Hyperbole in the literature

Probably, every modern man has often heard, and even used, a term such as hyperbole.

Hyperbole in the literature is used, as a rule, to denote the stylistic reception of a particular exaggeration of the properties of the phenomenon or object described, thereby strengthening the impression produced.

In this article, I invite my readers to go to the fascinating world of their native language. After reading the information provided here, you can get an answer to the following questions:

1. What does the concept of hyperbole in literature include?
2. For what purpose is it used?
3. How often do we, without noticing it, use this stylistic figure in speech ?

I decided to break the article into three parts: first, to tell more in detail about the etymology of the word itself, then we will talk about the history and causes of the concept's appearance and, finally, you will learn about the role of hyperbole in modern stylistics.

Part 1. Etymology and the modern definition of the word

So first of all, let's go deep into history. From the point of view of etymology, the Greek word "hyperbole" consists of two parts "hyper" and "bole". The first is translated into Russian as "over", "through" or "too", the second one can be interpreted as "throwing", "throwing", "throwing". Approximately from the 18th century, the word "hyperbole", which means "exaggeration", appears and begins to be widely used in Latin.

There is also the opposite term - the litota. And if the hyperbole in the literature implies "exaggeration," the litote, on the contrary, is used for deliberate underestimation.

For example, the phraseology "the sea of smells", the "ocean of love", "one hundred years have not seen" can act as a hyperbole, the litote the same - "with a thimble", "a stone's throw".

Part 2. Causes of the term

Probably, it is difficult to imagine that the desire to over-exaggerate both the meaning and physical features of the object originated in human thinking even in times of primitive communal system. Of course, the judgments of the first people on the planet were significantly different from those of the current people. In those distant times, there simply was not a clear line between fiction and really existing concepts. As is known, many centuries ago hunters animated the world around them, leaders, animals, natural phenomena. They endowed them with supernatural abilities, for example, incredible size, magical power, excessive agility and a quirky mind. Why? This process was simply inevitable, because Was a consequence of the enormous dependence of primitive people on the forces of nature, a lack of understanding of its laws, inability to master everything that is happening or the impossibility to explain the reasons for the occurrence of an event. As a result, there was fear, a sense of defenselessness, dependence, and as a result - an imaginary gratitude, admiration, surprise and exaggeration.

Part 3. Hyperbole. Literature is classical and modern

In order to give the product artistic expressiveness, the authors try to use various language tools, the most common among which are metaphors, comparisons, epithets and hyperboles. At present, such a stylistic device as a hyperbole is used, based on the interaction of the emotional and logical meaning of the same word.

I will give examples of hyperbole in literature: "This has already been said a thousand times" (the number is exaggerated), "Enemies are crushed to the nines" (quality), "He left, and the world ceased to exist for her" (emotions).

Sometimes it is very difficult not to confuse a hyperbole with a comparison or metaphor, since they also quite often compare two subjects. Remember that hyperbole in literature always means exaggeration. Let's say, "The feet of his foot were huge, like skis." At first glance, this example resembles a comparison, but remembering the actual length of the skis, one can understand that this is an exaggeration, and hence a hyperbole.

The author usually resorts to this stylistic device to reinforce the impression or sharpen the image. Modern realities also need the use of hyperbole in order to enhance the effect of expressiveness of speech, influence the imagination or attract attention.