Night Literary Devices Chapters 3 & 4

Metaphor Figure of speech in which one thing is spoken or written about as if it were another; a comparison of two unlike things Tenor of the metaphor: the actual subject Vehicle of the metaphor: another thing which the tenor is compared to Example on page 7: “The race toward death had begun.” ?? - Identify the tenor and vehicle.

Simile Comparison using “like” or “as” Example: Wiesel describes Moshe as “as awkward as a clown” Also has a tenor and vehicle ?? – Identify more similes from the previous chapters.

Synecdoche Figure of speech in which the name of part of something is used in place of the name of the whole, or vice versa Example: Addressing a representative of the country France as France would be a synecdoche in which a whole (France) is used to refer to a part (one French person)

Synecdoche, continued Explain the uses of synecdoche in the following passage: “Bread, soup – these were my whole life. I was a body. Perhaps less than that even: a starved stomach. The stomach alone was aware of the passage of time.” ?? – What point is Wiesel making with these examples of synecdoche?

Figurative Language Writing or speech meant to be understood imaginatively instead of literally Example on page 36: Wiesel describes an SS officer as a man “with crime inscribed upon his brow and in the pupils of his eyes.” ?? – What does this line mean figuratively?

Figurative Language, continued Used to help readers see familiar things in new ways Wiesel sought to convey unfamiliar things, thing that are horrible beyond words, in a way that readers could imagine, if not understand. By using figurative language – by describing the horrors of the concentration camps in images with which readers are familiar – he can, to some degree, express the inexpressible.