| prosopopeia |
| Definition - A figure of speech where you claim to be saying the words that an absent or imaginary person would have said. |
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Example - You know what Quintilian would say if he were here. I'll tell ya. He'd say: "That ain't no rhetorical question, buddy." It sure as hell ain't. |
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Etymology - The word derives from the Greek prosopopoiia, the putting of speeches into the mouths of others (from prosopon, dramatic character). |
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Oxford English Dictionary - Its first citation is from 1561: "We understand these things to be spoken by a figure called Prosopopeia: that is, by the fayning of a person." (J. Daus tr. Bullinger on Apoc. (1573) 91) |
