Wednesday 7 September 2016

What figures of speech appear in "The Solitary Reaper?"

Some figures of speech in The Solitary Reaper include:


1)Assonance


This is when two or more words in proximity repeat vowel sounds. For example:


O listen! for the Vale profound Is overflowing with the sound


2)Hyperbole


This figure of speech involves exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis. For example,


A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,Breaking the silence of the seas Among the farthest Hebrides.


The poet...

Some figures of speech in The Solitary Reaper include:


1)Assonance


This is when two or more words in proximity repeat vowel sounds. For example:


O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound


2)Hyperbole


This figure of speech involves exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis. For example,


A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.


The poet says that the Highland girl's voice is so beautiful that it is enough to break the calm stillness of the seas, even as far as the Hebride islands (off the coast of Scotland). This exaggeration serves to prove the beauty of the girl's singing.


3)Metaphor


This involves a comparison between two contradictory elements. In the poem, Wordsworth compares the girl's singing to that of the nightingale and the cuckoo bird.


4)Apostrophe


This is when an author or poet addresses an imaginary character or a character who is not present in the story.


Behold her, single in the field,
Yon solitary Highland Lass!


Here, Wordsworth is addressing the reader and drawing the reader's attention to the beauty of the Highland girl's singing.


5)Imagery


Imagery is figurative language used to appeal to our senses. For example,


No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands:


Above, the poet describes the ministering nature of the girl's voice. Her singing is so beautiful that it can refresh the spirits of tired travelers in a desert setting.

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