Read the following lines and answer the question that follows by choosing the correct option :
'My father lived at Blenheim then,
Yon little stream hard by;
They burnt his dwelling to the ground,
And he was forced to fly;
So with his wife and child he fled,
Nor had he where to rest his head.
'With fire and sword the country round
Was wasted far and wide,
And many a childing mother then,
And new-born baby died;
But things like that, you know, must be
At every famous victory.
Point out the figure of speech used in the following line "And he was forced to fly".
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Alliteration
Alliteration:
- Alliteration is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words that are close together.
- It adds rhythm and music to a line.
- This line: "And he was forced to fly" repeats the "f" sound in "forced" and "fly".
Example: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: Personification — Incorrect. Personification gives human qualities to a thing or an idea; the line speaks of a real man, so nothing is personified.
Example: The wind whispered through the trees.
Option 3: Oxymoron — Incorrect. An oxymoron puts two opposite words side by side; the line has no such pair.
Example: There was a deafening silence in the hall.
Option 4: Simile — Incorrect. A simile compares two things using "like" or "as"; the line makes no comparison.
Example: She is as busy as a bee.
Contrast: alliteration repeats the same opening sound ("forced to fly"); a simile compares with "like" or "as"; personification gives human qualities to a thing.