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Definition, Usage and a list of Metalepsis Examples in common speech and literature. Metalepsis is derived from a Greek word metōnymia, which means substitution or sharing.
Examples of Metalepsis. Example 1: Was this the face that launched a thousand ships and burnt the topless towers of Ilium? – Chistopher Marlowe, Doctor Faustus. The above lines from Christopher Marlowe’s “Doctor Faustus” are an example of metalepsis.
Metalepsis is an incredibly creative way to extend a metaphor, allude to a well-known saying (such as proverb, idiom, metaphor, or maxim), and create a new saying, one that feels more original. Most well-known phrases and sayings are hard to use in new and creative ways.
In narratology (and specifically in the theories of Gérard Genette) [9], a paradoxical transgression of the boundaries between narrative levels or logically distinct worlds is also called metalepsis. Perhaps the most common example of metalepsis in narrative occurs when a narrator intrudes upon another world being narrated.
There are many examples of metalepsis in Shakespeare’s works, since he multiplies metaphors and duplicates figures of speech in various guises. He works on one figure, and then moves onto the next and continues from where he started off.
Metalepsis refers to a narrative in which one level of a narrative invades or merges with another. It is normally the blend of different narrative levels, which is the world of the author and the world described in the plot with the characters.
Examples of Metalepsis: A woman trying to clean a stain on a shirt, says, "Out, out damned spot!" This is a reference to a statement by Lady Macbeth when she had "blood on her hands."
