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Figures of Speech in Shakespearean Language, Language notes - Coggle…
Figures of Speech in Shakespearean Language
Onomatopoeia
“The buzzing of the bees.” - (common in Shakespeare’s imagery)
To show the sound of bees and making the story more colourful and more actions.
“buzzing” is the sound bees make.
“Hark, hark! Bow-wow, / The watch-dogs bark!” -The Tempest
Shakespeare just wants to get attention in this line, and to show that there are dogs nearby.
"bow-wow" is the sound of dogs barking
Personification
“O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts.” -Julius Caesar
Shakespeare says that the judgement has fled to stupid animals, which means that there is no more clever judgement and the people are using emotions like stupid animals.
It is personification by describing judgement as something that can run away, which is a human action.
“The grey-eyed morn smiles on the frowning night.” -Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare says that the morn(morning) has arrived happily, and pushing away the sad, dark night.
Saying that morn smiles and frowning night, which is human action.
Metaphor
“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? … Thou art more lovely and more temperate.” -Sonnet 18
The word "thee" in the passage means you, and Shakespeare asked "should I compare you to a summer day?" and he answered "your art more lovely and more temperate" which he says she is even more lovely, gentle, and perfect.
compare "Thee"(you) to a summer's day
“Juliet is the sun.” -Romeo and Juliet
Romeo, the speaker means that Juliet is the hope, love, and important thing in his life like the sun.
Metaphor by compare using "is"
Hyperbole
“With love’s light wings did I o’er-perch these walls…” -Romeo and Juliet
Romeo says that his love for Juliet gave him the confidence and power to climb these walls to see her.
“love’s light wings” Shakespeare wants show how love give him power like wings to fly over walls, and it is a hyperbole.
“Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?” — Macbeth
Shakespeare wants to show that Macbeth felt so guilty and said "no water can clean his hands of the blood".
Exaggerates that not even an entire ocean could wash away his guilt.
Allusion
“…I know not where is that Promethean heat…” -Othello
Allusion to Prometheus, the Titan in Greek mythology who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humans.
The promethean heat is the fire of life that can bring someone back from death. Shakespeare is saying that he doesn’t know where to find the Promethean heat, meaning that he can't get someone back to life.
“Till Hymen’s torch be lighted.” -Twelfth Night
Hymen is the god of marriage, and his torch stands for a wedding. So this phrase means "until we get married."
Hymen’s torch symbolizes weddings and marriage.
Alliteration
“hollow men, like horses hot at hand…” -Julius Caesar
Shakespeare compares hollow men which is empty headed men to a energetic or excited horse that is hard to control.
The repeated "h" sound.
“Fair is foul, and foul is fair.” -Macbeth
Shakespeare means that something might not be good or bad as it looks. It might look good but it is actually bad or it looks bad but is actually good,
The repeated "f" sound.
Oxymoron
“sweet sorrow” -Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare wants to tell that the love between Romeo and Juliet is both sad and sweet. They both need to stay apart but their love make them feel happy at the same time.
Sweet(happy) and sorrow(sadness) in the same phrase
“O brawling love! O loving hate!” -Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare means that love can make people fight but also can make them care for each other.
Brawling and love in the same phrase. Loving and hate in the same phrase.
Assonance
“the dew-dropping south” -Romeo & Juliet
Shakespeare compares the wind to humans. The wind blows from the north and then suddenly turns to the south. This shows that people’s thoughts and feelings can also change quickly.
The repeated "o" vowel.
“Is it thy will thy image should keep open" -Sonnet 61
"Thy" means "your" and Shakespeare is asking if the person wants their image or memory to stay with him.
This repeated “i” vowel.
Irony
“Yet Brutus says he was ambitious; and Brutus is an honorable man.” -Julius Caesar
Antony says this, and the “he” that Brutus refers to is Caesar. Antony says that Brutus claims Caesar was ambitious, and that Brutus himself is an honorable man. But Antony is really hinting that Brutus is not honorable and that Caesar isn't ambitious.
Shakespeare want to pretends to praise Brutus while actually satire him and turning the crowd against him.
“None of woman born shall harm Macbeth.” -The witches
Meaning that no one born can harm Macbeth.
It is actually not that true and the person who tell this to Macbeth wants him to be calm and later he got killed by Macduff
Pun
“a mender of bad soles.” -Julius Caesar
In the play, it literally means a shoemaker, but “soles” sounds like “souls”. It can also mean someone who fixes people’s hearts or souls.
Words with similar sound but different meanings (soles of shoes / souls of people).
“Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man.” -Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare was joking with dying. He plays with words “grave” means both serious and dead.
Uses a word with two meanings to make a joke.
Anaphora
“Now is the winter … Now…” -Sonnet 18
Shakespeare repeats “now” to show that the time is passing and the season is changing. This shows that the time is not waiting for anyone and everything is always changing.
The repeated “now” in the phrase
“And pity, like a naked new-born babe, / Striding the blast, or heaven’s cherubins...” -Macbeth
Shakespeare shows pity as something pure and innocent like a newborn baby, or heaven’s angels (cherubins) to spread the news of Duncan’s murder and make people feel shocked and horrified.
The repeated “like” in the phrase
Simile
“Without his roe, like a dried herring.” -Romeo and Juliet
roe means fish eggs which Shakespeare compare that if the herring has no roe, it's lifeless like dried herring.
compare using "like".
“My love is like a fever, longing still.” -Sonnet 147
Shakespeare compares that his love is like a fever, which means that love life is intense, uncontrollable, or unhealthy relationship. Longing still means that it always stays the same as it was.
compare using "like".
Language notes
“Thou” = you
“Thy” = your
Word order is often different: “Goes he” = “He goes.”