speaker
the narrative voice of the poem
form/structure
what the poem looks like on the page (line breaks, capitalization, structure, etc.)
figurative language
A form of language use in which writers and speakers convey something other than the literal meaning of their words.
imagery
language used by poets, novelists and other writers to create pictures in the mind of the reader.
rhythm
the recurrence of accent or stress in lines of verse
rhyme
the matching of final vowel or consonant sounds in two or more words
tone
the implied attitude of a writer toward the subject and characters of work
theme
a statement about the poet's purpose, derived from the language, character, and action of the poem, and cast in the form of a generalization
caesura
a strong pause within a line of verse
enjambment
a run-on line of poetry in which logical and grammatical sense carries over from one line into the next
simile
a figure of speech involving a comparison between unlike things using like, as, or as though
metaphor
A comparison between essentially unlike things without an explicitly comparative word such as like or as.
personification
The endowment of inanimate objects or abstract concepts with animate or living qualities.
hyperbole
A figure of speech involving exaggeration
symbolism
an object or action in a literary work that represents more than itself
diction
the selection of words in a literary work-- often to convey action, reveal character, imply attitudes, identify themes, and suggest values
denotation
The dictionary definition of a word
connotation
the associations called up by a word that goes beyond its dicitionary meaning
allusion
A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance.
alliteration
The repetition of consonant sounds, especially at the beginning of words.
assonance
the repetition of similar vowel sounds in a sentence or line of poetry or prose
consonance
an identical constant sound preceded by a different vowel sound
onomatopoeia
the use of words to imitate the sounds they describe
meter
the measured pattern of rhythmic accents in poems