I think of hyperbole as a scene from the 1931 movie version of Frankenstein.
“Look! It’s moving. It’s alive. It’s alive…It’s alive, it’s moving, it’s alive, it’s alive, it’s alive, it’s alive. IT’S ALIVE!”
Yeah. Exactly what I said after discovering fleas in my house. But
that’s another story.
Hyperbole is a method of breathing life into a scene. It gives the
manuscript a color and scent that nails the reader to the scene.
Behold the difference.
Tomato sauce, low salt: “The
faded yellow house was at the end of a long, curvy drive.”
Salsa, extra spicy: “The
faded yellow house sat at the end of the curvy drive with all the narrow-eyed
impatience of a sour old man.”
Boiled egg: “In the
distance, two mountains rose above the clouds.”
Eggs Florentine: “In the
distance, the two mountains rose above the clouds like a prone Dolly Parton.”
Ham sandwich: “The huge SUV
turned the corner and came toward them.”
Honey-glazed ham roast w/pecans:
“An SUV turned the corner and barreled toward them looking like a gray version
of Yosemite’s El Capitan.”
Use exaggeration to highlight a point. Get wild on occasion and give
your readers a visual.
Got an over-the-top example to show us?
BEST POST EVER!! :PP
ReplyDeleteYour spicier sentences are much more vivid for me, and I think it is a reflection of voice as much as anything. I tend to like voice with a lot of energy in it, so hyperbole works for me in measured doses.
Spicy is great...in small doses.
DeleteI love jalapenos but if I eat too many, in the end things do not go well.
Hyperbole is an accent to a scene, the red pillow on a gray sofa.
I've seriously never heard it in this context before. Brilliant. Just brilliant. I use them occasionally, like you said, for the visual. :)
ReplyDeleteLove your examples! I think the exaggeration/hyperbole makes for a much stronger voice--and thus more exciting reading. :)
ReplyDeleteIt was quite exciting ridding my house of fleas, I can tell you that.
DeleteHey! I thought I was following your blog. Hmm. Well, now I am. :D
ReplyDeleteHehe, I like the Dolly Parton one. However, I rather think those more fall under the category of similies. Again, I think. Or you know, they just use really simplistic examples in school.
ReplyDeleteYou are correct, LOL. In the world known as sentence structure, (that class where everyone fell asleep) the definition of these phrases is ‘simile’.
DeleteIt is up to the writer to make them bland and dry or juicy.
I guess I'm just crass, but I loved the Eggs Flourintine :) Too cool.
ReplyDeleteOn a serious note, these are the best examples of hyperbole I've seen. I've never totally understood word.
........dhole
love your examples!
ReplyDeletea refreshing spring breeze after a torrential summer storm of stagnant shallow writing =)
(mine, that is!)
ReplyDeleteand
"IIII, aint got no boody..."
(fave quotable movie!)