What a metaphor. Figurative means of language: comparison, metaphor

Metaphor- this is the transfer of a name from one object to another on the basis of similarity.

The similarity can be external and internal.

Type of metaphor:

similarity of shape (draw a circle - a lifebuoy);

resemblance appearance(black horse - gymnastic horse);

the similarity of the impression made (sweet grapes - sweet dream);

similarity of location (leather sole - the sole of the mountain, whitewash the ceiling - three in Russian - its ceiling);

similarity in the structure of assessments (light portfolio - light text, the son outgrew his father, became very high - outgrow your mentor);

similarity in the way of presenting actions (covering a tree trunk with your hands - she was overcome with joy, piles support the bridge - support Ivanov's candidacy);

similarity of functions (mercury barometer - barometer of public opinion).

Ways of forming a metaphor

Metaphorical transfer may be based on some real similarity between objects, another kind of similarity is based on historically or nationally established ideas (for example, a crow is a muddler).

The metaphor usually has a national character. This is one of its features.

Words of the same type in their direct meaning do not necessarily give the same figurative meanings in different languages (a cow - in Russian it is a fat woman, in German - a tastelessly dressed woman; a fox in Russian is a cunning person, in German - a first-year student).

In some cases, a metaphor arises due to the exclusion of individual semes from the meaning of words, i.e. simplification of meaning. For example, fly - move through the air quickly. I flew to this meeting (removed the component "sphere of movement").

Types of metaphors

I. According to the peculiarities of use, functions.

1. Nominative, ugly(stress on the second syllable)

This metaphor is dry, has lost imagery. Dictionaries, as a rule, do not mark this meaning as figurative, metaphorical.

For example, a door handle, a teapot spout, the white of an eye, a peephole.

There is imagery in the word, it lies in the very fact of transferring the name from one subject to another.

2. Figurative metaphor

Contains a hidden comparison, has a characterizing property.

For example, a star (celebrity), a sharp mind.

A figurative metaphor arises as a result of a person's understanding of the objects of the real world.

3. Cognitive metaphor

A mental reflection of the real or attributed commonality of properties between compared concepts.

Forms the abstract meaning of the word.

For example, a handful of people (a small number), spin around (always be in your thoughts).

II. By role in language and speech.

1. General language (usual).

It reflects the social image, has a systemic character in use. It is reproducible and anonymous, fixed in dictionaries.

2. Individual (artistic).

For example:

In the midst of midday languor

Turquoise covered with cotton wool.

Giving birth to the sun, the lake languished.

In vocabulary, the main means of expression are trails(translated from Greek - turn, turn, image) - special figurative and expressive means of the language, based on the use of words in a figurative sense.

The main types of tropes include: epithet, comparison, metaphor, personification, metonymy, synecdoche, paraphrase (periphrase), hyperbole, litote, irony.

Special lexical figurative and expressive means of language (tropes)

Epithet(translated from Greek - application, addition) is a figurative definition that marks a feature that is essential for a given context in the depicted phenomenon.

From simple definition the epithet is distinguished by artistic expressiveness and figurativeness. The epithet is based on a hidden comparison.

Epithets include all "colorful" definitions, which are most often expressed by adjectives.

For example: sadly orphaned Earth(F. I. Tyutchev), gray fog, lemon light, silent peace(I. A. Bunin).

Epithets can also be expressed:

- nouns , acting as applications or predicates, giving a figurative description of the subject.

For example: sorceress - winter; mother - cheese earth; The poet is a lyre, not just the nurse of his soul(M. Gorky);

- adverbs acting as circumstances.

For example: In the wild stands alone in the north ...(M. Yu. Lermontov); The leaves were stretched tensely in the wind(K. G. Paustovsky);

- gerunds .

For example: the waves rush roaring and sparkling;

- pronouns expressing the superlative degree of this or that state of the human soul.

For example: After all, there were fighting fights, Yes, they say, some more!(M. Yu. Lermontov);

- participles and participle turnovers .

For example: Nightingales with rumbling words announce the forest limits(B. L. Pasternak); I also admit the appearance of ... scribblers who cannot prove where they spent the night yesterday, and who have no other words in the language, except for words, not remembering kinship (M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin).

The creation of figurative epithets is usually associated with the use of words in a figurative sense.

From the point of view of the type of figurative meaning of the word, acting as an epithet, all epithets are divided into:

metaphorical (They are based on a metaphorical figurative meaning.

For example: golden cloud, bottomless sky, lilac fog, walking cloud and standing tree.

Metaphorical epithets- a striking sign of the author's style:

You are my cornflower blue word
I love you forever.
How does our cow live now,
Sadness straw pulling?
(S.A. Yesenin. “I haven’t seen such beautiful ones?”);

How greedily the world of the night soul
Heeds the story of his beloved!
(Tyutchev. “What are you howling about, night wind?”).

metonymic (They are based on a metonymic figurative meaning.

For example: suede gait(V. V. Nabokov); scratchy look(M. Gorky); birch cheerful language(S. A. Yesenin).

From a genetic point of view epithets are divided into:

- general language (deathly silence, lead waves),

- folk-poetic (permanent) ( red sun, violent wind, good fellow).

In poetic folklore, the epithet, which, together with the defined word, constitutes a stable phrase, performed, in addition to the content, mnemonic function (gr. mnemo nicon- the art of memory).

Constant epithets made it easier for the singer, the narrator to perform the work. Any folklore text is saturated with such, for the most part, "decorating" epithets.

« In folklore, - writes the literary critic V.P. Anikin, - the girl is always red, well done - kind, father - dear, kids - small, youngster - remote, body - white, hands - white, tears - combustible, voice - loud, bow - low, table - oak, wine - green, vodka - sweet, eagle - gray, flower - scarlet, stone - combustible, sands - loose, night - dark, forest - stagnant, mountains - steep, forests - dense, cloud - formidable , the winds are violent, the field is clean, the sun is red, the bow is tight, the tavern is the king, the saber is sharp, the wolf is gray, etc.»

Depending on the genre, the selection of epithets has changed somewhat. Recreation of style, or stylization of folklore genres, involves the widespread use of constant epithets. Yes, they abound A song about Tsar Ivan Vasilievich, a young guardsman and a daring merchant Kalashnikov» Lermontov: the sun is red, the clouds are blue, the golden crown, the formidable king, the daring fighter, the thought is strong, the thought is black, the heart is hot, the shoulders are heroic, the saber is sharp etc.

The epithet can incorporate the properties of many trails . Based on metaphor or at metonymy , it can also be combined with the personification ... foggy and quiet azure over sadly orphaned earth(F. I. Tyutchev), hyperbole (Autumn already knows what deep and mute peace is - A harbinger of a long bad weather(I. A. Bunin) and other paths and figures.

The role of epithets in the text

All epithets as bright, "illuminating" definitions are aimed at enhancing the expressiveness of the images of the depicted objects or phenomena, at highlighting their most significant features.

In addition, epithets can:

Strengthen, emphasize any characteristic features of objects.

For example: Wandering among the rocks, a yellow ray crept into the wild cave And illuminated the smooth skull...(M. Yu. Lermontov);

Refine features object (shape, color, size, quality):

For example: Forest, like a painted tower, Lilac, gold, crimson, Cheerful, motley wall Stands over a bright glade(I. A. Bunin);

Create word combinations that are contrasting in meaning and serve as the basis for creating an oxymoron: squalid luxury(L. N. Tolstoy), brilliant shadow(E. A. Baratynsky);

To convey the attitude of the author to the depicted, to express the author's assessment and the author's perception of the phenomenon: ... Dead words smell bad(N. S. Gumilyov); And we value the prophetic word, and we honor the Russian word, And we will not change the power of the word.(S. N. Sergeev-Tsensky); What does it mean smiling blessing heaven, this happy resting earth?(I. S. Turgenev)

Figurative epithets highlight the essential aspects of the depicted without introducing a direct assessment (“ in the blue fog of the sea», « in the dead sky" etc.).

In expressive (lyric) epithets , on the contrary, the relation to the depicted phenomenon is clearly expressed (“ flickering images of crazy people», « tedious night story»).

It should be borne in mind that this division is rather arbitrary, since pictorial epithets also have an emotional and evaluative meaning.

Epithets are widely used in artistic and journalistic, as well as in colloquial and popular science styles of speech.

Comparison- this is pictorial technique based on the comparison of one phenomenon or concept with another.

Unlike metaphor comparison is always binomial : it names both compared objects (phenomena, signs, actions).

For example: Villages are burning, they have no protection. The sons of the fatherland are defeated by the enemy, And the glow, like an eternal meteor, Playing in the clouds, frightens the eye.(M. Yu. Lermontov)

Comparisons are expressed in various ways:

form instrumental nouns.

For example: Nightingale stray Youth flew by, Wave in bad weather Joy subsided.(A. V. Koltsov) The moon slides like a pancake in sour cream.(B. Pasternak) Leaves flew like stars.(D. Samoilov) Flying rain sparkles golden in the sun.(V. Nabokov) Icicles hang like glass fringes.(I. Shmelev) A patterned clean towel A rainbow hangs from the birches.(N. Rubtsov)

The form of the comparative degree of an adjective or adverb.

For example: These eyes are greener than the sea and darker than our cypresses.(A. Akhmatova) Girl's eyes are brighter than roses.(A. S. Pushkin) But the eyes are blue of the day.(S. Yesenin) Bushes of mountain ash are more foggy than depth.(S. Yesenin) Freer youth.(A. S. Pushkin) The truth is more valuable than gold.(Proverb) Lighter than the sun is the throne room. M. Tsvetaeva)

Comparative turnovers with unions like, like, like, like and etc.

For example: Like a predatory animal, into a humble abode The winner bursts with bayonets ...(M. Yu. Lermontov) April looks at a bird's flight With eyes as blue as ice.(D. Samoilov) Here every village is so loving, As if in it the beauty of the whole universe. (A. Yashin) And stand behind the oak nets Like the evil spirits of the forest, stumps.(S. Yesenin) Like a bird in a cage, The heart jumps.(M. Yu. Lermontov) my verses, like precious wines, It will be your turn.(M. I. Tsvetaeva) It's close to noon. The fire is burning. Like a plowman, the battle rests. (A. S. Pushkin) The past, like the bottom of the sea, Spreads like a pattern in the distance.(V. Bryusov)

Beyond the river in restlessness
cherry blossomed,
Like snow across the river
Filled the stitch.
Like light blizzards
Rushed with all their might
Like swans were flying
Dropped fluff.(A. Prokofiev)

With the help of words similar, like this.

For example: Your eyes look like the eyes of a cautious cat(A. Akhmatova);

With the help of comparative clauses.

For example: Golden foliage swirled in pinkish water on the pond, Like butterflies, a light flock With fading flies to the star. (S. A. Yesenin) The rain sows, sows, sows, It has been drizzling since midnight, Like a muslin curtain Hanging behind the windows. (V. Tushnova) Heavy snow, spinning, covered the Sunless heights, As if hundreds of white wings flew silently. (V. Tushnova) Like a tree shedding its leaves So I drop sad words.(S. Yesenin) How the king loved rich palaces So I fell in love with the ancient roads And the blue eyes of eternity!(N. Rubtsov)

Comparisons can be direct andnegative

Negative comparisons are especially characteristic of oral folk poetry and can serve as a way to stylize the text.

For example: It's not a horse top, not human talk... (A. S. Pushkin)

A special type of comparison is extended comparisons, with the help of which entire texts can be built.

For example, the poem by F. I. Tyutchev " Like hot ashes...»:
Like hot ashes
The scroll smokes and burns
And the fire is hidden and deaf
Words and lines devour -

So sadly my life is smoldering
And every day the smoke goes away
So gradually I go out
In unbearable monotony! ..

Oh Heaven, if only once
This flame developed at will -
And, without languishing, without tormenting the share,
I would shine - and went out!

The role of comparisons in the text

Comparisons, like epithets, are used in the text in order to enhance its figurativeness and figurativeness, create more vivid, expressive images and highlight, emphasize any significant features of the depicted objects or phenomena, as well as to express the author's assessments and emotions.

For example:
I like it my friend
When the word melts
And when it sings
Heat pours over the line,
So that words blush from words,
So that they, going in flight,
Curled, fought to sing,
To eat like honey.
(A. A. Prokofiev);

In every soul it seems to live, burn, glow, like a star in the sky and, like a star, it goes out when it's finished life path, flies from our lips ... It happens that an extinguished star for us, people on earth, burns for another thousand years. (M. M. Prishvin)

Comparisons as a means of linguistic expressiveness can be used not only in literary texts, but also in journalistic, colloquial, scientific ones.

Metaphor(translated from Greek - transfer) is a word or expression that is used in a figurative sense based on the similarity of two objects or phenomena on some basis. It is sometimes said that a metaphor is a hidden comparison.

For example, a metaphor Red rowan bonfire burns in the garden (S. Yesenin) contains a comparison of rowan brushes with a fire flame.

Many metaphors have become commonplace in everyday use and therefore do not attract attention, have lost imagery in our perception.

For example: bank burst, dollar circulation, dizzy and etc.

In contrast to comparison, in which both what is being compared and what is being compared is given, the metaphor contains only the second, which creates compactness and figurativeness of the use of the word.

The metaphor can be based on the similarity of objects in shape, color, volume, purpose, sensations, etc.

For example: a waterfall of stars, an avalanche of letters, a wall of fire, an abyss of grief, a pearl of poetry, a spark of love and etc.

All metaphors are divided into two groups:

1) general language ("erased")

For example: golden hands, a storm in a teacup, move mountains, strings of the soul, love faded ;

2) artistic (individual-author's, poetic)

For example: And the stars fade diamond thrill in the painless cold of dawn (M. Voloshin); Empty skies clear glass(A. Akhmatova); And blue eyes, bottomless bloom on the far shore. (A. A. Blok)

Metaphors of Sergei Yesenin: bonfire of red mountain ash, birch cheerful tongue of the grove, chintz of the sky; or September's bloody tears, overgrowth of raindrops, lantern buns and roof tops at Boris Pasternak
The metaphor is paraphrased into a comparison using auxiliary words. like, like, like, like etc.

There are several types of metaphor: erased, expanded, realized.

Erased - a common metaphor, the figurative meaning of which is no longer felt.

For example: chair leg, headboard, sheet of paper, clock hand etc.

A whole work or a large excerpt from it can be built on a metaphor. Such a metaphor is called "unfolded", in which the image "unfolds", that is, it is revealed in detail.

So, the poem by A.S. Pushkin “ Prophet"is an example of an extended metaphor. The transformation of the lyrical hero into the herald of the will of the Lord - the poet-prophet, his quenching " spiritual thirst", that is, the desire to know the meaning of being and find one's calling, is depicted by the poet gradually: " six-winged seraph", the messenger of God, transformed the hero of his" right hand"- the right hand, which was an allegory of strength and power. By God's power, the lyrical hero received a different vision, a different hearing, other mental and spiritual abilities. He could " heed”, that is, to comprehend the sublime, heavenly values \u200b\u200band earthly, material existence, to feel the beauty of the world and its suffering. Pushkin depicts this beautiful and painful process, “ stringing"one metaphor to another: the hero's eyes acquire eagle vigilance, his ears fill" noise and ringing"of life, the language ceases to be "idle and crafty", passing on the wisdom received as a gift, " quivering heart" turns into " coal burning with fire". The chain of metaphors is held together by the general idea of the work: the poet, as Pushkin wanted to see him, should be a forerunner of the future and an exposer of human vices, inspire people with his word, encourage goodness and truth.

Examples of an extended metaphor are often found in poetry and prose (the main part of the metaphor is marked in italics, its “deployment” is underlined):
... let's say goodbye together,
O my light youth!
Thanks for the pleasure
For sadness, for sweet torment,
For noise, for storms, for feasts,
For everything, for all your gifts...
A.S. Pushkin " Eugene Onegin"

We drink from the cup of life
With closed eyes...
Lermontov "Cup of Life"

…boy caught by love
To a girl wrapped in silks...
N. Gumilyov " Eagle of Sinbad"

The golden grove dissuaded
Birch cheerful language.
S. Yesenin " The golden grove dissuaded…"

Sad, and crying, and laughing,
The streams of my poems are ringing
At your feet
And every verse
Runs, weaves a living ligature,
Their not knowing the shores.
A. Blok " Sad, and crying, and laughing..."

Save my speech forever for the taste of misfortune and smoke ...
O. Mandelstam " Save my speech forever…"

... seethed, washing away the kings,
July Curve Street...
O. Mandelstam " I pray like pity and mercy..."

Here the wind embraces a flock of waves with a strong embrace and throws them on a grand scale in wild anger on the rocks, breaking the emerald bulks into dust and spray.
M. Gorky " Song of the Petrel"

The sea has woken up. It played in small waves, giving birth to them, decorating with fringed foam, pushing against each other and breaking them into fine dust.
M. Gorky " Chelkash"

Realized - metaphor , which regains direct meaning. The result of this process at the everyday level is often comical:

For example: I lost my temper and got on the bus

The exam will not take place: all tickets are sold.

If you've gone into yourself, don't come back empty-handed etc.

The simple-hearted joker-gravedigger in the tragedy of W. Shakespeare " Hamlet”to the question of the protagonist about,“ on what ground"lost his mind" the young prince, replies: " In our Danish". He understands the word the soil"literally - the top layer of the earth, the territory, while Hamlet means figuratively - for what reason, as a result of which.

« Oh, you are heavy, Monomakh's hat! "- the tsar complains in the tragedy of A.S. Pushkin" Boris Godunov". The crown of Russian tsars since the time of Vladimir Monomakh has been in the form of a hat. It was adorned with precious stones, so it was "heavy" in the literal sense of the word. In a figurative way - Monomakh's hat» personified « heaviness”, the responsibility of the royal power, the heavy duties of the autocrat.

In the novel by A.S. Pushkin " Eugene Onegin» An important role is played by the image of the Muse, which since ancient times has personified the source of poetic inspiration. The expression "the muse visited the poet" has a figurative meaning. But Muse - the poet's friend and inspirer - appears in the novel in the form of a living woman, young, beautiful, cheerful. AT " student cell» Precisely Muse « opened a feast of young inventions- pranks and serious disputes about life. It is she who " sang"Everything that the young poet aspired to - earthly passions and desires: friendship, a cheerful feast, thoughtless joy -" children's fun". Muse, " how the bacchante frolicked", and the poet was proud of his" windy girlfriend».

During the southern exile, Muse appeared as a romantic heroine - a victim of her pernicious passions, resolute, capable of reckless rebellion. Her image helped the poet create an atmosphere of mystery and mystery in his poems:

How often l asce Muse
I delighted the dumb way
By the magic of a secret story!..

At the turning point of the author's creative quest, it was she who
She appeared as a county lady,
With sad thoughts in my eyes...

Throughout the entire work affectionate Muse"was correct" girlfriend» poet.

The realization of a metaphor is often found in the poetry of V. Mayakovsky. So, in the poem A cloud in pants" it implements the running expression " nerves went wild" or " nerves are naughty»:
Hear:
quiet,
like a sick person out of bed
nerve jumped.
here, -
first walked
barely,
then he ran
excited,
clear.
Now he and the new two
rushing about in a desperate tap dance ...
Nerves -
big,
small,
many -
jumping mad,
and already
the nerves give way to the legs!

It should be remembered that the boundary between various types metaphors are very conditional, unsteady, and it can be difficult to accurately determine the type.

The role of metaphors in the text

Metaphor is one of the brightest and most powerful means of creating expressiveness and figurativeness of the text.

Through the metaphorical meaning of words and phrases, the author of the text not only enhances the visibility and visibility of what is depicted, but also conveys the uniqueness, individuality of objects or phenomena, while showing the depth and nature of his own associative-figurative thinking, vision of the world, the measure of talent (“The most important thing is to be skillful in metaphors. Only this cannot be adopted from another - this is a sign of talent "(Aristotle).

Metaphors serve as an important means of expressing the author's assessments and emotions, the author's characteristics of objects and phenomena.

For example: I feel stuffy in this atmosphere! Kites! Owl nest! Crocodiles!(A.P. Chekhov)

In addition to artistic and journalistic styles, metaphors are characteristic of colloquial and even scientific style (" the ozone hole », « electron cloud " and etc.).

personification- this is a kind of metaphor based on the transfer of signs of a living being to natural phenomena, objects and concepts.

Most often personifications are used in describing nature.

For example:
Rolling through sleepy valleys
Sleepy mists lay down,
And only the stomp of a horse,
Sounding, is lost in the distance.
Extinguished, turning pale, the day autumn,
Rolling fragrant leaves,
Eating dreamless sleep
Semi-withered flowers.
(M. Yu. Lermontov)

Less often, personifications are associated with the objective world.

For example:
Isn't it true, never again
We won't break up? Enough?..
And the violin answered Yes,
But the heart of the violin was in pain.
The bow understood everything, it calmed down,
And in the violin, the echo kept everything ...
And it was a pain for them
What people thought was music.
(I. F. Annensky);

There was something good-natured and at the same time cozy in face of this house. (D.N. Mamin-Sibiryak)

Avatars- the paths are very old, with their roots in pagan antiquity and therefore occupy such an important place in mythology and folklore. The Fox and the Wolf, the Hare and the Bear, the epic Serpent Gorynych and the Poganoe Idolishche - all these and other fantastic and zoological characters of fairy tales and epics are familiar to us from early childhood.

One of the literary genres closest to folklore, the fable, is based on personification.

Without personification, even today it is unthinkable to imagine works of art without them, our everyday speech is unthinkable.

Figurative speech not only visually represents thought. Its advantage is that it is shorter. Instead of describing the subject in detail, we can compare it with an already known subject.

It is impossible to imagine poetic speech without using this technique:
"The storm covers the sky with mist
Whirlwinds of snow twisting,
Like a beast, she will howl,
He will cry like a child."(A.S. Pushkin)

The role of personifications in the text

Personifications serve to create vivid, expressive and figurative pictures of something, to enhance the transmitted thoughts and feelings.

personification as means of expression used not only in the artistic style, but also in journalistic and scientific.

For example: X-ray shows, the device speaks, the air heals, something stirred in the economy.

The most common metaphors are formed on the principle of personification, when an inanimate object acquires the properties of an animate one, as if acquiring a face.

1. Usually, the two components of a metaphor-personification are the subject and the predicate: the blizzard was angry», « the golden cloud spent the night», « waves are playing».

« get angry", that is, only a person can experience irritation, but" winter storm", a blizzard, plunging the world into cold and darkness, also brings" evil". « spend the night", sleep peacefully at night, only living beings are capable," cloud"But personifies a young woman who has found an unexpected shelter. Marine « waves"in the imagination of the poet" play', like children.

We often find examples of metaphors of this type in the poetry of A.S. Pushkin:
Not suddenly raptures will leave us ...
A death dream flies over him ...
My days are gone...
The spirit of life woke up in him...
Fatherland caressed you ...
Poetry awakens in me...

2. Many metaphors-personifications are built according to the method of management: “ lyre singing», « the voice of the waves», « fashion darling», « happiness darling" and etc.

A musical instrument is like a human voice, and it too " sings”, and the splashing of the waves resembles a quiet conversation. " favorite», « minion"are not only in people, but also in the wayward" fashion"or changeable" happiness».

For example: "Winters of threat", "Abyss voice", "joy of sadness", "day of despondency", "son of laziness", "threads ... of fun", "brother by muse, by fate", "victim of slander", "cathedral wax faces ”, “Joy language”, “mourn the burden”, “hope of young days”, “pages of malice and vice”, “shrine voice”, “by the will of passions”.

But there are metaphors formed differently. The criterion of difference here is the principle of animation and inanimateness. An inanimate object does NOT gain the properties of an animate object.

one). Subject and predicate: “ Desire is seething”, “Eyes are burning”, “Heart is empty”.

Desire in a person can manifest itself to a strong degree, seethe and " boil". Eyes, betraying excitement, shine and " are burning". Heart, soul, not warmed by feeling, can become " empty».

For example: “I learned grief early, I was comprehended by persecution”, “our youth will not suddenly fade”, “noon ... burned”, “the moon floats”, “conversations flow”, “stories spread out”, “love ... faded away”, “I call the shadow "," life fell.

2). Phrases built according to the method of management can also, being metaphors, NOT be personification: “ dagger of treachery», « glory tomb», « chain of clouds" and etc.

Steel arms - " dagger" - kills a person, but " treason"is like a dagger and can also destroy, break life. " Tomb"- this is a crypt, a grave, but not only people can be buried, but also glory, worldly love. " Chain" consists of metal links, but " clouds”, whimsically intertwining, form a semblance of a chain in the sky.

For example: “flattering necklaces”, “twilight of freedom”, “forest ... voices”, “clouds of arrows”, “noise of poetry”, “bell of brotherhood”, “poems incandescence”, “fire ... black eyes”, “salt of solemn insults”, “ the science of parting”, “the flame of southern blood” .

Many metaphors of this kind are formed according to the principle of reification, when the word being defined receives the properties of some substance, material: "windows crystal", "gold hair" .

On a sunny day, the window seems to sparkle like " crystal", and the hair takes on the color" gold". Here, the hidden comparison embedded in the metaphor is especially noticeable.

For example: "in the black velvet of the Soviet night, In the velvet of the world's emptiness", "poems ... grape meat", "crystal of high notes", "poems with rattling pearls".

Metaphor is a word or combination of words used to describe an object in a figurative sense, based on similar features with another object. Metaphor serves as an emotional embellishment colloquial speech. Often it replaces the original meaning of the word. Metaphor is used not only in colloquial speech, but also performs certain functions in literature. It allows you to give an object, an event a certain artistic image. This is necessary not only to strengthen a certain feature, but also to create a new image in the imagination, with the participation of emotions and logic.

Examples of metaphors from literature.

We bring to your attention examples of metaphors:
“A Christmas tree was born in the forest, it grew in the forest” - it is clear that a Christmas tree cannot be born, it can only grow from a spruce seed.

One more example:
"Scented bird cherry
Bloomed with spring
And golden branches
What curls, curled.

It is also obvious that bird cherry cannot curl curls, it is compared with a girl in order to clearly show how beautiful she is.

Metaphors can be sharp, this type connects completely different semantic concepts, for example, “the filling of a phrase”, it is clear that the phrase is not a pie and it cannot have a filling. Also, metaphors are deployed - they are visible, but rather listened to throughout the entire statement, such an excerpt from A.S. Pushkin's novel "Eugene Onegin" can serve as an example:

“The night has many lovely stars,
There are many beauties in Moscow.
But brighter than all the girlfriends of heaven
Moon in the air blue.

Along with expanded and sharp metaphors, there is an erased metaphor and a metaphor-formula, which are similar in their features - giving the subject a figurative character, for example, “a sofa leg”.

from the Greek metaphora - transfer, image) - the use of a word in a figurative sense based on the similarity in any respect of two objects or phenomena; replacing the usual expression with a figurative one (for example, golden autumn, the sound of waves, an airplane wing).

Great Definition

Incomplete definition ↓

METAPHOR

from the Greek metaphora - transfer) - a trope (see tropes) of a word, which consists in transferring the properties of one object, process or phenomenon to another on the basis of their similarity in some respect or in contrast. Aristotle in "Poetics" noted that M. is "an unusual name transferred from genus to species, or from species to genus, or from species to species, or by analogy." Of the four genera of M., Aristotle wrote, in the Rhetoric M., based on analogy, deserve the most attention, for example: “Pericles spoke of the youth who died in the war as the destruction of spring among the seasons.” Aristotle considers action to be especially strong, that is, one where the analogy is based on the representation of the inanimate by the animate, depicting everything moving and living. And Aristotle considers Homer as a model for the use of such M.: “The bitter sting of an arrow ... bounced back from copper. A sharp arrow rushed into the midst of enemies, to the intended greedy sacrifice ”(Iliad). And here is how, with the help of M., the actions of B.L. Pasternak creates the image of a cloud: “When a huge purple cloud, standing on the edge of the road, silenced the grasshoppers, sultry crackling in the grass, and in the camps sighed and drums trembled, the earth’s eyes darkened and there was no life in the world ... The cloud looked over look at the low baked stubble. They crept up to the horizon. The cloud easily reared up. They extended further, beyond the very camps. The cloud landed on its front legs and, smoothly crossing the road, silently crawled along the fourth rail of the siding ”(Airways). When creating M., according to Quintilian (compendium "Twelve Books of Rhetorical Instructions"), the following four cases will be the most typical: 1) replacement (transfer of property) of one animate object by another animate Greeks and Romans considered only humans to be animate). For example: “There were horses - not horses, tigers” (E. Zamyatin. Russia); the walrus "...rolls up again onto the platform, on his fat powerful body Nietzsche's mustachioed, bristly head with a smooth forehead is shown" (V. Khlebnikov. Menagerie); 2) one inanimate object is replaced (property transfer occurs) by another inanimate object. For example: “A river swirls in the desert fog” (A. Pushkin. Window); “Above him is a golden ray of the sun” (M. Lermontov. Sail); “A rusty leaf fell from the trees” (F. Tyutchev. N.I. Krol); "The boiling sea below us" (song "Varangian"); 3) replacement (transfer of property) of an inanimate object by an animate one. For example: “The word is the greatest master: it looks small and imperceptible, but it does wonderful things - it can stop fear and turn away sadness, cause joy, increase pity” (Gorgy. Praise to Elena); “The night is quiet, the desert listens to God, and the star speaks to the star” (M. Lermontov. I go out alone on the road ...); “The rusty bolt will burst into tears at the gate” (A. Bely. Jester); “Light Kolomna, hugging her sister Ryazan, wets her bare feet in the weeping Oka” (N. Klyuev. Ruin); “Linden trees were chilled to the bone” (N. Klyuev. Linden trees were chilled to the bone ...); 4) replacement (transfer of properties) of an animate object by an inanimate one. For example: “Strong heart” (i.e. mean, cruel) - the officer says about the usurer Sanjuelo (R. Lesage. The Adventures of Gil Blas from Santillana); “Sophists are poisonous shoots that have stuck to healthy plants, hemlock in a virgin forest” (V. Hugo. Les Misérables); “The Sophists are magnificent, magnificent flowers of the rich Greek spirit” (A. Herzen. Letters on the study of nature). Aristotle in "Rhetoric" emphasized that M. "has a high degree of clarity, pleasantness and a sign of novelty." It was M., he believed, along with the common words of the native language, that are the only material useful for the style of prose speech. M. is very close to comparison, but there is also a difference between them. M. is a trope of rhetoric, the transfer of the properties of one object or phenomenon to another according to the principle of their similarity in some respect, and comparison is a logical device similar to the definition of a concept, a figurative expression in which the depicted phenomenon is likened to another. Usually comparison is expressed using words like, like, as if. M., in contrast to the comparison, has a greater expression. The means of the language make it possible to separate comparison and M. quite strictly. This is done in Aristotle's Rhetoric. Here are the comparisons of I. Annensky in “The Shamrock of Temptation”: “A merry day burns ... Among the sagging herbs, all the poppies are stained - like greedy impotence, like lips full of temptation and poison, like scarlet butterflies unfolded wings.” They are easy to turn into a metaphor: Poppies are scarlet butterflies with spread wings. Demetrius in his work "On Style" considered another aspect of the relationship between M. and comparison. If M., he wrote, seems too dangerous, then it is easy to turn it into a comparison, inserting, as it were, and then the impression of riskiness inherent in M. will weaken. In the treatises of rhetoricians, in the works of experts in the field of poetics and stylistics, most attention is paid to M. himself. Quintilian called it the most common and most beautiful of the tropes of rhetoric. It is, the Roman rhetor believed, something innate, and even in complete ignoramuses it often breaks out in the most natural way. But it is much more pleasant and beautiful when M. tastefully crafted and in high speech shines with its own light. It multiplies the richness of the language by changing or borrowing everything that is lacking in it. M. is used in order to strike the mind, to designate the subject more strongly and present it, as it were, before the eyes of the audience. Of course, its role cannot be exaggerated. Quintilian noted that an excess of M. bothers the listener's attention, turns speech into an allegory and a riddle. You should not use low and indecent M., as well as M., based on a false likeness. Aristotle saw one of the reasons for the loftiness, coldness of the speaker's speech in the use of inappropriate M. He believed that three types of M. should not be used: 1) having a funny meaning; 2) the meaning of which is too solemn and tragic; 3) borrowed from afar, and therefore having an unclear meaning or a poetic look. The subject of constant discussions, starting from antiquity, was the question of how many M. can be used simultaneously. Already the Greek theoreticians of rhetoric accepted as a “law” the simultaneous use of two, maximum three M. Having agreed, in principle, with this provision, Pseudo-Longin in the treatise “On the Sublime” still believes that the justification for the large number and courage of M. is “appropriate passion of speech and its noble sublimity. It is natural for the growing tide of stormy feeling to carry everything along and carry it with it. It was these properties of M. that M.V. superbly demonstrated. Lomonosov: “The master of many languages, the Russian language, not only by the vastness of the places where it dominates, but also by its own space and contentment is great before everyone in Europe ... Charles the Fifth ... if he were skilled in the Russian language, then. .. I would find in it the splendor of Spanish, the liveliness of French, the strength of German, the tenderness of Italian, moreover, the richness and brevity of Greek and Latin"(M. Lomonosov. Russian grammar). Description of boron by E.I. Zamyatin is given through the use of numerous M.: “... Blue winter days, the rustle of snow chunks - from top to bottom, a vigorous frosty crack, a woodpecker hammers; yellow summer days, wax candles in clumsy green hands, transparent honey tears down hardened strong trunks, cuckoos are counting the years. But now the clouds swelled in the stuffiness, the sky split into a crimson crack, it dripped with fire - and the century-old forest lit up, and by morning red tongues, a thorn, a whistle, a crackle, a howl, half the sky in the smoke, the sun in the blood is barely visible "(E. Zamyatin, Russia). B.L. paid much attention to the assessment of the role of M. in fiction. Pasternak: “Art is realistic as an activity and symbolic as a fact. It is realistic in that it did not invent M. on its own, but found it in nature and faithfully reproduced it ”(B. Pasternak. Safeguarding). “Metaphorism is a natural consequence of the fragility of man and the long-term conceived immensity of his tasks. With this discrepancy, he is forced to look at things in an eagle's vigilant manner and explain himself with instantaneous and immediately understandable insights. This is poetry. Metaphorism is a stenography of a great personality, cursiveness of its spirit” (B. Pasternak. Notes on translations from Shakespeare). M. is the most common and most expressive of all tropes. Lit .: Antique theories of language and style. - M.; L., 1936. - S. 215-220; Aristotle. Poetics // Aristotle. Op.: In 4 vols. - M., 1984. - T. 4. - S. 669-672; Aristotle. Rhetoric // Ancient rhetoric. - M., 1978. - S. 130-135, 145-148; Arutyunova N.D. Metaphor//Linguistic Encyclopedic Dictionary. - M., 1990; Demetrius. About style // Antique rhetoric. - M., 1978; Jolls K.K. Thought. Word. Metaphor. - Kyiv, 1984; Quintilian. Twelve books of rhetorical instructions. In 2 parts. - St. Petersburg, 1834; Korolkov V.I. On extra-linguistic and intra-linguistic aspects of the study of metaphor // Uch. app. MSPIIA. - M., 1971. - Issue. 58; Lomonosov M.V. A Brief Guide to Eloquence: Book One, which contains rhetoric showing general rules of both eloquence, that is, oratorios and poetry, composed for the benefit of those who love verbal sciences // Anthology of Russian rhetoric. - M., 1997. - S. 147-148; Lvov M.R. Rhetoric: Tutorial for students in grades 10-11 - M., 1995; Panov M.I. Rhetoric from antiquity to the present day // Anthology of Russian rhetoric. - M., 1997. - S. 31-32; Freidenberg O.M. Metaphor // Freidenberg O.M. Myth and literature of antiquity. - M., 1978; encyclopedic Dictionary young literary critic: For Wednesdays, and older. school age / Comp. IN AND. Novikov. - M., 1988. - S. 167-169. M.I. Panov

Hello, dear readers of the blog site. You are reading an article written by a person with fiery heart, nerves of steel and golden hands. It certainly sounds immodest.

But on the other hand, these grandiloquent definitions are examples and clear illustrations of the subject of this article. After all, today we will talk about metaphors.

Metaphor is a literary technique that allows you to make the text more vivid and emotional. It consists in the fact that transfers the properties of one object or action on another.

After all, hands cannot be made of gold, a heart cannot burn, and nerves cannot be made of steel. All of these definitions are used in a figurative sense, and we perfectly understand what these examples are talking about:

golden hands - everything that they do turns out well, which means it is valuable;
fiery heart - able to love, experience strong emotions;
nerves of steel - calmness and prudence even in extreme conditions.

Definition of the term and examples of metaphors

The first definition of what a metaphor is was given by Aristotle, and this is almost 2.5 thousand years ago.

True, it sounded somewhat heavy, after all, the author is a philosopher:

“A metaphor is an unusual name that is transferred from species to genus, or from genus to species, or from species to species, or from genus to genus”

Yes, it sounds like a tongue twister, and very philosophical. But, in fact, it means what we have already said - this is the transfer of the properties of one object to another, which initially did not suit him very well.

To make it even clearer, it is better to immediately bring examples of metaphors:

Weaved on the lake the scarlet color of dawn ...(S. Yesenin). It is clear that no color can "weave out", it is "reflected" here. But agree, it sounds more beautiful.
I'm standing on the coast, in the fire of the surf ...(K. Balmont). It is clear that fire and water are two opposite elements, but here they are, and it turned out more poetically than the word “bursts” would have stood instead of “fire”.
A windy flail walks along the golden army of fields ...(V. Khlebnikov). There are two metaphors here at once - the wind resembles a flail (a kind of knives), apparently just as ruthless, and the ears are replaced by a “golden army”, since there are many of them and they all stand one after another.
And the most simple. A Christmas tree was born in the forest, it grew in the forest. Naturally, no Christmas tree can be "born", because trees grow from seeds.

If you are observant, you have noticed that the metaphors in these examples are used in different meanings. These can be nouns, definitions, and even verbs.

Metaphors in literature

Most often, metaphors can be found in poetry. For example, Yesenin has almost every whole set of such metaphorical tricks.

Fragrant bird cherry, hung out, stands,
And the greenery is golden in the sun.

It is clear that the greenery cannot be golden in color, but this is how the poet accurately and vividly conveys the radiance of the sun's rays on the foliage.

And nearby, at the thawed patch, in the grass, between the roots,
Runs, flows a small silver stream.

Again, the water cannot be silver, but we understand that it is very clean, and the murmur of the stream resembles the chime of silver. Yes, and "run" water can not. The metaphor means that the stream flows very fast.

Like time in this famous painting by Salvador Dali.

To the cinema

Filmmakers love to use big titles to grab the audience's attention right away. Let's just give some examples:

In advertising

Since metaphors are called reinforce the familiar and make it more memorable, which, of course, this technique has long been adopted by advertisers. They use it to create short but catchy slogans.

"Magic of coffee" ("De Longi" coffee makers);
"Lip Color Revolution" (Revlon lipstick);
"Wake up the Lucky Volcano!" (a network of slot machines);
"Our impact on prices!" (Eldorado stores);
"On the wave of pleasure" ("Coca-Cola");
"Plunge into the cool" ("Lipton Ice Tea").

Varieties of metaphors in examples

All metaphors are usually divided into several types:

sharp. This is the most common and most striking type. As a rule, these are all just two words that are absolutely opposite of each other. For example, “wings of fire”, “flower of the moon”, “explosion of emotions”.
Erased. This is a metaphor that has already entered our vocabulary so firmly that we use it without hesitation. For example, “forest of hands”, “life is like honey”, “golden hands”, which we mentioned at the very beginning of the article.
Metaphor-formula. This is an even simpler kind of worn out metaphor. These are some constructions that we can no longer even divide into components and rephrase. For example, "leg of a chair", "toe of a shoe", "cup of being".
Exaggeration. A metaphor by which we deliberately magnify what is happening. For example, “I have already told you a hundred times”, “millions of people cannot be wrong”, “the whole class fell down with laughter”.

All of these types are simple metaphors. That is, they are small in design and, as a rule, only one word is used in a figurative sense. But there are so-called extended metaphors. These are whole chunks of text. And most often they can be found again in poetry.

Let's turn to the already mentioned Yesenin for help:

The golden grove dissuaded
Birch, cheerful language,
And the cranes, sadly flying,
No more regrets for anyone.
Whom to pity? After all, every wanderer in the world -
Pass, enter and leave the house again.
The hemp planter dreams of all the departed
With a wide moon over the blue pond.

Metaphors enrich our language. And many without even realizing it. For example, when attributed to people qualities of various animals:

When we say about a person that he is like a "lion", we mean his courage.
And when we remember the "bear", then here, most likely, we are talking about dimensions.
Well, "donkey", "ram" and even "chicken" very clearly characterize stupidity.

A lot of metaphors in familiar to everyone sayings:

"still waters run deep"
"every barrel has a plug"
"my hut is on the edge"

Even jargon is often not complete without metaphors, for example, "give a pumpkin."

By the way, scientists have long proved that metaphors activate the creative part of the brain. And a person who uses such techniques in his speech is more willing to listen.

So, if you want to be the soul of the company (another metaphor), feel free to enrich your language.

Good luck to you! See you soon on the blog pages site