ELA literature devices Flashcards
Alliteration
when a series of words begins with the same consonant sound
In the beginning
Krispy Kreme, Dunkin’ Donuts, Lulu Lemon
Allusion
An indirect message to a person, place, or event
*Your nose is growing
Anaphora
To avoid repetition/repeating with another phrase
You’re damned if you do and your damned if you don’t.
I have a dream speach
Assonance
Repetition of a sound/vowel in the middle of words
No pain no gain
We took the train to Spain in the rain. It was crazy we saw famous people.
Aside
A private interview with one person talking to the audience.
Happens in plays
*
Dance Moms when they were interviewed
Conflict
A problem or obstacle for the protagonist.
When Paige broke her foot and couldn’t dance for 2 months.
Diction
Choice of vocab in writing (Word choice)
*
Eyes piercing my skull ( More moody spooky effect)
Exposition (of a story)
Background information before the story Beginning of the story
*They all were dancers and introduced before they got into the show.
Figurative language
Communication that does not use its realistic meaning.
Metaphors, symbole, simile, allusion, personification
They fought like cats and dogs.
OMG im gonna kill her if she does not give me her last bag of doritos
Foreshadowing
A heads up before something happens.
In clips it shows Cathy walking to Abby before the argument happens.
Hyperbole
Exaggerated statements
Abby exaggerates how bad they are, saying “you’re the worst dancer who lived”.
Irony
Calling something out on something that you also do.
Abby called someone fat when she was fat.
Juxtaposition
When an author places/positions 2 places next to each other to show how they are similar or different.
*Like day and night being positioned next to each other.
Metaphor
Atmosphere of the story
When Abby is screaming at everyone it brings everyone to a quite tense mood.
I felt her eyes at the back of my head neutral
Her eyes were piercing my skull not neutral
Motif
A repeated element with symbolic significance
Comes up over and over again
*To lead you to the theme
Nothing gold can stay
Onomatopoeia
Creating words to imitate a sound.
Boom, crack, crunch, sizzle
Paradox
When something seems to be absurd or contradictory but when you think about it it makes a lot of sense.
*”You have to spend money to make money”
Like investing in stocks
Parallelism (aka Parallel Structure)
Sameness with verb tense
The students brushed their teeth, packed their bag and caught the bus.
Personification
Giving non-human things a human trait.
The birds were singing in the tree.
Protagonist
Main character in a story.
Cinderella is the main character of Cinderella.
Pun
A joke with different meanings.
A bike can’t stand on its own because it’s two tired.
Simile
Comparing things using the words like or as.
The grass is as green as a cucumber.
Syntax
Sentence structure
Declarative Simple compound
Complex
Compound complex
. Symbol
Something like an object person or situation that has a literal meaning in a story.
Black representing evil
Pumpkin= halloween
Dove=Peace
13=Luck/Unlock
