Understatement

Understatement (English understatement ) is a stylistic device that is used in rhetoric and other fields. It includes a weakening a statement.

Rhetoric

An understatement often meets with a litotes in the composite. The general contrast in the rhetoric is the exaggeration ( hyperbole ).

In English-speaking

In the English -speaking world is meant by " understatement " in particular, to express themselves less dramatic than one might expect in view of dramatic situations.

Extreme understatement is also in the English humor, among other things, the group Monty Python are used. Example: Being in a scene from The Meaning of Life at a dinner party the allegorical death (. Reaper, English "Grim Reaper ") appears to bring all the guests commented on one of the guests dryly: " Well, that 's cast rather a gloom over the evening, has not it " ( German :" Well, this has brought a bit of gloom in the evening, or "? ).

In the film The Trouble with Harry is, according to François Truffaut, speaking from a corpse as if it were a pack of cigarettes. Hitchcock commented, " I am amused by nothing more than the comedy of understatement. "

Not quite sure historically accurate, but very famous is the greeting between Henry Morton Stanley and David Livingstone. Stanley found Livingstone, who was considered lost since 1869, after an eight-month and over 11,000 kilometers through Central Africa 's leading search expedition on November 10, 1871 in Ujiji and spoke to him with the phrase: " Dr. Livingstone, I presume? " ( " Dr. Livingstone, I presume? " )

Also in the journalism of the English -speaking world, such as the style of the BBC, understatement is found. An example from the Journalism: The Egyptian foreign minister commented in an interview with the BBC World Service in 2006, the civil war -like conditions in Iraq as follows: " I think there's a problem in between Shias and Sunnis ." (English: "I think there is a problem between the Shiites and the Sunnis .")

Other Areas

In the personal life use understatement for example, means to renounce outwardly to certain status symbols that would have been more expected of the population but the view. The British heir to the throne, Prince William, was, for example, after passing the driving test a VW Golf instead of a luxury car given. With this attitude, among other things documented that you can not so important takes itself and you 'd rather be than overestimated. Generally, the stoic composure is associated as a trait of the English with the English understatement.

Understatement is culturally determined and is associated with a different understanding of power. Thus, according to Geert Hofstede in regions understatement tend not to meet with eg high power distance. These countries include, for example, Russia and the Arab Emirates. There a lot of emphasis is placed on the social rank to document to the outside world (eg through status symbols).

In the art of acting understatement is often used in order to focus the audience's attention in a particular scene especially. See sub- games.

Also, the term understatement is often used in the design of advertising and marketing. Companies that put in their public relations understatement waive, on superficial effects or on-trend styles.