Description is the pattern of narrative development that aims to make vivid a place, object, character, or group. Description is one of four
rhetorical modes (also known as ''modes of discourse''), along with
exposition,
argumentation
Argumentation theory, or argumentation, is the interdisciplinary study of how conclusions can be supported or undermined by premises through logical reasoning. With historical origins in logic, dialectic, and rhetoric, argumentation theory, includ ...
, and
narration. In practice it would be difficult to write literature that drew on just one of the four basic modes.
As a fiction-writing mode
Fiction-writing also has modes:
action, exposition, description,
dialogue
Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literary and theatrical form that depicts such an exchange. As a philosophical or didactic device, it is c ...
, summary, and transition. Author
Peter Selgin
Peter Selgin (; born 1957) is an American novelist, short story writer, playwright, essayist, editor, and illustrator. Selgin is Associate Professor of English at Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville, Georgia.
Biography
The son of ...
refers to ''methods'', including action, dialogue, thoughts, summary,
scenes, and description. Currently, there is no consensus within the writing community regarding the number and composition of
fiction-writing modes and their uses.
Description is the fiction-writing mode for transmitting a mental image of the particulars of a story. Together with dialogue, narration, exposition, and summarization, description is one of the most widely recognized of the fiction-writing modes. As stated in ''Writing from A to Z'', edited by Kirk Polking, description is more than the amassing of details; it is bringing something to life by carefully choosing and arranging words and phrases to produce the desired effect. The most appropriate and effective techniques for presenting description are a matter of ongoing discussion among writers and writing coaches.
Purple prose
A purple patch is an over-written passage in which the writer has strained too hard to achieve an impressive effect, by elaborate figures or other means. The phrase (
Latin: "purpureus pannus") was first used by the Roman poet
Horace
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 – 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). The rhetorician Quintilian regarded his ' ...
in his ''
Ars Poetica'' (c. 20
BC) to denote an irrelevant and excessively ornate passage; the sense of irrelevance is normally absent in modern usage, although such passages are usually incongruous. By extension, purple prose is lavishly figurative, rhythmic, or otherwise overwrought.
Philosophy
In philosophy, the
nature of description has been an important question since
Bertrand Russell's classical texts.
See also
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Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology.
Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
*
Cliché
A cliché ( or ) is an element of an artistic work, saying, or idea that has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being weird or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was consi ...
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Diction
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Grammatical modifier
In linguistics, a modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure which ''modifies'' the meaning of another element in the structure. For instance, the adjective "red" acts as a modifier in the noun phrase "red ball", provi ...
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Grammatical voice
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Metaphors
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Nouns
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Objectification
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Personification
Personification occurs when a thing or abstraction is represented as a person, in literature or art, as a type of anthropomorphic metaphor. The type of personification discussed here excludes passing literary effects such as "Shadows hold their b ...
*
Referential density
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Relevance
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Rhetorical device
In rhetoric, a rhetorical device, persuasive device, or stylistic device is a technique that an author or speaker uses to convey to the listener or reader a meaning with the goal of persuading them towards considering a topic from a perspective, ...
s
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Simile
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Species description
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Verisimilitude
Notes
References
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* Rozakis, Laurie (2003). ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to Grammar and Style, 2nd Edition''. Alpha.
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