A transferred epithet is popularly known as a/an ........

Assessment: JAMB UTME - Literature In English - 2019 Subject: Literature In English

Question 1 Report

A transferred epithet is popularly known as a/an ........

Answer Details
A transferred epithet is popularly known as a "hypallage". A hypallage is a figure of speech in which an adjective or a modifier is grammatically associated with a word other than the one it actually modifies, creating an effect of syntactic inversion. In other words, a hypallage is when an adjective or descriptive word is applied to a different noun than the one it grammatically belongs to. For example, in the phrase "a sleepless night", the adjective "sleepless" is transferred from the person who is supposed to be sleepless to the night itself, which is inanimate and cannot literally experience sleeplessness. However, the phrase makes sense because it conveys the idea that the night feels long and restless. Transferred epithets are often used in literature and poetry to create vivid and striking imagery or to convey complex emotions and ideas.

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