Scholarly record

THE FUNCTION OF SIMILE IN NEWSPAPER STYLE

Y. Petrova

Abstract

With a dizzying array of options, personalities and events in the modern world journalists seek new ways of catching the attention of potential readers and forming their opinion. Along with other stylistic devices, simile is frequently used for multiple purposes in journalism. The main aim of the research is to determine the objectives authors pursue when employing simile in political newspaper articles. The paper draws the line between the notions of logical comparison, simile and metaphor. The research is conducted by means of stylistic discourse analysis of cases of simile found in editorials borrowed from such newspapers as the Guardian, the New York Times, the Economist, and the Washington Post. A total of 50 cases of the use of simile were analyzed in terms of the role, functions and distinctive features simile has in political media discourse. The study suggests that simile adds significant value to newspaper articles, as it allows authors to make the newspaper style language vivid and evocative. Simile brings together two objects to elicit distinctions or reveal similarities, creating a powerful informative and persuasive effect. As a result, imagery brought to readers’ minds subtly evokes a strong emotional response and helps journalists bring the audience round to their viewpoint

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