THE PEDESTRIAN FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE UPGRADE

Stated simply, it is any type of expression that does not literally mean what it says it provides a connotative rather than a denotative meaning. 'Figurative language, or figures of speech, is the expressive, non-literal use of language for special effects, usually through images' (Harris & Hodges, 1995, p. This article also addresses issues related to figurative language instruction in classrooms containing students who are learning English as a second language (ESL). A case study of an at-risk eighth-grade reader is presented as a model of how the assessment, evaluation, and instructional design process for figurative language can be implemented. The purpose of this article is to illustrate how figurative language interpretation instruction is a necessary component of a teacher's reading comprehension curriculum, particularly for at-risk students. This inability to interpret figurative language leads to a breakdown in text comprehension, which in turn can frustrate readers and discourage them from continuing the reading task, and can cause a delay in later language development and literacy attainment (Nippold, 1998).

Despite its copious usage in oral language, however, many readers struggle to interpret figurative language when it is encountered in text. Some popular idioms, proverbs, and metaphoric expressions are so deeply embedded into language that they are comprehended immediately when used in oral conversations, without the individual knowing the initial, historical context of the word or phrase. The frequency of figurative language usage varies from person to person, but it is nonetheless a part of every individual's cultural background (Suleiman & Moore, 1995).īecause figurative expressions have become conventional components of everyday language, we are typically unaware of the true extent of the metaphorical nature of language (Boers, 2000). Such expressions add color and vitality to language. 'Stop complaining! Every horse thinks its pack is the heaviest.'įigures of speech, such as these examples, are encountered on a daily basis in conversation and in print. I think I'll sleep on it before I make a final decision.' 'She was so happy! Her face shone like the summer sun.'

A joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word or the fact that there are words that sound alike but have different meanings.'Did you watch the basketball game last night? Number 76 was a skyscraper! He didn't let any shots get past him.'.

What is the difference between metaphors and similes?.

THE PEDESTRIAN FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE UPGRADE

Upgrade the diction of these sentences using figurative language Your Turn įind literal and figurative meaning in songs ***“soldier” by Gavin Degraw*** Listening Activity Then- in my childhood, in the dawn Of a most stormy life- was drawn From every depth of good and ill The mystery which binds me still: From the torrent, or the fountain, From the red cliff of the mountain, From the sun that round me rolled In its autumn tint of gold, From the lightning in the sky As it passed me flying by, From the thunder and the storm, And the cloud that took the form (When the rest of Heaven was blue) Of a demon in my view. From the same source I have not taken My sorrow I could not awaken My heart to joy at the same tone And all I loved, I loved alone. įind the figurative language in a poem From childhood's hour I have not been As others were I have not seen As others saw I could not bring My passions from a common spring. I love to hear her speak, yet well I know That music hath a far more pleasing sound I grant I never saw a goddess go My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground: And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare. I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. Sometimes it is necessary to examine context The man kicked the bucketįinding literal language in a poem My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun Coral is far more red than her lips' red If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I’ve told you a billion times to clean your room. The willow branches waved in the dancing wind as the brook babbled quietly. Giving an inanimate object or an animal human characteristics.The lawyer was a snake in the grass.įigurative continued Hyperbole Personification A comparison that does not use like or as.Types of figurative meaning Metaphor Simile words that do not deviate from their defined meaning.words, and groups of words, that exaggerate or alter the usual meanings of the component words.

The pedestrian figurative language