Literal vs. Figurative

Literal vs. Figurative

A guide for English students

Literal vs. figurative

Literal language means exactly what it says.

Figurative language uses a range of techniques (like similes, metaphors and personification) to describe something often through comparison with something different.

Master both!

As a student who is studying English, you want to be able to use both types of communication effectively - both literal and figurative.

Let's look at some examples...

(are these examples literal or figurative?)

Literal

My brother does nothing much with his free time other than sit on the couch.

Figurative

My brother is a couch potato.








This example is not literal. The writer has used a metaphor.

'Couch potato'

The boy being discussed is obviously not literally a couch potato. But we use figurative ideas like this to be expressive. A potato has certain connotations that help to convey the writer's meaning.

What do you associate with the idea of a 'couch potato'?

Open Ended

What do you associate with the idea of a 'couch potato'? Why is this an effective metaphor to describe someone as lazy?

Multiple Choice

'I have lots of homework to complete'.

• Literal

• Figurative

Multiple Choice

'I have a mountain of homework to complete.'

• Literal

• Figurative

Open Ended

'I have a mountain of homework to complete'.

The student has used a metaphor (mountain). Why is that such an effective metaphor to describe lots of homework? What do we associate with a mountain?

Watch out! Do not be judgmental masters of English!

People are allowed to have fun and be expressive with language when they are in informal settings.

Descriptive writing

In class, we have been focused on descriptive writing. We can describe in ways that are both literal and figurative.

It is important that the majority of your descriptive writing is literal. When you're describing a place, your reader should be able to imagine it as it truly is in their mind's eye.


That said, you may like to include a few examples of figurative writing by using similes, metaphors and personification to bring your chosen places to life.

Definitions

​Simile: A simile compares two things using the words "like" or "as." It helps describe something by saying it's like something else.
Example: Her smile was as bright as the sun.

Metaphor: A metaphor also compares two things, but it says one thing is the other, without using "like" or "as."
Example: Time is a thief. (This means time steals moments from our lives, not that time is literally a thief.)

Personification: Personification gives human qualities to non-human things, like animals, objects, or ideas.
Example: The wind whispered through the trees.

Simile

'Orange starfish and yellow plates of coral glowed from the deepest slopes where his mother was already gliding like a bird'.

In this line from the novel Blueback by Tim Winton, the writer uses a simile when he describes the protagonist's mother as she snorkels in the ocean. By describing her as 'gliding like a bird', the writer emphasises her graceful movements and feelings of enjoyment and freedom.

Metaphor

'She wore an odd smile, a neatly tied bow which only just kept the trembling parcel of her face together.'

In this line from the novel Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey, the writer describes a person's face using metaphor. It is clear that the woman smiles in an attempt to hide more complex feelings, and the metaphor of a wrapped parcel emphasises this.

Personfication

'Upon her arrival, you could still see the bite marks of snow on her hands and the frosty blood on her fingers'.

In his novel The Book Thief, Markus Zusak describes how the very cold weather in Germany has impacted the story's protagonist. He personifies the snow and suggests that the snow has 'bitten' the girl's hands.

Multiple Choice

A simile...

• ...compares two things using the words "like" or "as." It helps describe something by saying it's like something else.

• ...compares two things, but it says one thing is the other, without using "like" or "as."

• ...gives human qualities to non-human things, like animals, objects, or ideas.

Multiple Choice

Personification...

• ...compares two things using the words "like" or "as." It helps describe something by saying it's like something else.

• ...compares two things, but it says one thing is the other, without using "like" or "as."

• ...gives human qualities to non-human things, like animals, objects, or ideas.

Multiple Choice

A metaphor...

• ...compares two things using the words "like" or "as." It helps describe something by saying it's like something else.

• ...compares two things, but it says one thing is the other, without using "like" or "as."

• ...gives human qualities to non-human things, like animals, objects, or ideas.

As you work on your descriptive writing, look for opportunities to use figurative language techniques like simile, metaphor and personification.

Remember to use techniques like this wisely and sparingly. Most of your descriptive writing will be literal.

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Your descriptive writing