Hyperbole, Exaggeration, and Irony · 5 July 2025
Is there such a thing as a lie in writing?
Writers use literary devices called hyperbole, exaggeration, or irony, but they all come down to the same thing. Lying. You are not really saying what you mean. Which is the definition of a lie. But what about hyperbole, exaggeration, and irony? Are they really lies? Or do we use those writing devices to communicate more clearly? Even when we might be saying the opposite of what we mean.
Now, I never use hyperbole. I mean it is ridiculous to go to the nth degree. Think about it. If I just stick to the facts, I am much better off. And the message is clear. No hyperbole needed. Ever. Right?
I think the worst hyperbole used today is when people say, “literally” when they obviously cannot literally mean literally. I actually do hate that. No exaggeration. No hyperbole. I think it is the worst (or nearly the worst) thing that young people could have done to such a nice word. Saying, “literally” after everything that you want to emphasize? Quite the hyperbole. Quite unnecessary. Sheesh.
I suppose that exaggeration is not necessarily something that I really need to cover since hyperbole is just exaggeration to the nth degree. You cannot exaggerate something more than hyperbole. At least not that I know of. And if you did not catch it, the very first thing that I said (in the third paragraph) was that I never use hyperbole. Which is hyperbole. Period. Always and never are always exaggeration. They are always hyperbole. Except when they are not. Which is rare enough. So we literally should never use “always” and “never.” Hmm.
Irony is one of my favorite literary devices. Even though I do not use it that much. At least I do not think I do. I am not really clever enough to use irony (or an iron for that matter, but that is a completely different story). I mean, saying the opposite of what you mean in such a way that people know you really mean the opposite of what you say? It seems crazy. Or at least beyond my feeble mind. I can barely say what I want to say when I say it straight forward. So using irony? I would love to, but I think it is beyond my skill set. Now, if I was Mark Twain or Samuel Clemens, I would be a master of irony and satire (which I will not address here). Those guys could write. And they were amazing at irony. (Maybe that is what I need. A pen name. Or maybe I just need to refer to myself as two people instead of one. Is that a literary device?)
Well, I think that this piece was done before it started. I do not know how to use hyperbole, exaggeration, or irony. But if I ever figure them out, maybe I could figure out if they are lies or not. After all, that is the question I started with in the first place. (But I do not think I answered it. Not one little bit.)
© 2025 Michael T. Miyoshi
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