Flagging the Figurative

Figurative language is language that has a meaning different to the literal meaning of the words used. Authors use figurative language to make their writing more creative and interesting. The key to success in understanding figurative language is firstly to identify it, also known as flagging. Once you have flagged there is figurative language, you need to work out the writer’s intended meaning from the context in which the words have been used. Figurative language often uses comparison, exaggeration or other forms of emphasis to bring colour to writing, helping to paint clearer pictures in readers’ minds.

The six types of figurative language most commonly used are:
· similes - a comparison stating one thing is like or as another
· metaphors - a comparison stating one thing is another
· hyperbole - exaggeration, overstating something
· personification - giving human qualities to nonhuman things
· idioms - groups of words, established through their usage, the meaning of which cannot be worked out from the dictionary meaning of the individual words.
· symbolism - words with a different, deeper meaning to the literal one eg. turn over a new leaf, which means change something, such as your behaviour, for the better.
 
Figurative language must not be confused with literary devices generally. Figurative language techniques are types of literary devices, but not all literary devices have a meaning different to their literal one. Alliteration (words starting with the same sound eg. scary, slithery snake), anecdotes (short, personal stories), flashbacks (referring back to events that happened previously) and onomatopoeia (words that sound like the sounds they represent eg. buzz) are literary devices with no hidden meaning. There are many more literary devices that are used in writing.