Alliteration
the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of closely connected words Ex: "But a better butter makes a batter better
Allegory
a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one
Allusion
n expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference. Ex: "'Hey! Guess who the new Newton of our school is?
Analogy
a similarity between like features of two things, on which a comparison is based Ex: "Just as a sword is the weapon of a warrior, a pen is the weapon of a writer.
Anaphora
The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses.
ex: "My life is my purpose. My life is my goal. My life is my inspiration.
Anecdote
a short and interesting story or an amusing event often proposed to support or demonstrate some point and make readers and listeners laugh.
Antithesis
a rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect.
Ex: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" Dumbledore and Voldemort
Apostrophe
a figure of speech sometimes represented by exclamation "O". A writer or a speaker, using an apostrophe, detaches himself from the reality and addresses an imaginary character in his speech.
Ex: "Is this a dagger which I see before me,
The handle toward m
Appositive
a noun or word followed by another noun or phrase that renames or identifies it-This is a literary device that appears before or after a noun or noun phrase. It is always used with commas.
Ex: "Christmas Eve afternoon we scrape together a nickel and go to
Archetype
a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, an imitation of an original thing, an obvious example
Ex. The innocent youth
Assonance
the repetition of a sound or vowel
Ex. We light fire on the mountain
Blank Verse
Un-rhyming verse, most often written in Iambic pentameter
Caesura
a pause in a line of poetry that is formed by the rhythms of natural speech rather than by metrics. A caesura will usually occur near the middle of a poetic line.
Connotation
an idea or feeling that a word invokes in addition to its literal or primary meaning
Consanoance
repetitive sounds produced by consonants within a sentence or phrase. It often takes place in quick succession. In contrast to alliteration, consonance involves repetition of consonant sounds only.
Ex. She ate seven sandwiches on a sunny Sunday.
Couplet
having two successive rhyming lines in a verse and has the same meter to form a complete thought. It is marked by a usual rhythm, rhyme scheme and incorporation of specific utterances.
ex. "Then share thy pain, allow that sad relief; � Ah, more than share
Denotation
the dictionary definition
Diction
style of speaking/writing, choice and use of words in speaking or writing, enunciation
ex. The actor's diction was so bad it was impossible to understand the speech.
End-stopped line
a poetic device in which a pause comes at the end of a syntactic unit (sentence, clause or phrase); this pause can be expressed in writing as a punctuation mark such as a colon, semi-colon, period or full stop.
Enjambment
a thought or sense, phrase or clause in a line of poetry that does not come to an end at the line break but moves over to the next line
Euphony
opposite of cacophony-sweet sounding syllables
Euphemism
refers to polite, indirect expressions which replace words and phrases considered harsh and impolite or which suggest something unpleasant.
ex. "You aren't poor, you are economically disadvantaged
Figurative language
using figures of speech to be more effective, persuasive and impactful
ex. metaphors, smilies, etc...
Foreshadowing
a literary device in which a writer gives an advance hint of what is to come later in the story.
Foil
a character that shows qualities that are in contrast with the qualities of another character with the objective to highlight the traits
ex. Benevoleo and Mercutio
Hubris
extreme pride and arrogance shown by a character that ultimately brings about his downfall
Hyperbole
a figure of speech, which involves an exaggeration of ideas for the sake of emphasis
ex. "I have a TON of homework
Iamb/Iambic
An iamb is a foot (a beat) of an unaccented and/or short syllable followed by an accented and/or long syllable
ex. Shall I compare thee to a summer's day (Sonnet 18)
Imagery
the use of figurative and/or descriptive language to represent objects, actions and ideas in such a way that it appeals to one's physical senses.
Irony
the use of words in such a way that their literal meaning differs from their intended meaning
Juxtaposition
a literary technique in which two or more ideas, places, characters and their actions are placed side by side (usually in a narrative or poem) for the purpose of developing comparisons and contrasts which can show irony, humor, sadness, etc....
ex. beauty
Extended Metaphor
a comparison between two unlike things that continues throughout a series of sentences in a paragraph or lines in a poem.
Explicit Metaphor
a metaphor that is fully explained in great detail.
Implicit Metaphor
a type of metaphor that compares two unlike things, but it does so without mentioning one of them. Instead, it implies the comparison by using a word or phrase that describes the unmentioned term and makes the comparison in that way.(ex.:Tony tucked his t
First person
a point of view (who is telling a story) where the story is narrated by one character at a time. This character may be speaking about him or herself or sharing events that he or she is experiencing
ex. "And I like large parties. They're so intimate. At sm
Second Person
a narrative mode in which the protagonist or another main character is referred to by second-person personal pronouns and other kinds of addressing forms, for example "you."
ex. "My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you
Third person
a story told in the third person, i.e. without using "I" or "we": "he did that, they did something else." In other words, the voice of the telling appears to be akin to that of the author him or herself.
ex."He is just what a young man ought to be," said
Third person omnicient
the narrator knows all the thoughts and feelings of all the characters in the story. When writing in third person omniscient, the author will move from character to character, allowing the events to be interpreted by several different voices, but always m
Limited third person
he narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of one character. All characters are described using pronouns, such as 'they,' 'he,' and 'she.' But, one character is closely followed throughout the story, and it is typically a main character.
Ode
a poem in which a person expresses a strong feeling of love or respect for someone or something
Onomatopoeia
the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named
ex. bang, snap, wham, buzz
Oxymoron
a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction
ex. jumbo shrimp,
Paradox
a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory
ex. the man was foolishly wise
Parallelism
the use of successive verbal constructions in poetry or prose that correspond in grammatical structure, sound, meter, meaning, etc.
ex. comparing two similar ideas
Personifacation
is a figure of speech where human qualities are given to animals, objects or ideas. It is the opposite of a metaphor but is very similar.
ex: "the Sun smiled at us
Prose
written or spoken language in its ordinary form, without metrical structure.
Pun
a form of word play that suggests two or more meanings, by exploiting multiple meanings of words, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect.
Romanticism
style of art, literature, etc., during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries that emphasized the imagination and emotions
Setting
In literature, the word 'setting' is used to identify and establish the time, place and mood of the events of the story. It basically helps in establishing where and when and under what circumstances the story is taking place.
Similie
a figure of speech that makes a comparison, showing similarities between two different things using like or as.
Sonnet
is a poem of fourteen lines, usually in iambic pentameter, that has one of two regular rhyme schemes
Synecdoche
When a part is used to represent a whole or a whole is used to represent a part. Example: He tread the boards. (Boards for Floor, part for whole) The seas towered. Syn
Syntax/syllabe
The words and phrases surrounding a word or phrase. Words or phrases which the indicated word or phrase directly interacts with, acts upon, or references.
Symbol
An object or a sign that represents something else. Examples: a cross represents Christianity or the letters Ag represent silve
Tone
The attitude that a writer wants to convey to the audience often through word choice. Example: When something happy happens people use a cheerful tone of voice.
Quatrain
A four-line stanza