Figurative Expressions In John Steinbeck’s The Pearl

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.1. Semantics

The study of the linguistics meaning or morphemes, words, phrases and sentences is called semantics. Semantic is concerned with aspects of meaning in language. Work in semantic deal with the description of word and sentence meaning. There are certain kinds of meaning or certain aspects of meaning in linguistics (Lyons, 1981:139).

Geoffrey Leech (1974:9) explains that semantics as the study of meaning is central to the study of communication and as communication becomes more and more pressing.

Katz (1972:1) also states that semantics is the study of linguistic meaning. It is concerned with what sentence and other linguistics object express, not with the arrangement with their syntactic parts or with their pronunciation.

The term of Semantics is the recent addition to the English language. Semantics is the philosophical and scientific study of meaning. The word semantics is derived from the Greek verb ―semaino (to signify or to mean). Semantics is part of the larger study of signs, semiotics. It is the part that deals with words as signs (symbols) and language as a system of signs (words as symbols). (Hipkiss, 1995:IX)

Semantics has been variously described as the scienceof sign, of symbolic behavior or of communication-system. It focuses on the scope of the term "communication". There are certain concepts relevant to the investigation of all

communication-systems, human and non-human, natural and artificial. A signal is transmitted from a sender to a receiver (a group a receivers) along a channel of communication. The signal will havea particular form and will convey a particular meaning (or message). The connection between the form of the signal and its meaning is established by what (in a rather general sense of the term) is commonly referred to semiotics as the code: the message is coded by the sender and decided by the receiver. Semantics is one of branches of linguistics studying about the meaning, and it is considered as a major branch of linguistics devoted to the study of meaning in language (Crystal, 1991: 310). From this definition,we have to know what is meant by meaning. For thousand years, philosophers have been considering the meaning of meaning, speakers of a language can understand what is said to them and can produce strings of words that are meaningful to other speakers (Fromkin, 1983: 151).

Leech (1977: IX) states that semantics (as the study of meaning) is central to the study of communication; and as communication becomes more and more a crucial factor in social organization, the need to understand it becomes more and more pressing. Semantics is not only the center of communication study but also the center of the study of the human mind- thought processes, cognition, conceptualization. All these are intricately bound up with the way in which we classify and covey our experience of the world through language.

Lyons (1971:400) states, “Semantics may be defined, initially and provisionally, as the study of meaning”.

Akmajian (1979:228) says, “Semantics is generally considered to be the study of meaning (and related notions) in language, semantics is generally considered to be the

study of reference (and related notions) in languages”.

Hornby (1974: 789) defines, “Semantics is branch of linguistics concerned with studying the meaning of words and sentences”.

Katz (1972:1) defines, “Semantics is the study of linguistic meaning. It is concerned with what sentences and other linguistic objects express, not with the arrangement of their syntactic parts or with their pronunciation”. It means that generally the basic principle of semantics is about the meaning.

All these definitions given above are different in some respect but principally semantics is a division of linguistics dealing with meaning of words, it is a study concerned with meaning of linguistics string. It means that we must focus our attention to what sentences or other linguistic objects express not to arrangement of their syntactic part of their grammatical form.

2.2 Scope of Semantics

Semantics is the study of the linguistics meaning. It is not concerned with what sentences and other linguistics object expressed. It is not concerned with the arrangements of syntactic parts, or with their pronounciation. Semantics could cover more extensive areas, from structure and function of language as well as the interrelationship with other discipline. In this thesis, the scope of semantics is about the meaning itself in linguistics. Meaning of linguistic object can be various. Every people may have different way to analyze the meaning of a linguistic because there is no very general agreement about the nature of meaning or the way in which it should be described.

There are two major approaches to the way in which meaning in language studied, the first is the linguistic approach. The students of language or linguists have long been interested in the way in which meaning in a language is structured. There have been studies of the meaning of words and the semantic structure of the sentences. Some of them also have distinguished between different types of meaning. The second is philosophical approach. Philosophers have investigated the relation between linguistic expression, such as the words of language, and persons, things, and events in the world to which these words refer to. Although there are may be different approach to semantics, three basic terms seem to be widely mentioned in of each these approach, there are meaning, sense and reference.

2.3 Meaning

The term meaning is simply derived from the verb mean. Meaning is regarded as the message that is intended or expressed or signified. In other word, it can be said that meaning is the idea that is intended.

There are some definitions, which are given by semanticists about what meaning is, they are:

a. Leech (1969: 5) states, “The aim of semantics is to explain and describe meaning in the natural language”.

b. Lyons (1979: 2) states, “The meaning can be distinguished by the technique of substituting others word in the same context and enquiry whether the resulting sentence are equivalent.”

expresses about the world we live in or any possible or imaginary word.

d. Bloomfield (1933: 139) defines “Meaning of a linguistics form as a situation in which the speakers utter it and response which it calls forth in the hearer.”

e. Nikelas (1988: 23) in Pakpahan (2005: 14) states “Meaning is a complex phenomenon involving relationship between a language and the mind of its speakers and practical use to which it is put.”

2.4 Varieties of Meaning

Many different things are said to have meaning. People mean to do various things; tools and other artifacts are meant for various things; people mean various things by using words and sentences; natural signs mean things; representations in people's minds also actually have mean thing. There are two kinds of meaning, they are linguistic meaning and speaker meaning (Siregar:1992).

2.4.1 Linguistic Meaning

Linguistic meaning is simply the meaning of an expression in some form of language. In linguistics, meaning is expressed by the writer or speaker and what is conveyed to the reader or listener provided that they talk about the same thing. The knowledge of the reader or listener will determine how much or whether he or she understands the message of the speaker or the writer. For examples:

1. He likes to run.

2. Our new engines run well. 3. They run a mail – order house.

sentences. In other words, the word of run has more than one the linguistics meaning based on the context of the sentence or dictionary.

2.4.2 Speaker Meaning

Speaker meaning is what speaker means in producing an utterance. Although words can not be used to mean something what they do not mean, there is a tendency of a speaker to use a word to mean something different from what words mean literally. By saying, ‘you are clever’ the speaker may mean ‘you are bright’ (intelligent). Because the word clever has meaning ‘bright mentally’ or ‘have intelligence’ in English or he may mean the opposite of what the word means. i.e. ‘you are stupid’. The speaker meaning is classified in two parts, they are literal meaning and non literal meaning.

2.4.2.1 Literal Meaning

Siregar (1992) says, “If we are speaking literally, then we mean what our words mean”. Literal is actual words or the real one. It means not use figurative or symbolic. When the speaker speaks literal, it means that he or she does not have any hidden meaning in his or her words.

The following examples illustrate the literal meaning: 1. We are eating right now.

2. My mother goes to traditional market everyday. 3. Thomas is playing badminton in front of his house.

All the sentences above are easily understood as long as the speakers mean what they say lexically. In literal meaning there is no misunderstanding or misinterpretation between the speaker and the listener.

2.4.2.2 Non Literal Meaning

Siregar (1992:10) says, “We sometimes mean something different from what our mean, in other words, we sometimes speak non-literally”. People sometimes speak non literal. When the speaker speaks non literally, therefore, means something different from what the words mean. It is the opposite of literal meaning. In additional the words orsentence which is spoken by the speaker have hidden meaning beside the lexical meaning.

Everyday people may find many non literal meaning such as in novel, poem, lyrics of song, the Holy Bible, etc. Non literal meaning is very needed to make our sentences or language more beautiful. The following example illustrate the non literal meaning is ‘My pen is dancing on paper now’. This sentence has non-literal meaning and it means I am writing on paper now.

2.5 Sense and Reference a. Sense

Word and phrases normally both have sense and reference. In order to have a better understanding of a word and references, there should be a distinction between its sense and reference.

Sense relates to the complex system of relationships that hold between the linguistic elements themselves (mostly the words); is concerned only with intralinguistic relations. Other linguists who contributed the meaning of sense and reference in his book is Lyons (1979:197) says “Sense is the term used by a number of philosopher for what others would describe simply as their meaning or perhaps more narrowly as their cognitive or

descriptive meaning”.

In some cases, the same word can have more than on sense. For example the word ‘bank’ has different meaning in the following sentences:

a. Every month the company I work for pays my salary directly into my Bank. b. My apartment is on the east bank of the river.

Based on the examples (a) and (b) above, we can see that the word bank has a number of different senses. In the example (a), the word bank is an organization or a place that provides a financial service. Simply, bank is a place for keeping money safely. In other hand, in the example (b), the word bank has sense the land sloping up along each river or canal or the ground near the river.

b. Reference

Reference can be said as a link of signifie and signified by words. The signifier is a word in the language and the signified is the object in the worlds that stands for, refers to or denotes. It is an obvious fact that reference is the centre of symbol and object. Through reference, the language being mentioned is associated to the world.

According to Palmer (1976:30), “Reference deals with the relationship between the linguistic elements, word, sentences, etc., and the non-linguistic world of experience”. For example, the word ‘hand’ has a certain meaning. The first one has meaning a part of body, includes right hand and left hand, a hand has five of fingers and each finger has a fingernail. The second one, the word ‘hand’ also possesses a characteristic which is known as ‘reference’ that is the ability of the hand is to do anything such to take, throw, wash, etc.

2.6 Goals of Semantics

According to Leech (1981:20-21), there are two questions which must be answered concerning with the goals of semantics theory; what should a semantics theory do and how should it do it? A semantics theory should attribute to each expression in the language which the semantics properties and relations.

The answer to the second question is that a semantics theory should have at least two kinds of constraints:

a) Semantics theory of natural language should be finite; people are capable of storing only a finite amount of information but they nevertheless learn the semantics of natural languages.

b) Semantics theory of natural language should reflect the fact, except for idioms, expression are compositional. It means that their meaning is determined by the meaning of its constituents and their grammatical relations.

2.7 Semantic Deviation

It is reasonable to translate semantic deviation mentally into nonsense or absurdity, so long as people realize that sense is used. Semantic deviation deals with what Leech (1968: 49) calls as TROPES: foregrounded irregularities of content’. He states that they are classified largely into three sections:

1) Semantic Oddity,

2) Transference of Meaning, and 3) Honest Deception.

Leech (1969:48) asserts that there are two types of signals that may help us to know whether a statement is literal or figurative (non-literal). The first signal is a textual one, i.e. the language is identified in some unusual way and does not show literal sense. The second signal is a contextual one; that is the statement has a literal sense but the context in which it is identified is inappropriate.

A. Semantic Oddity

It refers to semantic bizarreness of expression. Semantic oddity means semantic peculiarity of expression. There are five types of semantic oddity. Pleonasm, periphrasis, and tautology have semantic redundancy, and oxymoron and paradox have semantic absurdity which contains irreconcilable elements of meaning or reference.

a. Pleonasm

In figurative expression, words are used in such a way that they differ somewhat from ordinary everyday speech and convey meanings in a more vivid and impressive manner. Pleonasm makes a speech more effective; it beautifies and emphasizes the speech in rhetoric which is the art of speaking and writing effectively.

b. Tautology

This can be used for emphasis, to convey something important, or to add literary beauty to a text. However, many times its use is inadvertent and is just a needless repetition. In logic, it is a statement that consists of two facts, one which will be true in any instance.

c. Periphrasis

Periphrasis originates from a Greek word periphrazein which means “talking around”. It is a stylistic device that can be defined as the use of excessive and longer words to convey a meaning which could have been conveyed with a shorter expression or in a few words. It is an indirect or roundabout way of writing about things.

For example, using “I am going to” instead of “I will” is periphrasis. This is also called

d. Oxymoron

Oxymoron i

Oxymorons appear in a variety of contexts, including inadvertent errors (such as "ground pilot")

and literary oxymorons crafted to reveal a Oxymoron is one type of absurdity

which entails irreconcilable elements of meaning or reference (Leech, 1968: 138). Example:

a. controlled chaos b. kill with kindness c. old news

d. original copy e. Paradox

The term existing belief or perceived opinion. It is a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or silly but may include a latent truth. It is also used to illustrate an opinion or statement contrary to accepted traditional ideas. A paradox is often used to make a reader think over an idea in innovative way.

Example: “What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young.” – George Bernard Shaw

B. Transference of Meaning

This section consists of five tropes which will be the main topic that will be discuss below in figurative expressions. They are metaphor, simile, synecdoche and metonymy.

C. Honest deception

This section treats three tropes: Hyperbole (Exaggeration), Irony and Sarcasm. 1) Hyperbole

Hyperbole is a figure of exaggeration. It tells more than the truth about the size, number, or degree of something without intending to deceive.

2) Irony

Leech (1968: 171) quotes the definition of irony made by H. W. Fowler in Modern English Usage, that irony is a mode of expression which postulates a double audience, one of which is ‘in the know’ and aware of the speaker’s attention, while the other is naive enough to take the utterance as its face value.

3) Sarcasm

Many people relate sarcasm to irony, but there is a big difference between the two. A person may use irony unintentionally and unconsciously. However, sarcasm must be intentional and conscious. Whoever makes a sarcastic comment knows that they are saying something contrary to what they actually believe or how they actually feel.

2.8 Definition of Figurative Expression

Figurative expression is kind of language that uses words or expressions with a meaning that is different from the literal interpretation. Figurative expression is rarely used in our daily conversation. Figurative expression is often found in literary works, such as: articles in newspaper, advertisements, novels, poems, etc. Figurative expression is the use of words that go beyond their ordinary meaning. It requires you to use your imagination to figure out the author's meaning. When a writer uses literal language, he or she is simply stating the facts as they are. Figurative expression, in comparison, uses exaggerations or alterations to make a particular linguistic point. Figurative expression is commonly used in literary works, such as: poem, prose and nonfiction writing as well.

Figurative expression refers to words, and groups of words, that exaggerate or alter the usual meaning in figures of speeches of the component of words. A figure of speech may be said to occur whenever a speaker or writer, from the sake of freshness or emphasis, departs from the usual denotations of words (Kennedy, 1983: 479).

The Webster‘s New World College Dictionary (1996: 571) explains that figurative speech is an expression (as metaphor or euphemism) that substitutes a variation of points of view by which things or notions which is referred to as if it is different in some ways (in identify, degree, shape) from what it actually is or seems to be but so related to the expression successfully implies an intended meaning of effect either or greatly different from what is utterly said.

Figurative expression and vocabulary have a great relationship that is reciprocal relationship. Figurative expression and semantic also have a great relationship because

without the knowledge of the meaning of the word, even connotative meaning, it is difficult to understand figurative expression, sometimes people read the newspapers, the magazines or novel, overlooked non – literal expressions and read them literally. Of course, the meaning of the expression becomes odd or not understandable. Therefore, figurative expression becomes essential in the learning of vocabularies. While, learning of vocabularies support the learning of semantics.

2.9 Types of Figurative Expressions

There are many kinds of figurative meaning. As stated before, in this study will only discuss the figurative expressions by Leech in A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry, they are: personification (humanizing metaphor), metaphor, simile, synecdoche and metonymy. The meanings of each type of figurative expressions are explained below.

2.9.1 Personification

Personification consists of giving human characteristics to an object. Actually, personification is the transfer of human characteristic to an object, animal, or abstract idea. It makes the animals and the animate objects talk or behave as humans do.

According to Leech (1969:158) “Personification whereby an abstraction is figuratively represented as human actually combines all three categories – the concreteness, the animistic and the humanizing.”

As Kennedy (1983:686) states, “Personification is a figure of speech in which a thing, an animal, or an abstract term (truth, nature) is made human”.

According to Siswantoro (2002: 29) states, “Personifikasi adalah pelukisan benda atau objek tak bernyawa atau bukan manusia (inanimate) baik yang kasat

mata atau abstrak yang diperlakukan seolah-olah sebagai manusia” (personification is portray an inanimate thing substituting one with otherthat makes a comparison between two seemingly unlike things is called or an object in unreal or abstract which is regarded as if as human).

For example: ‘And the beauty of the pearl, winking and glimmering in the light of the little candle.’

From the example the word ‘wink’ is to close and open one eye quickly, typically to indicate that something is a word indicates that the beauty of pearl is shining.

2.9.2 Metaphor

Metaphor is a kind of figurative expression which is an implicit comparison in which two unlike objects are compared by identifying or substituting one with other.

Metaphor– making believe that tenor and vehicle are identical. But as many writers have observed, the pretence often seems more serious and more real than the ‘real‘ world of literal understanding. Nevertheless, from a linguistic point of view, the literal meaning is always basis, and the figurative meaning derived. (Leech, 1969: 151)

Barnhart (1995: 118) states “A metaphor is figure of speech in which a word or phrase is taken out of its usual setting and placed with another word to suggest a likeness. It is made more vivid by transferring to it the name orattributes of some other objects.

According to Tarigan (1983:141), “Metafora adalah sejenis majas perbandingan yang paling singkat, padat, tersusun rapi. Di dalamnya terlibat dua

ide: yang satu adalah suatu kenyataan, sesuatu yang dipikirkan, yang menjadi objek; dan yang satu lagi merupakan perbandingan terhadap kenyataan tadi; dan kita menggantikan yang dibelakang ini menjadi yang terdahulu tadi. (Metaphor is a kind of figure of speech which the most concise, condensed, well ordered kind of comparative figurative expressin. Two ideas are involved inside; and the one is the reality or object, something thought; and the other is the comparison to the reality; and we subtitude the latter with the former).

Kennedy (1983: 680) states, “Metaphor is a statement that one thing is something else, which in a literal sense, it is not.

For example: ‘Her dark eyes made little reflected stars.’

From the expression above, it shows us an example of metaphor in Steinbeck’s novel, The Pearl. It is comparing two nouns, her dark eyes and little reflected stars. It can be assumed that the color of her eyes is so dark just like the shining beautiful stars.

2.9.3 Simile

A simile is an explicit comparison between things, events, or actions which are fundamentally unlike. It typically involves the words ‘like’ or ‘as’.

Leech (1969: 156) says, “A simile is a figure of speech in which two distinct things are compared by using the words like or as.”

According to Kennedy (1983: 680) “Simile is a comparison of two things, indicated by some connective, usually, like, as, than, or a verb such as resembles. A simile expresses a similiraty. Still, for a simile to exist, the things compared have to be dissimilar in kind. It is no simile to say, “Your fingers are like mine”. It is a literal

observation. But to say, “Your fingers are like sausages” is kind of simile.

According to Wren and Martin (1981: 480), “Simile is a comparison made between two objects of different kinds which have, however, at least one poin in common”. Means that, simile is the comparison between two things which have a point of similirity.

For example: ‘In the canoe she was like a strong man.

In that example, it can be seen that the word ‘she’ or Juana, the wife of Kino is compared with a man. As we know that Juana is a woman. The power that woman has is not the same as the man. So, it can be concluded that Juana is not weak.

2.9.4. Synecdoche

Synecdoche is figurative expression in which a part of something represents the whole or it may use a whole to represent a part. Synecdoche is derived from Greek word synekdechesthal, where syn means ‘with ‘; the word ex, means ‘to get out’; and the word decheisthai means ‘to take’ or ‘to receive’.

According to Kennedy (1983: 688), “Synecdoche is the use of a part of a thing to stand for the whole of it or vice versa”. Means that, it is a synecdoche if A is a component of B or vice versa.

For example: ‘Now the dealer’s hand had become a personality.’

In the example, the sentence means that the word ‘hand’ is not just hand but it stands for a help.

2.9.5. Metonymy

Metonymy is a figurative expression in which the name of one object or idea is substituted for that of another closely associated with it. Webster‘s Third New International Dictionary in Leech (1969: 152) says, “Metonymy is a figure of speech that consists in using the name of one thing for that of something else with which it is associated.” In other hand, Halliday (1985: 319) says, “It is a word which is used for something related to that which it usually refers to.”

For example: It was the town's mechanic, not the rich lawyer, who had the nicest ride. From the example the word ‘ride' is a metonym for 'car' because riding is something you do in an automobile, but the 'ride' is not a part of the automobile and therefore does not qualify as synecdoche

2.10 Related Studies

Saleh (2008) in his thesis entitled “A Semantic Analysis of Figurative Expressions in Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea” analyzes figurative expressions that exist in the novel. He found 67 data. They are 8 metaphors, 27 similes, 20 personifications, 4 hyperboles and 7 synecdoches. This study uses descriptive qualitative method, which has similirities with my thesis and it helps me how to analyse the data.

Perangin-angin (2008) in his thesis entitled “The Analysis of Figurative Expressions in the Holy Bible: Hebrew” found 46 data. They are 20 metaphors, 9 hyperboles, 5 similes, 3 synecdoche, and 5 personifications. This thesis gives me contribution about how to analyze the problem in my thesis.

Nora (2009) in her thesis entitled hyperboles, and 1 synecdoche. This thesis also helps me to analyse the data in my study.

Lisbet Pakpahan (2005). An Analysis of Figurative Meaning in Scorpion’s Song Lyrics. In her thesis, she analyzed figurative meaning that exist in the lyrics of Scorpion’s songs. She concludes that there are 77 cases of figurative meaning found in 10 songs of Scorpion’s and the most dominant one is hyperbole with total case 26 cases and followed by 6 synecdoches, 17 metaphors, 3 similes, 3 euphemism, 2 metonymys.

Nurul (2008). The Analysis of Non-Literal meaning in Jascha Richter’s Lyrics in Michael Learns to Rock’s songs. In her thesis, she analyzed non literal meaning taht exists in Jascha Richter’s Lyrics in Michael Learns to Rock’s songs. She concludes that there are 50 cases of non literal meaning found in Jascha Richer’s Lyrics in Michael Learns to Rock’s Songs and the most dominant one is hyperbole with 17 total cases and followed by 14 metaphors, 6 similes, 6 personifications, 6 euphemisms and 1 irony.

without the knowledge of the meaning of the word, even connotative meaning, it is difficult to understand figurative expression, sometimes people read the newspapers, the magazines or novel, overlooked non – literal expressions and read them literally. Of course, the meaning of the expression becomes odd or not understandable. Therefore, figurative expression becomes essential in the learning of vocabularies. While, learning of vocabularies support the learning of semantics.

2.9 Types of Figurative Expressions

There are many kinds of figurative meaning. As stated before, in this study will only discuss the figurative expressions by Leech in A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry, they are: personification (humanizing metaphor), metaphor, simile, synecdoche and metonymy. The meanings of each type of figurative expressions are explained below.

2.9.1 Personification

Personification consists of giving human characteristics to an object. Actually, personification is the transfer of human characteristic to an object, animal, or abstract idea. It makes the animals and the animate objects talk or behave as humans do.

According to Leech (1969:158) “Personification whereby an abstraction is figuratively represented as human actually combines all three categories – the concreteness, the animistic and the humanizing.”

As Kennedy (1983:686) states, “Personification is a figure of speech in which a thing, an animal, or an abstract term (truth, nature) is made human”.

According to Siswantoro (2002: 29) states, “Personifikasi adalah pelukisan benda atau objek tak bernyawa atau bukan manusia (inanimate) baik yang kasat

mata atau abstrak yang diperlakukan seolah-olah sebagai manusia” (personification is portray an inanimate thing substituting one with otherthat makes a comparison between two seemingly unlike things is called or an object in unreal or abstract which is regarded as if as human).

For example: ‘And the beauty of the pearl, winking and glimmering in the light of the little candle.’

From the example the word ‘wink’ is to close and open one eye quickly, typically to indicate that something is a word indicates that the beauty of pearl is shining.

2.9.2 Metaphor

Metaphor is a kind of figurative expression which is an implicit comparison in which two unlike objects are compared by identifying or substituting one with other.

Metaphor– making believe that tenor and vehicle are identical. But as many writers have observed, the pretence often seems more serious and more real than the ‘real‘ world of literal understanding. Nevertheless, from a linguistic point of view, the literal meaning is always basis, and the figurative meaning derived. (Leech, 1969: 151)

Barnhart (1995: 118) states “A metaphor is figure of speech in which a word or phrase is taken out of its usual setting and placed with another word to suggest a likeness. It is made more vivid by transferring to it the name orattributes of some other objects.

According to Tarigan (1983:141), “Metafora adalah sejenis majas perbandingan yang paling singkat, padat, tersusun rapi. Di dalamnya terlibat dua

ide: yang satu adalah suatu kenyataan, sesuatu yang dipikirkan, yang menjadi objek; dan yang satu lagi merupakan perbandingan terhadap kenyataan tadi; dan kita menggantikan yang dibelakang ini menjadi yang terdahulu tadi. (Metaphor is a kind of figure of speech which the most concise, condensed, well ordered kind of comparative figurative expressin. Two ideas are involved inside; and the one is the reality or object, something thought; and the other is the comparison to the reality; and we subtitude the latter with the former).

Kennedy (1983: 680) states, “Metaphor is a statement that one thing is something else, which in a literal sense, it is not.

For example: ‘Her dark eyes made little reflected stars.’

From the expression above, it shows us an example of metaphor in Steinbeck’s novel, The Pearl. It is comparing two nouns, her dark eyes and little reflected stars. It can be assumed that the color of her eyes is so dark just like the shining beautiful stars.

2.9.3 Simile

A simile is an explicit comparison between things, events, or actions which are fundamentally unlike. It typically involves the words ‘like’ or ‘as’.

Leech (1969: 156) says, “A simile is a figure of speech in which two distinct things are compared by using the words like or as.”

According to Kennedy (1983: 680) “Simile is a comparison of two things, indicated by some connective, usually, like, as, than, or a verb such as resembles. A simile expresses a similiraty. Still, for a simile to exist, the things compared have to be dissimilar in kind. It is no simile to say, “Your fingers are like mine”. It is a literal

observation. But to say, “Your fingers are like sausages” is kind of simile.

According to Wren and Martin (1981: 480), “Simile is a comparison made between two objects of different kinds which have, however, at least one poin in common”. Means that, simile is the comparison between two things which have a point of similirity.

For example: ‘In the canoe she was like a strong man.

In that example, it can be seen that the word ‘she’ or Juana, the wife of Kino is compared with a man. As we know that Juana is a woman. The power that woman has is not the same as the man. So, it can be concluded that Juana is not weak.

2.9.4. Synecdoche

Synecdoche is figurative expression in which a part of something represents the whole or it may use a whole to represent a part. Synecdoche is derived from Greek word synekdechesthal, where syn means ‘with ‘; the word ex, means ‘to get out’; and the word decheisthai means ‘to take’ or ‘to receive’.

According to Kennedy (1983: 688), “Synecdoche is the use of a part of a thing to stand for the whole of it or vice versa”. Means that, it is a synecdoche if A is a component of B or vice versa.

For example: ‘Now the dealer’s hand had become a personality.’

In the example, the sentence means that the word ‘hand’ is not just hand but it stands for a help.

2.9.5. Metonymy

Metonymy is a figurative expression in which the name of one object or idea is substituted for that of another closely associated with it. Webster‘s Third New International Dictionary in Leech (1969: 152) says, “Metonymy is a figure of speech that consists in using the name of one thing for that of something else with which it is associated.” In other hand, Halliday (1985: 319) says, “It is a word which is used for something related to that which it usually refers to.”

For example: It was the town's mechanic, not the rich lawyer, who had the nicest ride. From the example the word ‘ride' is a metonym for 'car' because riding is something you do in an automobile, but the 'ride' is not a part of the automobile and therefore does not qualify as synecdoche

2.10 Related Studies

Saleh (2008) in his thesis entitled “A Semantic Analysis of Figurative Expressions in Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea” analyzes figurative expressions that exist in the novel. He found 67 data. They are 8 metaphors, 27 similes, 20 personifications, 4 hyperboles and 7 synecdoches. This study uses descriptive qualitative method, which has similirities with my thesis and it helps me how to analyse the data.

Perangin-angin (2008) in his thesis entitled “The Analysis of Figurative Expressions in the Holy Bible: Hebrew” found 46 data. They are 20 metaphors, 9 hyperboles, 5 similes, 3 synecdoche, and 5 personifications. This thesis gives me contribution about how to analyze the problem in my thesis.

Nora (2009) in her thesis entitled hyperboles, and 1 synecdoche. This thesis also helps me to analyse the data in my study.

Lisbet Pakpahan (2005). An Analysis of Figurative Meaning in Scorpion’s Song Lyrics. In her thesis, she analyzed figurative meaning that exist in the lyrics of Scorpion’s songs. She concludes that there are 77 cases of figurative meaning found in 10 songs of Scorpion’s and the most dominant one is hyperbole with total case 26 cases and followed by 6 synecdoches, 17 metaphors, 3 similes, 3 euphemism, 2 metonymys.

Nurul (2008). The Analysis of Non-Literal meaning in Jascha Richter’s Lyrics in Michael Learns to Rock’s songs. In her thesis, she analyzed non literal meaning taht exists in Jascha Richter’s Lyrics in Michael Learns to Rock’s songs. She concludes that there are 50 cases of non literal meaning found in Jascha Richer’s Lyrics in Michael Learns to Rock’s Songs and the most dominant one is hyperbole with 17 total cases and followed by 14 metaphors, 6 similes, 6 personifications, 6 euphemisms and 1 irony.