hit a woman with a child?

No, Sir, I hit her with a brick.

3. (6) It rained during the US-USSR match at summit level in Moscow. But it not only rained
rain, it rained records.

4. (7) It was such a lonesome girl until you came,” she said. “There’s not a single man in all this
hotel that’s half alive.”

“But I’m not a single man,” Mr. Topper replied cautiously.

“Oh, I don’t mean that,” she laughed. “And anyway I hate single men. They always propose
marriage.”

5. (8) She always glances up, and glances down, and doesn’t know where to look, but looks all
the prettier.

6. (9) Alg.: …Besides, your mane isn’t Jack at all; it is Ernest.

Jack: It isn’t Ernest; It’s Jack.

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 Alg.: You have always told me it was Ernest. I have introduced you to every one as Ernest. You
look as if your name was Ernest. You are the most earnest-looking person I ever saw in my life.
It is perfectly absurd your saying that your name isn’t Ernest.

2.1. Speak about semantic and structural types of epithets.

Epithet – an attributive characterisation of a person, thing or phenomena. It shows purely

individual emotional attitude of the speaker to the object spoken of.

Epithet may be semantic and structural. Semantically epithet split into two groups: 1.
associated with the noun following and 2. those unassociated with it.

Assocoated epithet are those which point to a feature which is essential to the objects they
describe. The associated epithet immediately refers the mind to the concept in question due to
some actual quality of the object it is attached to, for instance, 'dark forest', 'dreary midnight',
'careful attention', 'unwearying research', 'indefatigable assiduity', 'fantastic terrors', etc.

Unassociated epithets are attributes used to characterize the object by adding a feature not
inherent in it, i.e. a feature which may be so unexpected as to strike the reader by its novelty, as,
for instance, ‘heart-burning smile’, ‘bootless cries’, ‘sullen earth’, ‘voiceless sands’, etc.

The adjectives here do not indicate any property inherent in the objects in question. They
impose, as it were, a property on them which is fitting only in the given circumstances. It may
seem strange, unusual, or even accidental.

Structurally, epithets can be viewed from the angle of a) composition and b) distribution.

From the point of view of their compositional structure epithets may be divided into simple,
compound, phrase and sentence epithets. Simple epithets are ordinary adjectives (true love).

Compound epithets are built like compound adjectives (cloud-shaped giant).

Phrase epithets are expressed by a phrase which is placed before the noun they refer to (do-it-
yourself, go-it-alone).

Sentence epithets are expressed by a sentence placed before the noun: “she gave Mrs. Smith a
you-know-how-men-are look”.

III.

Exercise VI, p. 55-57 (BPS). Discuss the structure and semantics of epithets in the following
examples. Define the type and function of epithets.

1. He has that unmistakable tall lanky “rangy” loose-jointed graceful closecropped formidably
clean American look. simple, associated, non-figurative.

2. (4) He’s a proud, haughty (високомірний), consequential (високомірний), turned-nosed

(високомірний) peacock. simple, associated, figurative, transferred.

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3. (5) The Fascisti, or extreme Nationalists, which means black-shirted, knifecarrying, club-
swinging, quick-stepping, nineteen-year-old-pot-shot patriots, have worn out their welcome in
Italy. compound, associated, non-figurative, string of epithets.

4. (6) Where the devil was heaven? Was it up? Down? There was no up or down in a finite but
expanding universe in which even the vast, burning, dazzling, majestic sun was in a state of
progressive decay that would eventually destroy the earth too. simple, associated, figurative.

5. (7) She has taken to wearing heavy blue bulky shapeless quilted People’s Volunteers trousers
rather than the tight tremendous how-the-West-was-won trousers she formerly wore. phrase,
associated, non-figurative.

6. (12) And she still has that look, that don’t-you-touch-me look, that women who were beautiful
carry with them to the grave. phrase, associated, non-figurative.

7. (14) He loved the afterswim salt-and-sunshine smell of her hair. phrase, associated, non-
figurative.

8. (16) “Thief!” Pilon shouted. “Dirty pig of an untrue friend!” phrase, unassociated, figurative,
string of epithets, transferred.

9. (19) He thoroughly disliked this never-far-from-tragic look of a ham Shakespearian actor.

phrase, associated, non-figurative, string of epithets.

10. (25) Liza Hamilton was a very different kettle of Irish. Her head was small and round and it
held small and round convictions. simple, unassociated, figurative. перенокання.

11. (26) He sat with Daisy in his arms for a long silent time. simple, unassociated, figurative.

2.2. Speak about types and functions of a simile

Similes may be expressed by adjectives in the comparative degree or adverbial word-

combinations containing prepositional attributes:

Roy behaved worse than a cutthroat.

With the quickness of a cat. Samuel climbed up the tree.

Functions of a simile:

1. To create vivid imagery: When a writer uses a simile, it helps the reader to visualize the scene
more clearly.

2. To enhance meaning: A simile can help to clarify a point or add a deeper level of meaning.

3. To create humor: Sometimes, similes are used in a humorous way to make a point.

4. To create emotion: A simile can help to express emotions such as love, sadness, anger, or joy.

Types of simile:

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 1. Standard simile: This is the most common type of simile, where two things are compared
using the words "like" or "as". For example, "Her eyes were as blue as the ocean" or "He runs
like a cheetah."

2. Metaphorical simile: This type of simile uses a metaphorical reference to compare two
things. For example, "Her voice was music to his ears" or "His anger was a volcano about to
erupt."

3. Hyperbolic simile: This type of simile uses exaggerated language to make a comparison.
For example, "His muscles were as big as mountains" or "Her beauty was blinding, like the sun."

4. Ironical simile: This type of simile makes a comparison that is opposite to what is normally
expected. For example, "The child looked as innocent as a thief" or "She was as quiet as a
thunderstorm."

Similes fall into two categories : simple or implicit and explicit.

An explicit simile is a direct comparison between two things using the words "like" or "as".
For example, "Her skin was as soft as velvet."

An implicit simile, on the other hand, is a comparison that is not directly stated, but is implied
through the use of figurative language. For example, "The wind howled through the night, like a
pack of wolves searching for prey."

In an implicit simile, the comparison is often implied through metaphorical language such as
personification, hyperbole or other types of figurative language, rather than through the use of
the words "like" or "as". The reader must infer the comparison from the context of the sentence
or text. Implicit similes can add depth and richness to a text, making it more interesting and
engaging for the reader.

IV.

Exercise III. Discuss the following cases of simile. Pay attention to the semantics of the
tenor and the vehicle, to the brief or sustained manner of their presentation. Indicate the
foundation of the simile, both explicit and implicit. Find examples of disguised similes, do
not miss the link word joining the two parts of the structure:

A disguised simile - the likeness between the objects seems less evident, and needs some effort
to understand it.

Disguised similes accompanied by notional words as to seem, to look like, to appear, to

ressemble and others.

Tenor, vehicle, ground for comparison

1. The menu was rather less than a panorama, indeed, it was as repetitious as a snore. (O.N.)

In the next lines the ground for comparison often includes antonyms, describing obvious,
immediate features of the objects/creatures (their referents).
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 The following interesting lines, of which the composer is unknown, contain all the stock
comparisons most frequently used in conversation, arranged in such a manner as to rhyme.

As wet as a fish – as dry as a bone;

As live as a bird – as dead as a stone;

As plump as a partridge (куріпка) – as crafty as a rat;

As strong as a horse – as weak as a cat;

As hard as a flint – as soft as a mole;

As white as a lily – as black as a coal;

As plain as a pike – as rough as a bear;

As tight as a drum – as free as the air;

As heavy as lead – as light as a feather;

As steady as time – uncertain as weather;

As hot as an oven – as cold as a frog;

As gay as a lark – as sick as a dog;

As savage as a tiger – as mild as a dove;

As stiff as a poker – as limp as a glove;

As blind as a bat - as deaf as a post;

As cool as a cucumber – as warm as toast;

As flat as a flounder – as round as a ball;

As blunt as a hammer – as sharp as an awl;

As brittle as glass – as tough as gristle;

As neat as a pin – as clean as a whistle;

As red as a rose – as square as a box. (O.N.)

2. She has always been as live as a bird. (R. Ch.) – energetic, active, light

3. She was obstinate as a mule, always had been, from a child. (G.) stubborn

4. It was an unforgettable face, and a tragic face. Its sorrow welled out of it as purely, naturally
and unstoppably as water out of a woodland spring. (J.F.)

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5. Indian summer is like a woman. Ripe, hotly passionate, but fickle, she comes and goes as
she pleases so that one is never sure whether she will come at all nor for how long she will stay.
(Gr. M.) conceptual metaphor (Indian summer is a human being), just in case.

6. H.G. Wells reminded her of the rice paddies in her native California. Acres and acres of
shiny water but never more than two inches deep. (A.H.) a disguised simile (enormous but
subtle at the same time).

3. Figures of contrast.

3.1. Speak about structural peculiarities and functions of antithesis.

Oxymoron

Oxymoron is a combination of two words (mostly an adjective and a noun or an adverb with
an adjective) in which the meanings of the two clash, being opposite in sense, for example: 'low
skyscraper', 'sweet sorrow', 'nice rascal', 'pleasantly ugly face', 'horribly beautiful', 'a deafening
silence'.

The structural patterns of oxymoron are:

 adjective + noun, e.g., hot snow, adoring hatred;

 adverb + adjective, e.g., pleasantly ugly;
 predicative relations are also possible, e.g.,shouted silently; Sofia's beauty is horrible;
doomed to liberty;
 free syntactic patterns, such as up the down staircase.

An oxymoron pairs contradictory words in order to express new or complex meanings.

Oxymoron (Greek ‘sharp-dull’) ascribes some feature to an object incompatible with this
feature.

Parting is such sweet sorrow. (from Romeo and Juliet)

O brawling love! O loving hate!

I also assure her that I'm an Angry Young Man. A black humorist. A white Negro. Anything.
(M. Richler)

An oxymoron is always expressed by a phrase, not a sentence.

Antithesis

Antithesis is a figure of speech that combines two contrasting or opposing ideas, usually
within parallel grammatical structures.
E.x.: –the age of wisdom, the age of foolishness.

The essence of antithesis lies in the intentional emphasizing of two contradictory but
logically and emotionally closely connected notions, phenomena, objects, situations, events,

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ideas, images. Antithesis makes the reader’s or hearer’s impression stronger and the
utterance more convincing and may be used alongside with the comparison.

E.g. I had walked into that reading-room a happy, healthy man. I crawled out a decrepit
wreck.

The conjunction “but” is often used as an antithetical conjunct, other explicit antithesis
markers in discourse include “on the contrary”, “by comparison” , “on the other hand”.

Paradox

Paradox is one more type of utterance based on semantic and syntactic opposition.
Paradox is a statement that appears to be self-contradictory but contains something of a truth:

E.g.: The child is father to the man.

Cowards die many times before their death.

War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength”.

Paradox is used for emphasis or stylistic effect.

Beyond the literal meaning, a deeper, usually more philosophical meaning is found in
paradox. Because of its apparent absurdity and initial puzzlement, paradox is a trope that
can be effectively exploited in advertising slogans to attract attention. It has also been a
prominent device in love poetry.

3.1. Speak about structural peculiarities and functions of antithesis.

Syntactic structures expressing the meaning of antithesis are quite various: a simple
extended sentence, a composite sentence, a paragraph or even chain of paragraphs.

The main lexical means of antithesis formation is antonyms (words opposite in meaning):
danger – security, life – death, empty – occupied, to hurry – to go slow.

Antithesis may be expressed by different antonymous means:

- morphological, e.g., underpaid and overworked

- contextual antonyms, e.g., It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age
of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of
despair.

- antonymous expressions, e.g., It seemed that two worlds were meeting: the world of worry
about rent, and rates and groceries and the world of Rolls and the Black Market clothes and
perfume and the career ahead.

However, the use of antonyms is not strictly obligatory. Antithesis may also be formed
through situational confrontation of two notions expressed by non-antonymous words. For
example: Isabel's salary was high; Isabel's work was light.

It was the season of light, it was the season of darkness.

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I had waked into that reading-room a happy, healthy man. I crawled out a decrepit wreck.

Gilbert wears fine clothes, while I go in rags.

While Iam weak from hunger. Denis suffers from overeating.

Янгольський голосок, та чортова думка.

Слова одні нам тішать слух і зір, А інші нас відштовхують раптово.

V.

Exercise. Discuss the semantic centres and structural peculiarities of antithesis:

1. Mrs. Nork had a large home and a small husband. (S. L.) - semantically opposite to each
other.

2. Don’t use big words. They mean so little. (O. W.) big words are not supported by any
actions, less is more.

8. There was something eery about the apartment house, an unearthly quiet that was a
combination of overсarpeting and underoccupancy. (H. St.) on the morphemic level where
two antonymous affixes create a powerful effect of contrast.

11. Then came running down stairs a gentleman with whiskers, out of breath.(D.)

12. It was the best times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age
of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of
Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair;
we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going to Heaven, we
were all going direct the other way – in short the period was so far like the present period,
that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received for good or for evil, in the
superlative degree of comparison only. (D.)

3.2. Speak about an oxymoron, its types and meaning.

Oxymoron is a combination of words which are semantically different. As a result of such

combination the object under description obtains characteristics contrary to its nature.

Oxymoron as a combination of semantically different notions helps to emphasize

contradictory qualities simultaneously existing in the described phenomenon as a dialectal
unity. As a rule one of the two members of oxymoron illuminates the feature which is
universally observed and acknowledged, while the other one offers a purely subjective,
individual perception of the object. Oxymoron makes the reader or hearer to reinterpret the
sense of the utterance which is at the same time striking, unpredictable and truthful, revealing
the essence of the object in question and pointing out its complicated nature.

The main structural pattern of oxymoron is Adjective + Noun, Adverb + Adjective or Verb
+ Adverb, so it easy to believe that the subjective part of the oxymoron is embodied in the
epithetattribute. Thus the oxymoron is very often associated with epithet, because the latter
also proceeds from the foregrounding of emotive meaning.
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E.g. hot snow, pleasantly ugly, to cry silently, to shout mutely, etc.

And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true (A. Tennyson).

But there are some other structural types of this stylistic device represented by predicative
relations or free syntactic patterns: Silence was louder than thunder (J. Updike). Sara was a
menace and a tonic, my best enemy; Rosy was a disease, my worst friend (J. Cary).

VI.

Exercise VIII, p. 61-62 (BPS)

In the following sentences pay attention to the structure and semantics of oxymorons.
Also indicate which of their members conveys the individually viewed feature of the
object and which one reflects its generally accepted characteristic:

1. He caught a ride home to the crowded loneliness of the barracks.

2. (4) He behaved pretty lousily to Jan.

3. (6) There were some bookcases of superbly unreadable books.

4. (9) Harriet turned back across the dim garden. The lightless light looked down from the
night sky.

5. (13) Huck Finn and Holden Caulfield are Good Bad Boys of American literature.

6. (15) Their bitter-sweet union did not last long.

7. (17) You have got two beautiful bad examples for parents.

8. (18) He opened up a wooden garage. The doors creaked. The garage was full of nothing.

9. (19) She was a damned nice woman, too.

4. Figures of inequality. Speak about the stylistic devices of climax and its types. What
is anticlimax?

Climax is stylistic device consists in arranging the utterance so that each subsequent
component of it increases significance, importance or emotional tension of narration. In order
to create antithesis (paradox or oxymoron) we use antonyms or their contextual equivalents.
In climax we deal with string of synonyms or at least semantically related words. The special
organization of the utterance (or text) increases its stylistic effect and impact on the
addressee.

E.g.: I am sorry, I am so sorry, I am so extremely sorry.

Гарний, чудовий, пречудовий – незрівнянний, божественний.

The stylistic device of climax may be of two opposite types. The first one is the utterance
or string of utterances in which each next word combination (clause, sentence) is logically or
emotionally more important, stronger or explicit, as in the following example:

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 I am firm, thou art obstinate, he is pig-headed (B.Charlstone).

The second type of structures participating in the formation of climax is characterized by

the reversed, descending order of its components, as in the following example: No tree, no
shrub, no blade of grass that was not owned (J. Galsworthy).

The relative (contextual) synonyms are arranged not in the ascending but in the descending
order: according to the importance or emotional colouring, quality or quantity expressed by
them.

Climax suddenly interrupted by an unexpected turn of the thought that defeats expectations
of the reader (listener) and ends in a complete semantic reversal of the idea is called
anticlimax.

This sudden break in the semantic order, logical or emotional significance of the
components is often indicated by emphatic punctuation, as, for example a dash in writing and
intonation, pause in oral speech: He was inconsolable – for an afternoon (J. Galsworthy).

Anticlimax is closely connected with paradox. A lot of witty sayings and proverbs, jokes
and anecdotes are based on both paradox and anticlimax.
VII.

Exercise II. Indicate the type of climax. Pay attention to its structure and the semantics
of its components:

1. He saw clearly that the best thing was a cover story or camouflage. As he wondered and
wondered what to do, he first rejected a stop as impossible, then as improbable, then, as quite
dreadful. (W.G.) Climax(emotional)

2. “Is it shark?” said Brody. The possibility that he at last was going to confront the fish – the
beast, the monster, the nightmare – made Brody’s heart pound. (P.B.) Climax (logical)

3. If he had got into the gubernatorial primary on his own hook, he would have taken a
realistic view. But this was different. He had been called. He had been touched. He had been
summoned. (R.W.) Climax (quantitative)

6. “I shall be sorry, I shall be truly sorry to leave you, my friend.” (D.) Climax (quantitative).

7. “Of course it’s important. Incredibly, urgently, desperately important.”(D.S.) Climax

(emotional).

8. “I never told you about that letter Jane Crofut got from her minister when she was sick. He
wrote Jane a letter and on the envelope the address was like this: Jane Crofut; The Crofut
Farm; Grover’s Corners; Sutton County; New Hampshire; United States of America.”
“What’s funny about it?” “But listen, it’s not finished: the United States of America;
Continent of North America; Western Hemisphere; the Earth; the Solar System; the
Universe; the Mind of God – that’s what it said on the envelope.” (Th. W.) al) Climax
(logical)

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9. “You have heard of Jefferson Brick, I see, Sir,” quoth the Colonel with a smile. “England
has heard of Jafferson Brick. Europe has heard of Jefferson Brick.” (D.) Climax
(quantitative).

15. This was appalling – and soon forgotten. (G.) Anticlimax

16. He was unconsolable – for an afternoon. (G.) Anticlimax

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