1、移就为Transferred Epithet or Hypallage.Hypallage一词源于希腊语的hypallassein,hypo意为under,allassein意为change,所以,修饰语移置其实质在于修饰语位置的变化,其变化特点是“张冠李戴”。因此来自于A Dictionary of Literary Term的定义是这样的:“Also known as transferred epithet.A figure of speech in which the epithet is transferred from the appropriate noun to modify another which it does not really belong.”简言之,就是把本不属于乙的修饰语硬从他所属的甲那儿移给乙。
2、移就大致分为移人于物和移物于人两种。第一种“移人于物”,例如:Sometimes they threw (him) bits of food,and got scant thanks;sometimes a mischievous pebble,and a shower of stones and abuses.(有时候,人们朝他扔去零碎食物,却很少听到任何感谢;有时,人们恶作剧似地扔去块石子,得到的回报却是暴风骤雨般的石头和谩骂。)mischievous本来是用于形容人的“恶作剧的、淘气的”,在此句中硬来修饰pebble,实际上修饰的是扔石子的人,让人不禁感到生动、形象。
His stories achieved nothing but cheap laughs.(他的故事仅仅赚得了一点儿廉价的笑声。)在此句中,用于修饰抽象事物的形容词cheap被移用来修饰具体的事物laugh(laugh本来是一种具体情感,不能用cheap or expensive来形容),强有力地讽刺了他的故事的庸俗和低级。