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Definition of Hyperbole
Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. Hyperbolic statements are usually quite obvious exaggerations intended to emphasize a point... read full definition
Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. Hyperbolic statements are usually quite obvious exaggerations... read full definition
Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. Hyperbolic statements... read full definition
Hyperbole
Explanation and Analysis—The Dog Chasing His Tail:
As the group of men are standing with Brand around the lime kiln, an old dog suddenly appears and starts comically chasing its own tail in front of them. The narrator uses a series of hyperboles in this moment to capture the absurdity of the dog’s attempts, as seen in the following passage:
But now, all of a sudden, this grave and venerable quadruped, of his own mere motion, and without the slightest suggestion from anybody else, began to run round after his tail […] Never was seen such headlong eagerness in pursuit of an object that could not possibly be attained; never was heard such a tremendous outbreak of growling, snarling, barking, and snapping,—as if one end of the ridiculous brute’s body were at deadly and most unforgivable enmity with the other.
Hyperboles use exaggerated language in order to make a point, which the narrator does repeatedly in the long final sentence in this passage. First, they make the claim that “never was seen such a headlong eagerness in pursuit of an object that could not possibly be attained”—a fact that it would be impossible for the narrator to know to be true. What the hyperbole achieves, however, is to communicate to readers the absurd extent to which the dog sought its own tail. The narrator repeats this hyperbolic construction in the next sentence, making the exaggerated claim that “never was heard” such loud “growling, snarling, barking, and snapping,” so that readers understand the ruckus the dog is making.
The final hyperbole here is the narrator’s description of half of the dog’s body being “at deadly and most unforgivable enmity with the other.” In addition to highlighting the absurdity of the dog’s quest to harm its own flesh, this exaggerated description encourages readers to consider the parallel between the dog’s self-harming impulse and Brand’s. Like the dog, Brand has been “at enmity” with himself—a part of him clearly longs for human connection (as seen in his fond reflections on humanity before he kills himself), while another part is self-destructive, seeking out sin and ultimately committing suicide.
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