{"id":13465,"date":"2020-05-25T00:00:08","date_gmt":"2020-05-25T04:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/spanish\/?p=13465"},"modified":"2020-05-24T23:04:06","modified_gmt":"2020-05-25T03:04:06","slug":"rhetorical-figures-in-spanish-literature-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/spanish\/rhetorical-figures-in-spanish-literature-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhetorical Figures in Spanish Literature (Part 1)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Image taken from Pixabay.<\/p><\/div>\n

Rhetorical figures are intentional deviations from the conventional sequence of words in a literary work, whose purpose is to create a sensorial meaning or rhetorical effect.<\/p>\n

Some rhetorical figures can be associated with figurative language, as it usually encompasses a non-literal usage of words, meant to evoke a variety of emotions from readers.<\/p>\n

Rhetorical figures appear oftentimes in literature, though they are also very common in everyday conversations.<\/p>\n

In that sense, Spanish literature is very rich in figuras ret\u00f3ricas<\/em> (rhetorical figures) that embellish it, but they could be certainly tricky to identify for inexperienced readers.<\/p>\n

Though there are hundreds of rhetorical figures in literature, in this first part of my post, I will explain the most common ones in Spanish: hyperbole, metaphor, simile, paradox, personification, and synesthesia. Then, we will be sharing some examples belonging to famous Spanish-speaking authors.<\/p>\n

Hyperbole<\/strong><\/p>\n

La hip\u00e9rbole<\/em> is a rhetorical figure used to describe a person, an object or an event by grandifying or exaggerating their characteristics. It helps make any description more vivid.<\/p>\n

“Los veinte a\u00f1os que llev\u00f3 de no dormir se le corrompieron de golpe al tomar el primer sue\u00f1o del que ya no iba a despertar.”<\/p>\n

Twenty years of no sleeping were spoiled all of a sudden after getting the first sleep from which he would no longer wake up.<\/p>\n

(Fragment of “Moriencia”, by Augusto Roa Bastos).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Metaphor and simile<\/strong><\/p>\n

Comparison is the basis for many rhetorical figures. This is the case of la<\/em> met\u00e1fora<\/em> (metaphor) and el s\u00edmil<\/em> (simile), but they are used differently.<\/p>\n

La met\u00e1fora<\/em> is a figurative comparison in which the usage of direct comparison words such as como<\/em> (like, as) is not present. It is used to compare a real thing with an evoked or imagined one having similar characteristics.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, el s\u00edmil<\/em> is a direct comparison between one thing and another, typically preceded by como<\/em>. Let’s see an example of both:<\/p>\n

(Simile)<\/p>\n

“Unas veces me siento<\/p>\n

como un acantilado<\/p>\n

y en otras como un cielo<\/p>\n

azul pero lejano.”<\/p>\n

Sometimes I feel<\/p>\n

like a cliff<\/p>\n

and sometimes like a sky<\/p>\n

blue but distant.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

(Metaphor)<\/p>\n

“A veces uno es<\/p>\n

manantial entre rocas<\/p>\n

y otras veces un \u00e1rbol<\/p>\n

con las \u00faltimas hojas.”<\/p>\n

Sometimes one is<\/p>\n

spring between rocks<\/p>\n

and sometimes a tree<\/p>\n

with the last leaves.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

(Fragments of “Estados de \u00c1nimo”, by Mario Benedetti).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Paradox<\/strong><\/p>\n

Una paradoja<\/em> is a logically self-contradictory statement meant to elicit an emotional response from the reader.<\/p>\n

“Yo te amo para comenzar a amarte, para recomenzar el infinito y para no dejar de amarte nunca: por eso no te amo todav\u00eda.”<\/p>\n

I love you to start loving you, to restart the infinite and to never stop loving you: that is why I don’t love you yet.<\/p>\n

(Fragment of “XLIV” from “Antolog\u00eda”, by Pablo Neruda).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Personification<\/strong><\/p>\n

La personificaci\u00f3n<\/em> is used to confer a human behavior, quality or characteristic to non-human characters like animals, nature or inanimate objects.<\/p>\n

“El lunes te agarr\u00f3 la muerte, Paula. Vino y te se\u00f1al\u00f3, pero se encontr\u00f3 frente a frente con tu madre y tu abuela y por esta vez retrocedi\u00f3.”<\/p>\n

Death grabbed you on Monday, Paula. It came and pointed at you, but it came across your mother and your grandmother and for this time it backed up”.<\/p>\n

(Fragment of “Paula”, by Isabel Allende).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Synesthesia<\/strong><\/p>\n

La sinestesia<\/em> is used to describe a physical sensation in terms normally reserved for another kind of sense.<\/p>\n

“… y adem\u00e1s hay el gusto del pul\u00f3ver, ese gusto azul de la lana que le debe estar manchando la cara ahora que la humedad del aliento se mezcla cada vez m\u00e1s con la lana”.<\/p>\n

Moreover, there is the taste of the sweater, this blue taste of the wool that must be staining his face now that the humidity of his breath is mixing more and more each time with the wool.<\/p>\n

(Fragment of “No se culpe a nadie”, by Julio Cort\u00e1zar)<\/p>\n

In Part 2, we will examine many other rhetorical figures and the way they are used in Spanish. Stay tuned!<\/p>\n

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Rhetorical figures are intentional deviations from the conventional sequence of words in a literary work, whose purpose is to create a sensorial meaning or rhetorical effect. Some rhetorical figures can be associated with figurative language, as it usually encompasses a non-literal usage of words, meant to evoke a variety of emotions from readers. Rhetorical figures…<\/p>\n

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