A figure of speech classified as a figure of word is the metonymy. It is one of the most used by us Brazilians, even becoming an addiction. In this figure, we exchange one word for another, turning them into synonyms, even if they are not.
Various figures of speech are much more used in cultural productions, such as music, poetry, etc., than by other people in their daily lives. However, metonymy is a little different, unless the artist or other professional earns money or cultural support to use in the productions. This figure is most used in popular vocabulary.
When we exchange, for example, the continent for the content, we are speaking or writing a metonymy. This figure is much more used in verbal language, without much concern for the real meaning.
It can serve as a marketing tactic for brand recognition. Many companies purposely manage to make the brand name synonymous with the product they sell. Often, because there is no strong competition, we, consumers, are the ones who “baptize” the brand as the name of the product itself.
In other cases of metonymy, we tend to exchange the invention for the inventor, the container for the content, the cause for the consequence, the concrete for the abstract.
See too: Company or Company.
Understand better in the examples below.
Let's use the best known examples used by us, our family, and our friends in everyday life:
The use of the word Nescau to designate a chocolate drink is a classic case of replacing the product with the brand. As well as in the case of Bombril, Rexona, Coca-Cola and Danone. All are brands of steel wool, deodorant, soda and yogurt, respectively.
Remember the case of a boy sent to a grocery store to buy steel wool, but he changed the name of the product to the brand. So, the boy arrived at the market and asked:
– “I want a Bombril”.
The seller asked:
– “Which brand do you want?”.
The boy replied:
– “Assolan”.
This is often caused by the fact that there is no strong competitor for the brand and people adopt it as if it were the name of the product. In the case of this example, Assolan was one of the brands that managed to reduce the “metonymic effect” of Bombril by placing itself on the market as a direct competitor.
In the examples “listening to Aviões do Forró”, “Santos Dummont gave wings to humans” and “reading Gil Vicente and Camões”, the work is exchanged for the author.
“Drinking 5 bottles of water” is the replacement of the content by the continent. Finally, “not withstanding rudeness” is the exchange of the concrete for the abstract, because the interlocutor cannot support it is someone else with rude acts.
Continue on our blog and learn more figures of speech.
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