Synecdoche

Synecdoche (/[invalid input: 'icon']sɪˈnɛkdəkiː/, si-NEK-də-kee; from Greek synekdoche (συνεκδοχή), meaning "simultaneous understanding", is a figure of speech^[1] in which a term is used in one of the following ways:

Part of something is used to refer to the whole thing (pars pro toto), or
A thing (a "whole") is used to refer to part of it (totum pro parte), or
A specific class of thing is used to refer to a larger, more general class, or
A general class of thing is used to refer to a smaller, more specific class, or
A material is used to refer to an object composed of that material, or
A container is used to refer to its contents.

Similar figures of speech

Synecdoche is closely related to metonymy (the figure of speech in which a term denoting one thing is used to refer to a related thing); indeed, synecdoche is sometimes considered a subclass of metonymy. It is more distantly related to other figures of speech, such as metaphor.

More rigorously, metonymy and synecdoche may be considered as sub-species of metaphor, intending metaphor as a type of conceptual substitution (as Quintilian does in Institutio oratoria Book VIII). In Lanham's Handlist of Rhetorical Terms,^[2] the three terms have somewhat restrictive definitions, arguably in tune with a certain interpretation of their etymologies from Greek:

metaphor: changing a word from its literal meaning to one not properly applicable but analogous to it; assertion of identity rather than, as with simile, likeness.
metonymy: substitution of cause for effect, proper name for one of its qualities, etc.
synecdoche: substitution of a part for whole, species for genus, etc.

Etymology

The word "synecdoche" is derived from the Greek word συνεκδοχή, from the prepositions συν- + εκ- and the verb δέχομαι (= "I accept"), originally meaning accepting a part as responsible for the whole, or vice versa.

Use

The use of synecdoche is a common way to emphasize an important aspect of a fictional character; for example, a character might be consistently described by a single body part, such as the eyes, which come to represent the character. This is often used when the main character does not know or care about the names^[clarify] of the characters to whom he is referring^{[clarification needed the main character referring? does this refer to first person narrative??]}. An example of this would be the The X-Files character Cigarette-Smoking Man.

Also, sonnets and other forms of love poetry frequently use synecdoches to characterize the beloved in terms of individual body parts rather than a whole, coherent self. This practice is especially common in the Petrarchan sonnet, where the idealised beloved is often described part by part, from head to toe.

Examples

A part referring to the whole

Referring to people according to a single characteristic: "the gray beard" representing an older man or "the long hair" representing a hippie. This leads to bahuvrihi compounds.
Describing a complete vehicle as "wheels"
Calling workers "hands", e.g. Many hands make light work; All hands on deck!
Describing a small portable radio as a "transistor" or a CRT-based television receiver as "the tube"
Historical: The Kingdom of Sardinia in the 19th century was commonly referred to as Savoy because its ruling house was from Savoy. The Soviet Union was commonly referred to by its largest and most well-known member, Russia. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia later named Serbia and Montenegro was commonly referred to by its largest constituent republic, Serbia.
Use of the names England (only one of the four constituent nations) or Great Britain (the geographical name of the main island) to mean the entire United Kingdom.
Use of Holland, a region of the Netherlands, to refer to the entire country.
Referring to a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) system image as a "thin client".

The name for a whole when used to describe one part of it

Use of America to indicate only the United States.

A general class name used to denote a specific member of that or an associated class

"the good book," or "The Book" for the Bible
"truck" for any four-wheel drive vehicle (as well as long-haul trailers, etc.)
"He's good people." [Here, the word "people" is used to denote a specific instance of people, e.g., a person. So the sentence would be interpreted as "He's a good person.")

A specific class name used to refer to a general set of associated things

"John Hancock" for the signature of any person
a genericized trademark, for example "Coke" for any variety of cola, "Band-Aid" for any variety of adhesive bandage, or "Styrofoam" for any product made of expanded polystyrene.
"bug" for any kind of insect or arachnid, even if it is not a true bug

The material that a thing is (actually, historically, or supposedly) made of referring to that thing

"glasses" for spectacles
"steel" for a sword
"strings" for guitar "Do you play the 6 String?"
"tin" for a container made with tin plating
"willow" for a cricket bat or "pigskin" for an American or Canadian football
"wood" for a type of club used in the sport of golf
"irons" for shackles placed around a prisoner's wrists or ankles to restrict his movement
"plastic" for a credit card (asking a merchant) Do you take plastic?
"lead" for bullets (e.g. They pumped him full of lead.)
"silver" for flatware or other dishes that were once made of silver metal
"rubber" for a condom
"threads" for clothing Yo, check out my new threads!
"flint" (the sparking bit in a lighter) for ferrocerium (which is not made of flint)

A container is used to refer to its contents

"barrel" for a barrel of oil
"keg" for a keg of beer
"he drank the cup", to refer to his drinking of the cup's contents

References

^ Synecdoche - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
^ Lanham, Richard A (1991). A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms: A Guide for Students of English Literature, Second Edition. Berkeley/Los Angeles/London: California University Press. p. 189. ISBN 0-520-07669-9.

External links

Synecdoche from Silva Rhetoricæ: The Forest of Rhetoric

[m-w-1] Synecdoche - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

[2] Lanham, Richard A (1991). A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms: A Guide for Students of English Literature, Second Edition. Berkeley/Los Angeles/London: California University Press. p. 189. ISBN 0-520-07669-9.

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