An extravagant statement; the use of exaggerated terms for the purpose of emphasis or heightened effect.

H.L. Mencken's attack on American architecture in "The Libido for the Ugly" endures as a powerful exercise in hyperbole and invective.

These excerpts from essays, short stories, and novels published over the past century illustrate some of the key stylistic traits of their well-known authors.

Though there are hundreds of figures of speech (many of them included in our Tool Kit for Rhetorical Analysis), here we'll focus on just 20 of the most common figures.

Derived from the Greek word for "abuse," the rhetorical device of bdelygmia is a form of invective: an exuberant rant, a litany of disparaging remarks, a string of stinging criticisms.

Let It All Out--with Bdelygmia

These excerpts from essays, short stories, autobiographies, and novels published over the past century illustrate some of the key stylistic traits of their well-known authors.

As you read these excerpts from a column composed in the mid-1980s, decide for yourself whether Dave Barry may still be telling the truth even when he is making things up.

A Scrapbook of Styles

These excerpts from essays, short stories, autobiographies, and novels published over the past century illustrate some of the key stylistic traits of their well-known authors.