I have not forgotten that one of my earliest posts on rhetoric promised to provide definitions and examples for the most widely used Figures of Description.
In the early stages of composition, students are learning to write primarily by imitation of proven authors. Remember that the exercise of imitation is helpful because students learn, by absorption, the nature of well-framed plots, characters and settings. When we ask them to expand an existing story, by inserting a specific Figure of Description, we allow them to focus on the development of one particular skill rather than expecting them to simultaneously generate an interesting plot, engaging and believable characters, well-formed sentences, and accurate spelling.
These figures are prescribed - and commonly used - ways of bringing a story to life. They require the student to isolate an image in their mind and then bring that same image into their reader's mind. As mentioned previously, this requires astute powers of observation which can be acquired and sharpened through practice.
Here are some of the common Figures with their definitions. I will expand on each later, providing examples from literature.
Each of these definitions begin with the words: A vivid description of...
Anemographia - the wind or air
Astrothesia - the stars or night sky
Chorographia - a nation or group of people
Chronographia - an historical or recurring time
Dendographia - trees, vegetation
Effictio - a person's body, often from head to toe
Geographia - the earth or landscape
Hydrographia - water or bodies of water
Prosopographia - a person's face or expressions
Pragmatographia - an action or event
Topographia - the layout of a room, street, town, etc.
Topothesia - an imaginary place
The definitions for the following figures, do not begin with "the vivid decsription of"
Ecphrasis - a conventional description of a person, place, event, season, etc.
Ethopoiea - the portrayal of a being's character
Prosopopoeia - "To give a face" - to animate the inanimate (same as personification)
These are the primary figures I will deal with in the classroom. I have excluded a few that are commonly named because I either don't understand them, or have not found sufficient examples to elucidate them. I am in the process of inventing names for some other descriptions that I find repeatedly, but are not specified on any list I can find.
2 comments:
Lots of Greek roots embedded in your list of terms there, lady. You should let me teach you Greek sometime, since you're so smart anyway. What's a little more academics.
Hey, you could probably even teach yourself Greek! You wouldn't be sorry.
It's on my to-do list...but first I have to master Latin. I really only know it at a Jr. High level, and there is SO much I haven't explored yet!
We do point out the Greek roots to our students as well as talk about derivatives of them, where applicable...its just one more opportunity for them to acquire a more extensive vocabulary.
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