Antonomasia

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In rhetoric, antonomasia is a substitution of any epithet or phrase for a proper name, such as "the little corporal" for Napoleon I. The reverse process is also sometimes called antonomasia. The word derives from the Greek word antonomazein meaning "to name differently". Antonomasia is a particular form of metonymy.

The name used to substitute an abstract notion or or personal trait is commonly called archetype or, more specifically, archetypal name.

A frequent instance of antonomasia in the Late Middle Ages and early Renaissance was the use of the term, "the Philosopher," to refer to Aristotle. A more recent example of the other form of antonomasia (usage of archetypes) was the use of "Solons" for "the legislators" in 1930s journalism, after the semi-legendary Solon, lawgiver of Athens.

Examples

• "Pelides" or "the son of Peleus" for Achilles.
• "The Stagirite" for Aristotle.
• "The little corporal" for Napoleon I.
• "Macedonia's madman" for Alexander the Great.
• "the author of Paradise Lost" for Milton.
• "The Commentator" for Averroes (so named for his commentaries on "The Philosopher" Aristotle's works)
• "The Iron Duke" for the Duke of Wellington.
• "The Bard" for William Shakespeare.
• "The Magpies" for Newcastle United.
• "Old Blue Eyes" for Frank Sinatra.
• "The Scottish play" for Macbeth.
• "The Gipper", "The Great Communicator" for Ronald Reagan.
• "The King" for Elvis Presley.

See "archetypal name" for examples of the opposite kind of antonomasia.

See also

• Eponym

References

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Last updated on Thursday March 06, 2008 at 09:17:56 PST (GMT -0800)
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