HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

A literary trope is the use of
figurative language Literal and figurative language is a distinction within some fields of language analysis, in particular stylistics, rhetoric, and semantics. *Literal language uses words exactly according to their conventionally accepted meaning (linguistics), me ...
, via word, phrase or an image, for artistic effect such as using a
figure of speech A figure of speech or rhetorical figure is a word or phrase that intentionally deviates from ordinary language use in order to produce a rhetorical effect. Figures of speech are traditionally classified into '' schemes,'' which vary the ordinary ...
. Keith and Lundburg describe a trope as, "a substitution of a word or phrase by a less literal word or phrase." The word ''trope'' has also come to be used for describing commonly recurring or overused
literary Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to ...
and
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, motifs or
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 ...
s in creative works. Literary tropes span almost every category of writing, such as poetry, film, plays, and video games.


Origins

The term ''trope'' derives from the Greek (''tropos''), "turn, direction, way", derived from the verb τρέπειν (''trepein''), "to turn, to direct, to alter, to change". Tropes and their classification were an important field in
classical rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate part ...
. The study of tropes has been taken up again in modern criticism, especially in
deconstruction The term deconstruction refers to approaches to understanding the relationship between text and meaning. It was introduced by the philosopher Jacques Derrida, who defined it as a turn away from Platonism's ideas of "true" forms and essences w ...
. Tropological criticism (not to be confused with
tropological reading Tropological reading or "moral sense" is a Christian tradition, theory, and practice of interpreting the figurative meaning of the Bible. It is part of biblical exegesis. Doctrine According to doctrine developed by the Church Fathers, the literal ...
, a type of biblical
exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (logic), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern usage, ...
) is the historical study of tropes, which aims to "define the dominant tropes of an epoch" and to "find those tropes in literary and non-literary texts", an interdisciplinary investigation of which
Michel Foucault Paul-Michel Foucault (, ; ; 15 October 192625 June 1984) was a French philosopher, historian of ideas, writer, political activist, and literary critic. Foucault's theories primarily address the relationship between power and knowledge, and how ...
was an "important exemplar".


In medieval writing

A specialized use is the medieval amplification of texts from the liturgy, such as in the ''
Kyrie Eleison Kyrie, a transliteration of Greek , vocative case of (''Kyrios''), is a common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, also called the Kyrie eleison ( ; ). In the Bible The prayer, "Kyrie, eleison," "Lord, have mercy" derives fro ...
'' (''Kyrie, / magnae Deus potentia, / liberator hominis, / transgressoris mandati, / eleison''). The most important example of such a trope is the ''
Quem quaeritis? The Latin question ''Quem quaeritis?'' (Latin for ''"Whom do you seek?"'') refers to four lines of the medieval Easter liturgy that later formed the kernel of the large body of medieval liturgical drama, which is also known as Visitatio sepulchri ...
'', an amplification before the ''
Introit The Introit (from Latin: ''introitus'', "entrance") is part of the opening of the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations. In its most complete version, it consists of an antiphon, psalm verse and ''Gloria Patri'', ...
'' of the
Easter Sunday Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
service and the source for
liturgical drama Liturgical drama refers to medieval forms of dramatic performance that use stories from the Bible or Christian hagiography. The term was widely disseminated by well-known theater historians like Heinrich Alt (''Theater und Kirche'', 1846), E.K. C ...
. This particular practice came to an end with the
Tridentine Mass The Tridentine Mass, also known as the Traditional Latin Mass or Traditional Rite, is the liturgy of Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church that appears in typical editions of the Roman Missal published from 1570 to 1962. Celebrated almo ...
, the unification of the liturgy in 1570 promulgated by
Pope Pius V Pope Pius V ( it, Pio V; 17 January 1504 – 1 May 1572), born Antonio Ghislieri (from 1518 called Michele Ghislieri, O.P.), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1566 to his death in May 1572. He is v ...
.


Types and examples

Rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate parti ...
ians have analyzed a variety of "twists and turns" used in
poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...
and
literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...
and have provided a list of labels for these poetic devices. These include *
Analogy Analogy (from Greek ''analogia'', "proportion", from ''ana-'' "upon, according to" lso "against", "anew"+ ''logos'' "ratio" lso "word, speech, reckoning" is a cognitive process of transferring information or meaning from a particular subject ( ...
- A comparison by showing how two seemingly different entities are alike, along with illustrating a larger point due to their commonalities. * Emphasis - The use of an expression or term in a narrower and more precise sense than usual to accentuate a certain sense. *
Hyperbole Hyperbole (; adj. hyperbolic ) is the use of exaggeration as a rhetorical device or figure of speech. In rhetoric, it is also sometimes known as auxesis (literally 'growth'). In poetry and oratory, it emphasizes, evokes strong feelings, and ...
– The use of exaggeration to create a strong impression. *
Irony Irony (), in its broadest sense, is the juxtaposition of what on the surface appears to be the case and what is actually the case or to be expected; it is an important rhetorical device and literary technique. Irony can be categorized into ...
– Creating a trope through implying the opposite of the standard meaning, such as describing a bad situation as "good times". *
Litotes In rhetoric, litotes (, or ), also known classically as ''antenantiosis'' or ''moderatour'', is a figures of speech, figure of speech and form of verbal irony in which understatement is used to emphasize a point by stating a negative to further a ...
– A figure of speech and form of verbal irony in which understatement is used to emphasize a point by stating a negative to further affirm a positive, often incorporating double negatives for effect. *
Metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wit ...
– An explanation of an object or idea through juxtaposition of disparate things with a similar characteristic, such as describing a courageous person as having a "heart of a lion". ** *
Allegory As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory th ...
– A sustained metaphor continued through whole sentences or even through a whole discourse. For example, "The ship of state has sailed through rougher storms than the tempest of these lobbyists." *
Metonymy Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept. Etymology The words ''metonymy'' and ''metonym'' come from grc, μετωνυμία, 'a change of name' ...
– A trope through proximity or correspondence. For example, referring to actions of the U.S. President as "actions of the White House". **
Antonomasia In rhetoric, antonomasia is a kind of metonymy in which an epithet or phrase takes the place of a proper name, such as "the little corporal" for Napoleon I; or, conversely, the use of a proper name as an archetypal name, to express a generic idea. ...
- A kind of metonymy in which an epithet or phrase takes the place of a proper name. **
Synecdoche Synecdoche ( ) is a type of metonymy: it is a figure of speech in which a term for a part of something is used to refer to the whole (''pars pro toto''), or vice versa (''totum pro parte''). The term comes from Greek . Examples in common Engl ...
– A literary device, related to metonymy and metaphor, which creates a play on words by referring to something with a related concept. For example, referring to the whole with the name of a part, such as "hired hands" for workers; a part with the name of the whole, such as "the law" for police officers; the general with the specific, such as "bread" for food; the specific with the general, such as "cat" for a lion; or an object with its substance, such as "bricks and mortar" for a building. *
Oxymoron An oxymoron (usual plural oxymorons, more rarely oxymora) is a figure of speech that juxtaposes concepts with opposing meanings within a word or phrase that creates an ostensible self-contradiction. An oxymoron can be used as a rhetorical devi ...
– The use of two opposite situations or things in one sentence to prove a point. *
Pun A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...
or paronomasia - A form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words. **
Antanaclasis In rhetoric, antanaclasis (; from the el, ἀντανάκλασις, ''antanáklasis'', meaning "reflection", from ἀντί ''anti'', "against", ἀνά ''ana'', "up" and κλάσις ''klásis'' "breaking") is the literary trope in which a si ...
– The stylistic trope of repeating a single word, but with a different meaning each time; antanaclasis is a common type of
pun A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...
, and like other kinds of pun, it is often found in slogans. *
Catachresis Catachresis (from Greek , "abuse"), originally meaning a semantic misuse or error—e.g., using "militate" for "mitigate", "chronic" for "severe", "travesty" for "tragedy", "anachronism" for "anomaly", "alibi" for "excuse", etc.—is also the n ...
– A metaphor that is or can be a stretch for an audience to catch on to. Catachreses can be subjective; some people may find a metaphor to be too much while others may find it perfectly reasonable. For a longer list, see Figure of speech: Tropes.
Kenneth Burke Kenneth Duva Burke (May 5, 1897 – November 19, 1993) was an American literary theorist, as well as poet, essayist, and novelist, who wrote on 20th-century philosophy, aesthetics, criticism, and rhetorical theory. As a literary theorist, Burke ...
has called metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche and irony the "four master tropes" owing to their frequency in everyday discourse. These tropes can be used to represent common recurring themes throughout creative works, and in a modern setting relationships and character interactions. It can also be used to denote examples of common repeating figures of speech and situations. Whilst most of the various forms of phrasing described above are in common usage, most of the terms themselves are not, in particular antanaclasis, litotes, metonymy, synecdoche and catachresis.


See also

*
Fantasy tropes Fantasy tropes are a specific type of literary tropes (recurring themes) that occur in fantasy fiction. Worldbuilding, plot, and characterization have many common conventions, many of them having ultimately originated in myth and folklore. ...
*
Invariance principle In cognitive linguistics, the invariance principle is a simple attempt to explain similarities and differences between how an idea is understood in "ordinary" usage, and how it is understood when used as a conceptual metaphor. Kövecses (2002: 102) ...
*
Literary topos In classical Greek rhetoric, topos, ''pl.'' topoi, (from grc, τόπος "place", elliptical for grc, τόπος κοινός ''tópos koinós'', 'common place'), in Latin ''locus'' (from ''locus communis''), refers to a method for developing ar ...
*
Meme A meme ( ) is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme. A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural i ...
* ''
Motif-Index of Folk-Literature The ''Motif-Index of Folk-Literature'' is a six volume catalogue of motifs, granular elements of folklore, composed by American folklorist Stith Thompson (1932–1936, revised and expanded 1955–1958). Often referred to as Thompson's motif-index ...
'' *
Scheme (linguistics) In linguistics, scheme is a type of figure of speech that relies on the structure of the sentence, unlike the trope, which plays with the meanings of words. (Scheme, in poetry end rhetorics) A single phrase may involve both a trope and a sche ...
*
Stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example ...
*
Tropological reading Tropological reading or "moral sense" is a Christian tradition, theory, and practice of interpreting the figurative meaning of the Bible. It is part of biblical exegesis. Doctrine According to doctrine developed by the Church Fathers, the literal ...
*
TV Tropes TV Tropes is a wiki website that collects and documents descriptions and examples of plot conventions and devices, which it refers to as tropes, within many creative works. Since its establishment in 2004, the site has shifted focus from coveri ...


References


Citations


Sources

* Baldrick, Chris. 2008. ''Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms''. Oxford University Press. New York. * Corbett, Edward P. J. and Connors, Robert J. 1999. ''Style and Statement''. Oxford University Press. New York, Oxford. * Kennedy, X.J. et al. 2006. ''The Longman Dictionary of Literary Terms: Vocabulary for the Informed Reader''. Pearson, Longman. New York. * Forsyth, Mark. 2014. ''The Elements of Eloquence''. Berkley Publishing Group/Penguin Publishing. New York. * Quinn, Edward. 1999. ''A Dictionary of Literary and Thematic Terms''. Checkmark Books. New York. * {{Literary composition Figures of speech Rhetoric Literary concepts Narrative units Literary motifs Tropes ca:Trop literari cs:Trop