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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
Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Gorgeous Gatsby:
At the beginning of the novel, Nick uses hyperbole to introduce the reader to Gatsby:
If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about [Gatsby], some heightened sensitivity to the promises of life, as if he were related to one of those intricate machines that register earthquakes ten thousand miles away.
Related Themes:
Chapter 4
Explanation and Analysis—Rolls-Royce:
Nick’s description of Gatsby’s Rolls-Royce contains hyperbole:
Unlock with LitCharts A+It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns.
Related Themes:
Chapter 6
Explanation and Analysis—Son of God:
Nick’s narration of Gatsby’s backstory uses hyperbole to describe Gatsby’s invented identity:
Unlock with LitCharts A+[Gatsby] was a son of God—a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that—and he must be about His Father’s business, the service of a vast, vulgar, and meretricious beauty.
Related Themes:
