What is hyperbole in writing

This is one of the most famous hyperbolic passages in literature, as Swift suggests selling and using Irish children as a food source to relieve the economic plight of the Irish people. However, the practical and almost casual tone with which Swift delivers his hyperbole is as shocking for readers as what he appears to be suggesting. As a literary and rhetorical device in the essay, hyperbole achieves a serious and ironic effect for the reader.

This caused backlash among certain members of the aristocracy due to their misunderstanding of his hyperbole. My reason, the physician to my love, Angry that his prescriptions are not kept, Hath left me, and I desperate now approve Desire is death, which physic did except. For I have sworn thee fair, and thought thee bright, Who art as black as hell, as dark as night. In this Shakespearean sonnet , the poet utilizes hyperbole as a literary device to describe his love and desire for his beloved.

The poet exaggerates his feelings to the point of claiming that they make him ill and mad beyond cure. Shakespeare realizes that his audience understands that the poet does not literally mean what he is saying. It is used for emphasis or as a way of making a description more creative and humorous. In this example, the speaker claims that a suitcase weighed a ton—two thousand pounds! Of course, this does not mean that the suitcase literally weighed a ton.

The speaker is using hyperbole in order to emphasize that the suitcase feels very heavy. This does not mean that the girl is going to get sick or that her heart will stop due to embarrassment.

Sometimes, especially in school, it feels as if time has slowed down and vacation will never come. Hyperbole is often used in day-to-day speech. Here, hyperbole is used to emphasize how long it feels since you last saw your friend. It uses exaggeration to emphasize a certain characteristic of something, and especially how it feels. Hyperbole can be used to communicate all kinds of feelings and amuse or surprise people with the creativity of a description. Hyperbole is also often used in creative writing just to make a description more amusing or creative.

We often use hyperbole in everyday speech, but we also use it in prose and poetry. For example, in love poetry, the speaker may use hyperbole to emphasize their intense passion and admiration for the beloved. When will China and Africa meet? How can a river jump over a mountain? And when will salmon be intelligent enough to sing or evolved enough to walk the streets?

Of course, none of these things will happen, so it implies that the author will love her forever. Auden is using hyperbole to emphasize the strength of his love. Only five made the team that year, and I was one of the five. Similar to a well-delivered speech, hyperbole can help paint a vivid picture or express a strong emotion in the lyrics of a song.

If used properly, hyperbole can encourage consumers to buy products. There has been limited research into this area, but according to a study by Mark A. Callister, Ph. Stern, Ph. Remember, hyperbole is over the top and not meant to be taken literally.

Keep your ears open for examples of these exaggerations in every source, from poetry and plays to everyday conversations and commercials. Try using hyperbole yourself to show contrast or inject feeling and humor into your writing.

Just be careful not to overdo the overstatement! All rights reserved. Hyperbole Definition There is exaggeration, and then there is exaggeration. Hyperbole Literary Definition Hyperbole is the use of over-exaggeration to emphasize a point or to be humorous. Hyperbole Abounds in Literature These examples of hyperbole in literature show this literary tool being used to great, expressive effect.

Babe the Blue Ox Retold by S. Schlosser A great example of hyperbole in literature comes from the narrator's opening remarks in the American folktale Babe the Blue Ox. As daylight doth a lamp. Her eye in heaven Would through the airy region stream so bright That birds would sing and think it were not night.

Hamlet by William Shakespeare Another great Shakespeare example of hyperbole is found in Hamlet when Hamlet describes his uncle. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Another famous literary hyperbole example can be found through Gatsby's description of Daisy's voice in The Great Gatsby. That was it.

Get Creative with Hyperbole Hyperbole and literature — the two just go hand-in-hand.