a study on similes used in the novel david copperfield by charles dickens = nghiên cứu việc sử dụng biện pháp tỉ dụ trong tiểu thuyết david copperfield của charles dickens

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES









A STUDY ON SIMILES USED IN THE NOVEL
DAVID COPPERFIELD BY CHARLES DICKENS


(Nghiên cứu việc sử dụng biện pháp tỉ dụ trong tiểu thuyết
David Copperfield của Charles Dickens)

MA MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS


Hanoi, 2010

NGÔ THỊ THÚY HẰNG

Field:
Code:






English Linguistics
60.22.15








VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

A STUDY ON SIMILES USED IN THE NOVEL
DAVID COPPERFIELD BY CHARLES DICKENS


(Nghiên cứu việc sử dụng biện pháp tỉ dụ trong tiểu thuyết
David Copperfield của Charles Dickens)

MA MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS




Hanoi, 2010


NGÔ THỊ THÚY HẰNG


Field:
Code:
Supervisor:




English Linguistics
60.22.15
Dr. Hà Cẩm Tâm

iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY i
ABSTRACT . ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS .vi
LIST OF TABLES …………………………………………………………………… …vi
LIST OF CHARTS ……………………………………………………………………….vii


PART A: INTRODUCTION 1
1. Rationale . 1
2. Scope of the study 2
3. Aims of the study 2
4. Methods of the study …….…… 2
5. Organization of the study … ….…… 3

PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………… 4

1.1. Word meaning…………………………………………………………………… ….4
1.1.1 The meaning of the word ……………………………………………………….….4
1.1.2 Collocation and contextual effects ……………………………………………… 5
1.2. Meaning transference …………………………………………………………… 6
1.2.1 Metaphor ………………………………………………………………………… 6
1.2.2 Metonymy ………………………………………………………………………… 6
1.3. Contextual meaning ……………………………………………………………… 8
1.3.1 Context…………………………………………………………………………… 8
1.3.2 Co-text …………………………………………………………………………… 9
1.4. Simile……………… ……… … 10
1.4.1 Definitions on similes ……… ……10


v
1.4.2 Components of simile …………………………………………………… …… 11
1.4.3 Nature of simile …………………………………………………………….… 12
1.4.3.1 Simile as a figurative comparison ……… …………………………… … … 12
1.4.3.2 Simile and Metaphor …………………………………………………… … 14
1.4.4 Functions of similes 16
1.4.4.1 Simile is used to create images …………………………………………… … 16
1.4.4.2 Simile has the function of decoration ……………………………………….……17

CHAPTER 2: THE STUDY …………………………………………………….…… 19
2.1. Research question ……………………………………………… ………… … 19
2.2. Data collection …………………………………………………………….… … 19
2.3. Analytical framework…………………………………………… …… ….… 20
2.3.1. “AS” simile …………………………………………………………….…… 20
2.3.2. “LIKE” simile ………………………………………………………….…… … 20
2.4. Data analysis and discussion ……………………………………………….… 21
2.4.1 Simile in terms of structures ……………………………………………….… 21

2.4.2 Simile in depicting characters’ features………………………………… …. 24
2.4.2.1 Vehicles as animals ……………………… …….……………… …………… 26
2.4.2.2. Vehicles as man-made objects ……………… …… …………… …….…… 30
2.4.2.3 Vehicles as supernatural beings……………… …………… ………………… 32
2.4.2.4 Vehicles as natural phenomena ……………………………………………… 33

PART C: CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………… 36

1. Main findings …………………………………………………………………. 36
2. Implication of the study ………………………………………………………. 37
3. Suggestions for further study ………………………………………… …… 37

REFERENCES ……………………………………………………………… …. 38
APPENDIX ………………………………………………………………………….I




vi


LIST OF TABLES
1. Table 1. Types of simile in depicting characters’ features in David Copperfield ……… 21

2. Table 2. Vehicles in simile of depicting character’s features ………………………… 24

vii

LIST OF CHARTS

1. Chart 1. The frequency of simile in depicting characters’ features ………………… 22
2. Chart 2. Vehicles of simile in depicting the characters’ features ………………… …25

1

PART A: INTRODUCTION


1. Rationale of the study

Figurative language is always an interesting and mysterious phenomenon in language
in general and in literature in particular. This special kind of language is widely used in any
types of texts like literature, science, journals, advertisement, religion, politics or everyday
language. When somebody says that ―Crime is like a disease‖, it is when figurative
language is being constructed. Figurative language is especially common in literature
because they can impose their power in this creative world. Being considered one of the
most common kinds of figures of speech, simile is a literary device employed by writers to
increase the ability of literature to fascinate, trigger emotion, and even change the way we as
human beings experience our world.
As other figures of speech, it is often a challenge to gain a firm grasp on the ability to

understand similes because their meaning is not just based on the literal meanings of certain
words or phrases. Because ―though a simile is easily recognized, it is not always easily
understood: in most cases, the reader has to discover the aspects for the claimed similarity
and this is the central problem in the interpretation of similes (Chippe & Kennedy 2001:
270-271). However, due to its appearance in different types of discourse in different fields,
especially in literature, readers face a lot of difficulty that prevents them from being able to
comprehensively understand the figurative meaning of simile as well as the implied
message of a text.
Simile is a figure of speech used in general language as well as specialized language, in
everyday conversations as well as literary, journalistic and promotional texts. Research on
simile which is carried out within rhetoric (Mortara Garavei 2002 (251-252), literary studies
(Wellek & Warren 1973: 186-211), linguistics and psycholinguistics (Ortony 1993: Bredin
1998) often discussed simile along with metaphor. However, simile is still less investigated.
Therefore, the goal of this thesis is to consider simile as a figure of its own right, to illustrate
some of its basic forms and functions through exploring how similes are constructed in
literature in general and in the novel in particular.


2
It is well known that Dickens‘s novels include various linguistic techniques and
tropes that make his descriptions of characters, their backgrounds or surroundings more
graphic and real. The novel David Copperfield is famous for Dickens‘s language with
humor and vivid style as he makes particular use of figurative devices such as simile to
observe and describe the characters successfully.
With these ideas in mind, I chose to study similes used in depicting features of the
characters in the novel David Copperfield by the famous English writer, Charles Dickens
with the hope to study the nature and the way to obtain deeper understanding on simile in
order to demonstrate its strong power in the world of novel and to help gaining more
comprehensive understanding about the novel David Copperfield by Charles Dickens.

2. Scope of the study
Like other figure of speech, simile plays an indispensable part in literature. However,
literature is a broad field that it will be too ambitious to cover all the types of literature.
Thus, a focus that is paid attention to in my thesis is similes used in novel. More
specifically, the novel David Copperfield written by Charles Dickens, a talented English
author is chosen. In my study, I will focus on the use of simile in depicting features of the
characters in this novel.

3. Aims of the study
This study aims to investigate the characteristics of simile in the novel discourse.
The objective of my study is:
- To investigate the use of similes in depicting the features of characters in the novel
David Copperfield.
More details on the aimed objective of the study are discussed in Part 2, chapter 2 – The
study.

3. Methods of the study
As the thesis sets its main objective of investigating the characteristics of simile in
English novel discourse. The study was conducted in a deductive approach where data was
collected from English literature to describe simile in a natural linguistics process.


3
Therefore it is descriptive and explanatory research. The techniques involved in data
analysis are both qualitative and quantitative.
The main points in the thesis are analyzed and discussed with the support of such methods
as analysis, synthesis and documentation.

4. Organization of the study
The study consists of three main parts:

 Part I: Introduction. This part introduces the relevant, the aims, the scope and
methodology of the study.
 Part 2: Development. This part is composed of two chapters.
- Chapter 1 is Literature Review which provided the theoretical background of the
study. Its focus was on introducing important concepts relevant to the topic of the
thesis. This chapter gave a general picture of simile.
- Chapter 2 is the main focus of the study which investigates similes used in
depicting features of the characters in the novel David Copperfield. In this chapter,
the research design applied in the study was reported and the results of the studies
were presented.
 Part 3 is the conclusion of the study which summarized the issues addressed
in the main part and offered implications for teaching as well as further study.










4
PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

1.1. Word meaning
1.1.1 The meaning of the word
There has been quite a number of attempt designed to define what the meaning of
the word is. Acccording to Nguyen Hoa (2004: 67) ―words are regarded as the smallest

indivisible meaningful units of a language which can operate independently‖. And more
detailed, he defined ―the meaning of a word reflects reality or express human
conceptualization of reality, as it were‖. It is generally agreed that the words, phrases and
sentences of language have meanings and sentences are made up of words and that the
meaning of a sentence is the function of the meaning of the words of which it is made up.
In the word meaning, it is necessary to distinguish two types of meaning, denotation (or
conceptual meaning) and connotation.
Nguyen Hoa (2004: 98) states that ―Denotation is the ability of a word or
expression to identify all the objects covered by a word. These objects, which are diverse
in reality, do share certain features relevant enough to be identified as covered by a word‖.
Denotation includes conceptual and referential meanings. Denotation exists by virtue of
what it refers to. As we know, one of the functions of words is to denote things, concepts
and so on. For example, the word ―computer‖ is used to denote a wide range of computing
machines in different shapes and size, which may be called computer.
However, a word may convey certain affective or evaluative associations, generally
referred to as connotation. Nguyen Hoa (2004: 99, 100) states that connotation arises as
words become associated with certain characteristics of the items to which they refer to,
over and above its purely conceptual content. This kind of meaning is rather unstable. They
vary considerably according to culture, historical period and the experience of the
individual. Connotation including stylistic, affective, evaluative, and intensifying, is the
pragmatic communicative value the words acquires by virtue of where, when, how, and by
whom, for what purpose and in what context it is or may be used. This kind of meaning
may fall into:


5
- Stylistic: when associations at work concern the situation in which the word is
uttered, the social circumstances (formal, familiar …), the social relationships between
the interlocutors (polite, rough), and the type of purpose of communication this
connotation is stylistic.

- An emotional or affective connotation is acquired by the word as a result of its
frequent use in contexts corresponding to emotional situations or because the referent
conceptualized and named in the denotative meaning is associated with emotion.
- Evaluative connotation expresses approval or disapproval.
- Intensifying connotation which is expressive and emphatic.
In short, connotation meaning is relative unstable. It varies considerably according to
culture, historical period and the experience of the individual.

1.1.2 Collocation and Contextual effects
According to Saeed (2003: 62), it is clear that words cannot be defined independently
of other words that are semantically related to them and delimit their senses. Usually, it is
easier to define a word if you are given the phrase or sentence it occurs in. It means that
word should be put in particular context. Without context, the potential of ambiguity is
real. These contextual effects seem to pull word meanings in two opposite directions:
The first restricting influence is the tendency for words to occur together repeatedly,
called collocation. In other words, collocation is the habitual association of a word in a
language with certain particular words than other. Then we have collocative meaning.
Nguyen Hoa (2004) states that collocative meaning consists of the associations a word
acquires on account of the meaning of words which tend to occur in its environment.
Halliday (1966) compares the collocation patterns of two adjectives ―strong” and
―powerful‖ which might seem to have similar meaning. For example, we talk of ―strong
tea‖ rather than ―powerful tea‖ but ―a powerful car‖ rather than ‗a strong car‖.
The second contextual effects, according to Saeed (2003: 62) can also pull word
meanings in the other direction, towards creative and semantic shift. In different contexts,
words have different meanings. For example, with different contexts, the noun ―run‖ can
have different meanings: I go for a run every morning and There‟s been a run on dollars.
The run of the first example might be in relation of near synonymy to another noun like
jog, but in second example it might be interpreted as “a passion”.

6
It is difficult to separate collocation and semantics because the meaning of one element of
the collocated terms seems to depend upon the collocation. Moreover, a word will often
collocate with a number of other words that have some semantic features in common.

1.2 Meaning transference
A necessary condition of any meaning transference or semantic change is some
connection, some association between the old meaning and the new one. There are
basically two types of semantic transference. The one based on similarity is called
metaphor; the other based on the relation of contiguity is named metonymy.

1.2.1 Metaphor
Metaphor from the Greek for ―transference‖, is the transference of meaning from
one object to another based on the similarity between these two objects. George Lakoff
(1980) in the widely read book ―Metaphor we live by‖ introduces the notion of conceptual
metaphor. In this book, they defined metaphor as a process by which we conceive ―one
thing in terms of another, and its primary function is understanding‖ (Lakoff and Johnson,
1980: 36). This is an underlying identification of abstract concept with a more basic or
concrete concept. The transference may be based on similarity of shape, position,
movement, function, color, and size. Moreover, the names of the animals are also often
transferred to the human beings. For example, a cunning person is a fox, a spiteful person
is a snake).
There are two concepts involved in a metaphor are referred to in various ways in the
literature. The start - point or described concept is often called the target domain, while the
comparison concept or the analogy is called the source domain (Saeed 2003: 346). For
example, ―Mary is a blooming rose‖. In this metaphor, ―Mary‖ is the source domain and ―a
blooming rose‖ is the target domain. It can be seen in this example that there must be
certain similar features between ―Mary‖ and ―a bloom rose‖. The maker of the metaphor
implies that the beauty and validity of Mary can be described as a blooming rose in the
spring.

According to Nguyen Hoa (2004: 109), metaphor may be classified into three kinds
as followings: living metaphor, faded metaphor and dead metaphor. Living (poetic,


7
individual) when a word is used in unusual meaning and metaphor is felt. Faded (trite)
metaphor is metaphor which lost its freshness because of long use and became habitual.
Dead metaphor - where metaphoric sense is not felt. Dead metaphors are words which
have lost their direct meaning and are used only figuratively.

1.2.2 Metonymy
Nguyen Hoa (2004: 110) defined metonymy as ―the substitution of one word for another
with which it is associated.‖ Metonymy works by contiguity rather than similarity, i.e.
instead of the name of one object or notion we use the name of another because these
objects are associated and closely related. For example, we can use the word ―crown‖
instead of ―monarchy‖. There exists a somewhat more complicated possibility for
extending word meaning based on a quite different conceptual relation, not a similarity
between the instance of the two categories but a strong associationor contiguity of notions.
According to standard tradition, metonymy is defined as a ―figure in which one word is
substituted for another on the basis of some material, causal, or conceptual relation. Some
substitutions include place-for-institution, thing-for-perception, or object-for-possessor, or
part-for-whole, or place-for-event. In classic tradition, the following cases of metonymy
are often presented:
- We use the name of container instead of the thing contained. E.g.: to drink a glass
- Name of parts of human body may be used as symbols. E.g.: clever head
- The concrete is used instead of abstract. E.g.: from the cradle to the grave.
- The materials are used for the things made of the materials. E.g.: glass
- The name of the author is used for his works. E.g.: Picasso
- Part is used for the whole and vice versa. E.g.: roof for house (we all live under the
same roof).

The transference of meaning may results in restriction and extension of meaning.
Restriction of meaning results in an increase in a number of meanings which defines the
types of range of referents denoted by the word. Extension of meaning refers to
generalization of meaning, that is to say, the meaning which defines the word‘s range of
referents may be obsolete. In other way, extension is the results of increasing the number
of denotational components of the word.



8
1.3. Contextual meaning
1.3.1 Context
According to Celce Murcia (200:11), contexts are ―all the factors and elements that
are non-linguistic and textual but affect spoken or written communicative interaction. In
other words, context is the social, psychological, and physical setting in which language
use take place. The context often helps in understanding the particular meaning of the
word, phrase, and so forth‖.
Brown and Yule (1983) stated that there are two main kinds of context: context of
situation and context of culture. Context of situation is usually discussed under three
variables: what is talked about, what relationship between the communication is, what role
the language plays. This kind of context refers to the environment of the text. However,
the context of situation alone does not guarantee that the reader knows the purpose of the
text he is reading. It is necessary to provide information not only about what was
happening at that time but also the total culture background. This is because, involved in
any kind of linguistic interactions were not only the immediate sights and sounds
surrounding the event but the whole culture history behind the participants, and behind the
kind of practice that they were engaging in. All these play a part in interpretation of
meaning. In other words, to recognize the text as meaningful or purposeful, the reader
needs to relate the text to a culture context. Context of culture gives purpose and meaning
to the text.

In Brown and Yule (1983: 37), Firth‘s model of context is quoted which embraces
the following categories. First, the relevant features of participants including persons,
personalities, the verbal action and non-verbal action of the participants. The second
category is the relevant objects and the third is the effect of the verbal action. In terms of
context of culture, Saeed (2003: 192) considered background knowledge as context which
include sociocultural and real-world knowledge. He also mentioned that we are all
members of different communities. Each community implies certain types of knowledge
which might be shared or not shared with other members. He takes the following example
as a good illustration:
A: Come over next week for lunch.
B: It‘s Ramadan


9
If A and B are Muslims then A will propably infer that B‘s reply means ―No‖. We can see
that context of culture provided the basis for implication.
In short, we can decode the meaning of the sentence or utterance with the help of context.
Then context include all relevant features of the situation in which the sentence is uttered.

1.3.2 Co-text
Geoge Yule (1996: 129) defined co-text of a word (known as linguistic context) ―is
the set of other words used in the same phrase or sentence‖. This surrounding co-text has
strong effect on what we think the word means. In terms of sentences, Nguyen Hoa (2004)
stated that when a sentence is uttered, it is not usually placed alone by itself, but rather it is
surrounded by other sentences, which help to realize its meaning. This kind of surrounding
is called co-text. In terms of utterance, co-text is the stretch of language that aoccurs before
or after the utterance which needs to be interpreted. (Halliday, quoted in Nguyen Hoa,
2000: 43)
Lyons (1995: 266) stated that context includes not only the relevant co-text but also
all relevant features of the situation in which the sentence is uttered. Context can contribute

to the reading of meaning. In all respects, context is relevant to the determination of what
is said. The role of context is then disambiguating the interpretation that is most suitable
and appropriate.
As we see in our discussion of simile, in order to decide whether a simile interpretation is
appropriate or not, first of all, one may need to know what the context of situation is.
Secondly, having decided that information is being conveyed over and above the
information contained in what has been said, the addressees have to infer what this
additional information is on the basis of contextual information. In the case of the novel
David Copperfield, the context here is all the relevant features relating to the characters
including their personalities, their verbal and non-verbal actions which are described
intentionally by the author. Therefore, with the contextual meaning, we can realize that the
characters who are depicted as snakes or bats, symbols of devil, will be the bad ones, and
those who are portrayed as angel or fairy will be the good ones.





10
1.4. Simile
In the following section, the information relating simile will be presented as the theoretical
background to examine the use of simile in depicting the chaeacters in the novel. They are
definitions of simile, components of simile, the nature of simile in comparing with the
ordinary comparison and metaphor, and its two main functions.

1.4.1 Definitions of simile
Simile is an ancient rhetoric practice. From the Bible to contemporary texts, simile
is ever present in discourse. It has been numbered among the figures of speech like
metaphor, metonymy, irony, etc. Simile, one of the most important and widespread figures
of speech, has been given a lot of definitions.

According to Bredin (1998), one of the leading authors on figurative language,
simile is defined as a semantic figure based on comparison, a mental process playing a
central role in the way we think and talk about the world, which often associates different
spheres. Comparing entities leads to, and concludes with, a judgment, i.e. a statement that
can have an affirmative or negative form: the affirmative form asserts similarity between
entities compared, i.e. the sun is like an orange and the negative one denies likeness, e.i the
sun is not like an orange.
Harmon and Homan (1996: 560) defined simile as ―a figure of speech in which a
similarity between two objects is directly expressed or another way of expressing, it is to
say that in a simile both TENOR and VEHICLE are clearly expressed and are joined by an
indicator of resemblance, like or as.‖
Richards & Schmidt (2002) state that every simile involves a comparison, which
explicitly signals itself in the text with a comparison marker such as like and as. The
occurrence of a comparison marker is a necessary condition of simile. By this definition,
the tenor and the vehicle are essentially unlike things or states or affairs linked at the
linguistic level by a comparison marker. The comparison marker signals an iconic relation
between the tenor and the vehicle. The tenor is represented via the functioning features of
the vehicle, brought forth as a result of the tenor‘s suppression of the other features of the
vehicle in the context. The functioning features of the vehicle in turn point to the iconic
analogy − or the selective similarity − that is predicated of the tenor.


11
Sharing the same view, The American Heritage College Dictionary (1997: 1270)
defines simile as ―a figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are explicitly
compared, usually by means of ‗like‘ or ‗as‘. This definition, which is fairly typical of
what one finds in dictionaries and rhetorical handbooks, captures at least three essential
properties of simile. Firstly, they involve some form of comparison. Secondly, this
comparison is explicit. Finally, the comparison involves entities which are not normally
considered comparable–that it is, in some senses, figurative.

A conclusion drawn from the above definitions is that simile is really kind of
comparison. They require the distinction of both source and target concepts, and an
evaluation of what they have in common, but unlike literal comparison, they are
figurative–comparing things normally felt to be incomparable, typically using vivid or
startling images to suggest unexpected connections between source and target. Simile used
to be considered as a simple figure, a minor variation on some other familiar figure. Our
purpose in this paper has been to vindicate simile as a figure in its own right. Simile is
essentially a figure of speech.

1.4.2 Components of similes
According to Richards (1963), like metaphor, simile consists of two main parts: tenor
and vehicle which are relatively called target and source by George Lakoff and Mark
Johnson (1980). Every simile has three parts: a tenor, vehicle and grounds. Let‘s use the
following simile as our example: Sheila moved like a panther. The tenor of the simile is
what the writer is trying to clarify. In our example, the tenor is Sheila. The vehicle is the
concrete object that is being compared to the tenor. Sheila is like a panther. The grounds of
a simile refer to the qualities of the vehicle that the reader is meant to apply to the tenor.
For example, the writer is most likely trying to say that Sheila moved with power and
stealth, not that she has whiskers and four feet (although she may be prowling on all fours).
Harmon and Homan (1969) state that tenor and vehicle taken together constitute the
figure, trope, or ―turn‖ in meaning that the simile conveys. At one extreme, the vehicle
may be merely a means of decorating the tenor; at the other extreme, the tenor may be
merely an excuse for having the vehicle. Thus, between them always exists a close relation
and similarity that may be very obvious or only in the mind of the simile maker.


12
Beside tenor and vehicle, another important part of simile is also mentioned in many
researches. The term is called ―dimension‖ or ―ground‖ by Richards (1936) which is
defined as the quality that one refers to when using a particular vehicle in relation to the

tenor. The vehicle has a number of dimensions which may be mapped or transferred back
onto the tenor and hence create new meaning.
Similes are easily recognizable by the presence of one of a variety of comparison
markers. In English, the available markers include the following:
Verbs: seem, look like, sound like, resemble, remind
E.g. A white BMW which looks like a modern bathroom cabinet than a car.
Adjective: similar to, the same as:
E.g. my essay is similar to yours.
Nouns: a sort of, some kind of, the size of
E.g. My kitchen is approximately the size of a postage stamp.
Prepositions (in comparative phrases): like, as
E.g. Music is like medicine because it takes away the pain
Conjunctions (in comparative clause): as, as though, as if, as when
E.g. She treats him as if she were his mother.
According to Huddleston & Pullum (2002: 1630, 1656), the compound adjectives
are a way of compressing information into a two-word lexeme, where noun functions as
vehicle. They typically occur in attribute position, and are an alternative to a full relative
clause:
N-like adjective: e.g. native-like proficiency, Robinson Crusoe-like life
N-shape adjectives: e.g. an-L-shape room
N-style: e.g. Star Trek-style command seal
N-type adjectives: e.g. terrorist-type offences

1.4.3 Nature of similes
1.4.3.1 Simile as a figurative comparison
Miller (1993) defines that comparison in general is a mental act in which two or
more entities are evaluated along some parameters. While comparison is an inherently


13

asymmetrical process-with a primary figure, the target, assessed against the ground of a
secondary figure, the standard-both entities must nonetheless be fully individuated as
objects of conceptualization: one cannot make a comparison without thinking about both of
the things one is comparing. Broadly speaking, he also states that any construction which
prompts the conceptualization of two distinct figures and an assessment of the similarities
and differences between them will count as comparison. However, simile is not an
ordinary comparison, it is figurative one. What makes comparison figurative?
According to Bredin (1997:1), literal comparison involves entities which evokes
similar domain matrices, but which may differ in their specifications within one or more
domains. Figurative comparison, on the other hand involves the alignment of concepts with
very different domain matrices. What makes a simile figurative is that it prompts one to
search for similarities where one would not expect to find them and to make connections
across concepts which seem otherwise unconnected. In other words, the difference
between a simile and an ordinary comparison is that similes are predicate comparisons in
which the predicate describes the subject. Ordinary comparison or literal similes are
symmetrical comparisons in which the subject and the predicate are referentially
independent. In the later but not in the former, the subject and the predicate can be inter-
substituted without any change of meaning. He also gives an illustration:
1. Blackberries are like raspberries.
2. Crime is like a disease.
Example (1) is an ordinary comparison while example (2) a figurative one. In the non-
literal similes, topic and vehicle are not symmetrical: the terms denoting the two entities
cannot be reversed; if they are reversed, the simile may become meaningless (e.g. A
disease is like crime) or its meaning may change substantially (e.g. Surgeons are like
butchers vs. Butchers are like surgeons.). Conversely, in a literal simile or an ordinary
comparison, the terms can be reversed (e.g. Raspberries are like blackberries).
Furthermore, non-literal similes can drop like (e.g. Crime is a disease) while literal ones
cannot (e.g. Blackberries are raspberries.).
In short, unlike literal comparison, similes are figurative - comparing things normally
felt to be incomparable, typically using vivid startling images to suggest unexpected

connections between the source and target. It is essentially a figure of speech-in fact, an
explicit form of comparison; but unlike literal comparison, simile is essentially figurative,


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making unexpected connections between literally unlike concepts. These observations are
simple, but they have important consequences for the forms similes take, the meanings
they convey, and ultimately for the rhetorical functions they serve. We hope we have
provided an adequate glimpse of some of these consequences here - enough, in any case, to
make simile seem a little less simple and a little more alluring.

1.4.3.2 Simile and Metaphor
Figures of speech consist of different types such as allegory, metaphor,
synecdoche, metonymy and simile, etc. However, the distinction between simile and
metaphor is among the oldest and most widely recognized in rhetorical theory. It is also
one of the most tenuous. Understanding the relation between simile and metaphor will help
us to master more about the nature of simile.
For many analysts, it is a distinction almost without a difference–as Aristotle puts
it, ‗the simile also is metaphor the difference is but slight‘ (Rhetoric III, 4).Traditionally,
what difference there is has been seen as a matter of form: a simile simply makes explicit
what a metaphor merely implies. Since the difference between the two is apparently so
superficial, theorists have tended to define one figure in terms of the other. One venerable
tradition, stretching from Quintilian to Miller (1979) sees metaphor as a sort of elliptical
simile. Another tradition, uniting theorists as diverse as, Larkoff and Johnson (1980), and
Gluckberg and Keysar (1990), takes metaphor as the more basic of the two figures, and
view simile as the explicit expression of a metaphorical mapping. There is a vast literature
on metaphor, but the literature explicitly devoted to similes is less extensive. In their
second edition, Lakoff and Johnson (2003) added an afterword in which they deny that a
metaphor is a kind of simile or that metaphors are based on similarity, but they do not
explore the phenomenon of similes in any detail. Therefore, simile and metaphor must be

distinguished from each other for the confusion they may cause.

According to Cambridge Advanced Learner‘s Dictionary (2003), simile and
metaphor are distinguished from their definitions. If metaphor is defined as ―an expression
which describes a person or object in a literary way by referring to something that is
considered to possess similar characteristics to the person or object you are trying to
describe”, the definition for simile is ―an expression comparing one thing with another,


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always including the words „as‟ or „like‟”. Through these definitions, some differences can
be found between these two common figures of speech.
Firstly, metaphor is an expression used to describe one thing by referring to another thing
with similar qualities whereas simile is an expression used to compare two things.
Secondly, it is easier to make distinction between these two notions due to the presence of
such words as ‗like‟ or „as‟ in simile but not in metaphor. The following instance is a good
illustration for the difference of metaphor and simile:
Fame is a fickle food. (Emily Dickinson, Complete Poems, 1924)
I‟m like a bird. (From the song ―I‘m like a bird‖ by Nelly Furtado)
The former is a metaphor which tries to express the nature of abstract concept ‗fame‘
through a concrete object ―a fickle food‖. Thus, by the image ―a fickle food‖, it is easier to
understand the characteristics of ―fame‖, of course in the mind of the poet. Here, it can be
understood from features of ―a fickle food‖ that ―fame‖ is not only attractive but also easily
and suddenly changeable. The latter is obviously a simile with the word ―like‖. The singer
wants to compare herself with a bird because they are both free and able to go everywhere.
It can be said that metaphor is an equation and it can be formulated as ―A is B‖
whereas simile is just an approximation and its formulation is ―A is as or like B‖. Moreover,
metaphor can be extended, that means it can leaps from A to B, then from B to C, etc but
simile reaches its limits. In practice, in spite of some synonymous meanings, their meanings
can be quite different. If metaphor implicitly expresses an identity, simile explicitly

describes a comparison. A simile often expresses something true whereas a metaphor always
expresses something untrue and even paradoxical so readers or listener have to make sense
of.
Moreover, one of the most striking differences between the two figures is explicitness.
While metaphors need not be overtly marked, similes, by their very nature, must be. Simile
is fundamentally a figure of speech requiring overt reference to source and target entities,
and an explicit construction connecting them. Metaphor, on the other hand, is ultimately a
figure of thought. Many conceptual domains are essentially metaphorically structured, and
this structuring is often evident not just in metaphorical uses of language, but also in social
practices and conventions (Lakoff, 1993). Unlike metaphors, similes require distinction of
both source and target concepts, and an evaluation of what they have in common.


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In brief, simile and metaphor are powerful figures of speech which both compare two
seemingly unrelated objects but between them exists distinctive features.

1.4.4 Functions of Simile
As mentioned above, simile plays an important part not only in language but also in human
cognition. The nature and functions of simile are studied by a lot of linguists and
researchers in different fields such as science, linguistic philosophy, sociology and
anthropology, literature and translation. Similes can fulfil various functions, for example,
they serve to communicate concisely and efficiently: they are one of a set of linguistic
devices (figures of speech) which extend the linguistic resources available. Furthermore,
they can function as cognitive tools for thought in that they enable us to think of the world
in novel, alternative ways, namely, they can create relations of similarity. In discourse,
they can also fulfill more specific functions depending on the textual genre in which they
occur. However, in my thesis two main functions are mentioned, one of which is to create
image. The other function is to decorate or ornament.

1.4.4.1 Simile is used to create image
Being an important part in literature, image has the function to fill the spaces made
in the rhetorical moves of the novel. Due to this, simile and other figures of speech mostly
involve images. As a result, one major function of simile is to create images for concepts.
The notion ―image‖ has been studied for thousands of year by both philosophers and
writers. A lot of definitions have been made with the effort to clarify the nature and the use
of it in language. A definition is offered by Oxford Advanced Learner‘s Dictionary, in
which image is defined as ―a word or phrase used with a different meaning from its normal
one, in order to describe something in a way that produces a strong picture in the mind‖.
However, this definition only covers the basic understanding about an image but not the
real nature of an image. One of the most widely used definitions of image that comes from
Ezra Pound (1913) states that ―an image is that which represents an intellectual and
emotional complex in an instant of time‖. In this definition, image is not only a
representative of something else but also a representative of emotion, intellect and other
concrete things that human being can experience in a particular point of time.


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According to Giora, Rachel (1997), language can be classified into two groups:
literal and figurative language. In accordance, there are two kinds of images: literal and
figurative images. Literal images appeal to our sense of realistic perception whereas
figurative images appeal to our imagination. Thus, an image in novel is not only visual as
ordinary images but it can also engage any of the senses. For these characteristics of
image, simile often employs image to make the notions easier to be understood more
comprehensively. The following example is a typical illustration: He looked like a broiled
frog, hunched over his desk, grinning and satisfied. You don't have to have seen a broiled
frog to appreciate the effect of this. As a matter of fact, it is inconceivable that a frog, when
broiled, would grin or look satisfied, and almost equally unlikely that any readers have
ever seen a broiled frog. The purpose of the writer who created this simile, as with most
professional writers, is to create interpretative resonance and appeal the imagination.

Besides image, another related term is imagery which is considered to be most
investigated in literature in general and in novel in particular. Sometimes, in order to
extend the description of the subject matter, simile can create not only one image but a
network of different images. Imagery, that means images taken collectively, is defined as
―the total sensory suggestion of poetry‖ (John Ciardi, World Book Dictionary). According
to M.H. Abrams (1985), imagery has three main functions. Firstly, it is used to ―signify all
the objects and qualities of sense perception referred to in a poem or other work of
literature, whether by literal description, by allusion, or in the analogues (the vehicles) used
in its similes and metaphors‖ (M.H.Abrams, ed, 1985: 81). Secondly, it is employed to
signify only description of visible objects and scenes. Thirdly, the most common use of
imagery is to signify figurative language, especially the vehicles of metaphors and similes.
As can be seen, image and imagery are essential parts of a literature works, especially for
a novel and they make novels more concrete. With them, it is possible for creative writers
to develop the function of similes that is to create concrete images so as to explain abstract
concepts as well as bring aesthetic effects to their works of art.

1.4.4.2 Simile has the function of decorating
According to Wellek & Warren (1973: 198 - 199), in literal text such as poetry,
novel or drama, similes fulfil aesthetic function. Thus, simile has got a prominent function
that is to decorate or ornament something. Carrying this outstanding function, simile is


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commonly found in creative writing such as poetry, literature, public oratory and other
registers. One of the representatives of figurative language is Aritotle. His main treatment
of simile and metaphor is to discuss the functions of its in literature language, especially
the language of tragedy. Such similes of perception are often extended to situations that the
reader would be most unlikely to have experienced personally.
In literary texts, we can find an original use of standard similes, as in the
following example: They behave like little dogs (W. Shakespeare, Othello, London,

Methuen, V, ii, verse 135). It will be interpreted by the reader at the end of the narrative:
two young men (the tenor) are compared with the little dogs (the vehicle) attributing to
them the reckless behavior of young animals that play and are not aware of the
consequences of their actions. However, simile can be employed in many different kinds of
discourse, not only in creative ones like literature be found in science, economics,
psychology, law, politics, religion, journal, etc and in these fields, its function is not merely
to decorate something but more importantly to enable human conceive one concept.
In short, simile is a kind of comparison. Concerning the structure of simile, two
main components of simile are identified as tenor (target) and vehicle (source). There is
also existence of indicators of resemblance ‗as‘ or ‗like‘ between these two components of
simile. Unlike metaphor, they require the distinction of both source and target concepts,
and an evaluation of what they have in common, but unlike literal comparison, they are
figurative- comparing things normally felt to be comparable, typically using vivid or
startling images to suggest unexpected connections between source and target domains.
There are different functions and performance of simile. With special characteristics, the
main function of simile is to describe and evaluate things through comparing them
indirectly.
Moreover, concerning the interpretation of simile, the matters of word meaning,
transference of meaning and contextual meaning are also presented as background
knowledge. In order to understand the use of simile, besides the knowledge of cognitive
semantics, one needs to know the context of situation and context of culture of the novel in
which similes are used.
Besides, simile used in literature especially in novels is very different from ones used in
everyday language. Similes used in the novels can perform its oldest and most significant
characteristics with purposes of creating freshly aesthetic effects in the novels. Thus, it is


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more obvious to view the power of simile if it appears in novels. In the next chapter, a
specific study on similes in depicting features of characters in the novel David Copperfield

by Charles Dickens will be carried out with the view to illustrating the construction,
frequency and effects of simile in such creative language as novel.


CHAPTER 2: THE STUDY

In this chapter the procedure in which the study was carried out is reported in details and
the results are revealed.

2.1. Research questions
 How is simile used in depicting features of the characters in David Copperfield ?

2.2 Data collection
There are 99 similes depicting features of characters in 64 chapters of the novel which are
chosen as the data for analysis. The vehicles in these similes are classified into four groups:
Animals, supernatural beings, natural phenomena, and man-made objects. The selection is
based on the following reasons:
Firstly, we chose Dickens‘s novel as the main resource of data because of his
popularity in English literature.
Secondly, we chose his work because of their suitable language for a thesis. The
novels by Dickens have proven themselves worthy of deep reflection and criticism, and the
fact that they have endured for over a century show that the works are more than
superficial. The simile device in this novel plays a significant role for Dickens in depicting
particular features of various characters elaborately or fancifully. Thus, I will explicate
the mechanism of his use of simile here, focusing on the grammatical forms and semantic
relation in the following section.
Thirdly, the language of the novel is of the 19
th
century which is quite near to
contemporary in English. Thus it is authentic and reliable for a linguistic study.