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Hyperbole
Definition of Imagery
Imagery, in any sort of writing, refers to descriptive language that engages the human senses. For instance, the following lines from Robert Frost's poem "After Apple-Picking" contain imagery that engages... read full definition
Imagery, in any sort of writing, refers to descriptive language that engages the human senses. For instance, the following lines from Robert Frost's poem "After... read full definition
Imagery, in any sort of writing, refers to descriptive language that engages the human senses. For instance, the following lines... read full definition
Chapter 2
Explanation and Analysis—Green Velvet Lawns:
In the following passage from Chapter 2, imagery transforms the landscape into a sensory experience, allowing readers to feel its luxury and vitality through Molly’s eyes. The language blends tactile, visual, and kinetic impressions to highlight both aristocratic refinement and the natural beauty that softens it:
Green velvet lawns, bathed in sunshine, stretched away on every side into the finely wooded park; if there were divisions and ha-has between the soft sunny sweeps of grass, and the dark gloom of the forest-trees beyond, Molly did not see them; and the melting away of exquisite cultivation into the wilderness had an inexplicable charm to her.
The phrase “velvet lawns” turns grass into fabric, giving the ground a texture of luxury associated with wealth and display. “Bathed in sunshine” imbues the park with warmth, as though it were being gently washed in brilliance. The description of boundaries “melting away” animates the transition between manicured lawns and shadowy woods, making the movement from cultivation to wilderness feel fluid and alive.
These sensory layers capture the grandeur of aristocratic land, but the focus remains on Molly’s perception. She does not notice the artificial separations—walls, "ha-has" (a sort of fence), and markers of ownership—but responds instead to the seamless blending of refinement and nature. The imagery conveys her instinctive attraction to sincerity and beauty rather than to rigid hierarchies of class or property.
The effect is both enchanting and telling. For Molly, the scene is not simply about aristocratic display; it is a space where human order and natural wildness flow into one another, creating harmony. The vivid images allow readers to share in her awe, while also pointing to the novel’s larger interest in how class distinctions are both imposed and, at times, transcended by emotional experience.
