"Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean." (Harpoon). ". By referring to the individual parts of the the body as having their own needs, she adds more value to the whole. The whole world did not treat him badly only a part. The word “sails” refers to a whole ship. The word "sails" is often used to refer to a whole ship. Another common word for car is "ride." "Friends, Romans, countrymen: lend me your ears." Most renowned poets use synecdoches to make their prose effective and meaningful in a vivid and impressive way. There are several different forms of synecdoche. A synecdoche is often used in classical literature as a form of symbolism that references a group by using a single noun. Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare - The whole is used as the part * "Twenty sails came into the harbor." Synecdoche is a figure of speech which expresses either more, or less, than it literally denotes. It's easy to confuse synecdoche and metonymy because they both use a word or phrase to represent something else (some even consider synecdoche a type of metonymy). When a golfer plays with their "woods" they are referring to their longest golf clubs. By going through this article, you will enhance your list of synecdoches and provide you examples that will guide you get a clear picture. As well as synecdoche, you have metaphors, similes, personification, and more. 5. Before we take a walk down this multi-colored lane, let's clear the air regarding the confusion between synecdoche and metonymy. Figurative language comes in many shapes and sizes. The intent of synecdoche is to deviate from a literal term in order to spice up everyday language. In truth, some synecdoche are a form of metonymy. A synecdoche may use part of something to represent the whole. The phrase "hired hands" can be used to refer to workers. Feet that need to rest and to dance; backs that need support; shoulders that need arms, strong arms I'm telling you.". A synecdoche may use a word or phrase as a class to express more or less than the word or phrase actually means. Flesh that needs to be loved. The important thing to keep in mind is that you're always going to be dealing with parts and wholes. The usage of synecdoche, thus, emphasizes a sentence delivering the right context and embellishing the literary work. 1. The word "head" can refer to counting cattle or people. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening written by Robert Frost, where the journey through the woods and forests refers to life's journey. The word "ivories" is often used to denote piano keys, even though the keys are no longer made of ivory. A part of a car, in this example, represents the whole of the car. "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears." You may also see allegory examples. If "the world" is not treating you well, that would not be the entire world but just a part of it that you've encountered. ", "He shall think differently," the musketeer threatened, "When he feels the point of my steel. Even mythic characters, Gods and literary personalities like Hamlet, Othello, Desdemona, Romeo, Juliet and Macbeth have been viewed as synecdochical. As we saw, "wheels" was a synecdoche for "car." If someone says "the restaurant" was lovely, they either mean the wait staff, the food, or the environment. (This is another example of a synecdoche taken from A Description of the Morning written by Jonathan Swift (1667 - 1745), where the broomy stumps refer to the broom as a whole.) As mentioned in the Silent Dust by Lance Comfort, a synecdoche is presented by Simon Rawley in a scene, where he leaps through a window to get away from an arrest. The use of 'run away from us over the cobbles' is the use of this figure of speech. "I should have been a pair of ragged claws Scuttling across the floors of silent seas." 2. 3. It's an odd word for what is simply using part of a whole to represent the whole. To go for a walk in the "woods" means to go for a walk in a forest-like setting. Examples of Synecdoche from Literature. Let us look at some of the examples of synecdoche that we often hear in casual conversations: 1. he is the breadwinner; music is my bread and butter). Everyday cutlery may be referred to as "silverware," even though they're not actually made of silver. (sailors), His parents bought him a new set of wheels. The word "bread" can be used to represent food in general or money (e.g. You may also see periodic sentence examples. If you said "check out my new wheels," "wheels" is an example of synecdoche, used to refer to a "car." "Milk" is commonly used to refer to cow's milk when there are many sources of milk i.e.