figurative language in hamlet, cousin

Figurative language is the description of something comparing it to something else. It is the opposite of literal language and is usually used to describe traits about a character or setting. For example, in Hamlet, when the ghost is talking to Hamlet, he uses figurative language: "Make thy two eyes, like stars, start from their spheres, thy knotted and combined locks to part and each particular hair to stand an end, like quills upon the fretful porpentine" (17, Act 1 Scene 5). The ghost uses many similes and metaphors while describing Hamlet's eyes and hair. He describes his eyes like stars and his hair like the pins of a porcupine. This use of figurative language exaggerates his features while describing them at the same time.