A pleonasm is a figure of speech.
Pleonasm is a Greek concept derived from pleonasmus that is used in our language to name a type of rhetorical figure . This consists of the use of terms that reinforce what is said in an expression but do not add valuable information since, without them, the phrase would be understood the same.
In other words , pleonasm involves adding certain concepts to an expression that are not essential for it to be understood, but that can help emphasize what is expressed. For example: "Go outside immediately!" , "When I'm sad, I go upstairs and lock myself in the attic," "The manager is nothing more than a mute who doesn't speak."
Usefulness of pleonasm
Although useful for expressiveness, pleonasm can also be considered a defect or failure of language . Redundancy implies a repetition of content based on the addition of data that is not necessary, so it should be omitted.
Returning to the previous examples, when the verb "exit" is used, it is not necessary to clarify that the end of the journey is "outside" , since it is impossible to "exit inside" . In a similar sense , it must be said that you cannot "go up" below. On the other hand, detailing that a "mute" is incapable of "speaking" is also redundant.
The expression "I saw with my own eyes how the criminal shot the victim" is a pleonasm (you cannot "see" with another person's eyes), although the redundancy can be accepted as a way of highlighting that the individual was a direct witness of the event in question. The phrase "We need a fair Justice" , on the other hand, also constitutes a common pleonasm: although logic indicates that Justice is "fair" , the Judiciary is not always so.
In this way, it is easy to distinguish between pleonasm that occurs as a consequence of misuse of language and that which is intentionally created with the desire to highlight an idea. In the hands of a skilled writer, this figure of rhetoric can embellish a work, underline certain concepts before leaving them and changing the subject, squeeze the maximum meaning out of a word; In everyday speech, when it constitutes an error, it does nothing other than dirty the language and impoverish communication.
Pleonasm can be considered a language defect,
Incorrect use
It should be noted that, although there are certain pleonasms that we can easily notice in popular language and that are often a source of ridicule (as occurs with the aforementioned "go out" and "climb up" ), it is difficult to declare oneself innocent of incorrect use. of this figure; Let's look at some expressions that unnecessarily combine concepts and that most Spanish-speaking people often use in oral communication: "come here" ; "shut your mouth" «future plans» ; "fly through the air" ; "prior appointment" .
As can be seen, these are not buildings with an incorrect or uncultured appearance; However, once analyzed, all of them are redundant. This does not mean that we should stop using them, since language is not an equation with a single result; On the contrary, it is flexible and adapts to the needs of its speakers, and its most captivating aspect often lies in its contradictions.
Pleonasm and oxymoron
The oxymoron is the literary figure that complements pleonasm, since it is based on the use of two concepts that are opposed in meaning to construct an expression that gives rise to a new concept. At first glance, an oxymoron presents an absurd idea that must be interpreted in an unobvious way, like a metaphor.
Let's look at some examples: "dress me slowly because I'm in a hurry" , "dreadful pleasures and horrendous sweetnesses" , "love is blind sight" , "eternal moment" .