Ministry of higher education, science and innovation of the republic of uzbekistan national university of uzbekistan

3.2 The usage and translation of synecdoche in the poetic texts 
Synecdoche is a figure of speech in which a “part” of something is used to 
represent its “whole.” With a synecdoche, one word is used to replace a longer 
phrase with the same meaning. It can also refer to the reverse, in which a “whole” 
is used to replace a “part,” although this is far less common. This figure of speech 
has been used throughout a wide variety of genres and styles of writing. It can be a 
part of colloquialisms, idioms, and various slang terms. This means that it’s easily 
used in everyday conversations as well as in more formal writing. One of the most 
commonly cited examples of synecdoche is the phrase “All hands on deck” in 
which “hands” stands in for the people on a ship. 
A synecdoche occurs when one part of something is used instead of its 
whole. This might refer to an object being described through its materials, a 
container and what it holds, (for example, “I’m having a glass” rather than “I’m 
having a drink”) and the items in a category. The word originates from the Greek 
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Ledger G. R.: http://www pushkins poems.com 

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phrases “synekdochē” meaning “to sense” and “ekdechesthai” meaning “to 
understand.” 
Types of Synecdoche – there are two types of synecdoche: 
Microcosm: a smaller part represents a larger whole. For example, referring 
to one’s car as their “wheels.”
Macrocosm: a larger whole represents a smaller part or parts. For example, 
refer to “the government’s plans” when the plans were really created by a smaller 
group of people. 
Examples of Synecdoche in Literature:
“The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot
In what is perhaps’s Eliot’s best-known poem ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred 
Prufrock,’ there are several interesting examples of synecdoche. Throughout the 
poem, he uses stream of consciousness to convey his speaker’s experiences. The 
interior monologue follows a city-dwelling man who is overcome with feelings of 
isolation and indecisiveness. Here are a few lines from the poem that demonstrate 
how a writer might use synecdoche to their advantage: 
There will be time, there will be time 
To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet; 
There will be time to murder and create, 
And time for all the works and days of hands 
That lift and drop a question on your plate; 
In these lines, readers can see clear examples of synecdoche with the phrase 
“a face to meet the faces that you meet” and “all the works and days of hands.” By 
speaking about people in this way, Eliot makes it clear that Prufrock has serious 
trouble connecting with others. He is plagued by his own insecurities. 
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Eliot goes on, continuing the poem with these lines and another example of 
synecdoche:
I know the voices dying with a dying fall 
Beneath the music from a farther room. 
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Koptilov V. Pershotvir and translation [Text]. – Kyiv: Dnipro, 1972. P. 213. 

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The word “voices” is yet another way for the speaker to refer to other people 
by their parts. Just as “hands” and “faces” are parts of human beings, so too are 
their voices. These are examples of microcosmic synecdoche. 
Let’s consider and analyze the poem called “I heard a Fly buzz-when I died” 
by Emily Dickinson. In Dickinson’s poem, ‘I heard a Fly buzz-when I died,’ the 
poet uses synecdoche in the second stanza. Here are a few lines from that section 
of the poem:
The Eyes around – had wrung them dry – 
And Breaths were gathering firm 
For that last Onset – when the King 
Be witnessed – in the Room – 
In these lines, Dickinson uses the phrase “The Eyes around” as a way of 
describing the mourners around the deathbed. Of course, they aren’t just “eyes,” 
they are entire people. She uses a microcosmic synecdoche to make the imagery 
more interesting. There are other connections back to this image of “eyes” 
throughout the rest of the poem. Including words like “witnessed” and the final 
line “I could not see to see.” She encourages the reader to consider what’s being 
seen and what’s not being seen in this poem through the emphasis on eyes.
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Hamlet by William Shakespeare 
In Hamlet, readers can find many good examples of different literary 
devices. In the following passage, Shakespeare uses synecdoche to emphasize what 
Claudius has done: 
‘Tis given out that, sleeping in my orchard, 
A serpent stung me; so the whole ear of Denmark 
Is by a forged process of my death 
Rankly abused: but know, thou noble youth, 
The serpent that did sting thy father’s life 
Now wears his crown 
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Etkind E. Poetry and translation. – M., 1963. 

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The line “the whole ear of Denmark,” is used to refer to the larger lie that the 
people of Denmark have been exposed to. The population has been misinformed in 
regard to what happened to the former king and now Hamlet is learning the truth 
by listening to the ghost’s story. 
Synecdoche and metonymy are similar literary devices and are often 
confused with one another. The first is a figure of speech and has to be connected 
to a relationship between a part and a whole, or vice versa. A metonymy, on the 
other hand, refers to two words that are closely linked. They don’t have to be