How Sentences Are Structured

The use of figurative language

Figurative language is language which uses figures of speech. This is when the writer describes things through the use of unusual comparisons, for effect, interest, to make things clearer. The result of using this technique is the creation of interesting images.

The main figures of speech are: metaphor - an unusual comparison where one thing is described in terms of something else. e.g. "His house was now his prison."

The idea here is that someone feels that their house is a place where they feel trapped, imprisoned, locked in, a place where they lack freedom. or "James launched himself at his opponent."

James threw himself at someone else, dived, moved at speed, moved with power, thrust himself simile - an unusual comparison where one thing is described as something else, using 'like' or 'as ....as'. e.g. "He looked as inconspicuous as a tarantula on a cake."

He looked obvious, noticeable, distinct, he stood out, he could not be missed, was clearly identifiable, etc. or "She was like a snowflake."

She was light, delicate, pure, insubstantial, fragile, would come and disappear quickly, etc. personification - an unusual comparison where something non-human (inanimate) is described in human terms. e.g. "Death stalked the battlefield."

Death seen as a figure or person walking about, looking, searching, hunting, seeking, probing for something or "The ice smirked as they slipped and fell."

The ice takes pleasure from seeing humans falling on slippery ice, being insecure, unsafe, in danger; it laughs at man's uncertainty, insecurity, etc. alliteration - where consecutive words begin with the same letter and, more importantly, the same sound. e.g. "the rifles rapid rattle"

The repetition of the 'r' sound echoes the sound of machine guns being fired onomatopoeia - where a word makes the sound of the thing it describes. e.g.

 "sausages sizzling"  "bees buzzing"  "the ringmaster cracked his whip" (the whip making a sharp sound)  "stuttering rifles rapid rattle" (in this example, 'stuttering' imitates the action/movement of a machine-gun being fired).