P14 Hyperbole & Understatement
P15 Antithesis
Poetry—Meaning
Hyperbole
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Definition: a purposeful exaggeration or
overstatement.
Why Writers Use It: even though the
statement might not be exactly true,
hyperbole can create emphasis or also make
something sound funny.
Examples:
◦ Faster than greased lightning.
◦ I’ve told him a thousand times.
◦ A rose red city, half as old as time (Burgon).
Understatement
Definition: a purposeful presentation of something as
being smaller or less good or important than it
actually is.
 Why Writers Use It: understatement can hide an
author’s true intention or can provide contrast to
what was expected, drawing more attention.
 Examples:

◦ “One could do worse than be a swinger of birches”
(Frost) in a poem about how deeply satisfying the activity
is.
◦ The earthquake caused some damage (when it destroyed
an entire town).
◦ "I am just going outside and may be some time."
(Captain Lawrence Oates, Antarctic explorer, before
walking out into a blizzard to face certain death, 1912)
Antithesis
Definition: a contrast using opposite
ideas.
 Why Writers Use It: antithesis can show
two perspectives on a topic or reveal a
dual nature.
 Examples:
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◦ Hot and cold
◦ Many are called, but few are chosen.
◦ “With mirth in funeral and with dirge in
marriage” (Hamlet 1.2).