general literary techniques

Question 1

allusion

Answer 1

When a reference is made to a text, event, person, or place. By alluding to one of these, the writer relies on the reader’s contextual knowledge and makes an implicit comparison between what is presented and what is known. You can have specific types of allusions, such as biblical, classical, or literary ones.

Question 2

analogy

Answer 2

When two unrelated objects are compared for their shared qualities so as to make a rational argument.

Question 3

anaphora

Answer 3

The repetition of the same word or phrase in a succession of phrases or sentences.

Question 4

aposiopesis

Answer 4

when a sentence is purposefully left incomplete or cut off. It’s caused by an inability or unwillingness to continue speaking. This allows the ending to be filled in by the listener’s imagination. In order to show aposiopesis in a sentence, one may use the em dash (–) or ellipsis (…).

Question 5

colloquialism

Answer 5

A kind of expression of grammar that is associated with ordinary, everyday speech rather than formal language.

Question 6

conjunction

Answer 6

Words used to connect words, phrases, and clauses. A contrasting conjunction (such as ‘but’) can indicate a tonal shift, especially if it is at the start of a sentence

Question 7

connotation

Answer 7

A word’s connotation is the aura of emotion that is associated with the word through personal experience. Essentially, it’s what you think of or feel when someone says that word

Question 8

denotation

Answer 8

The literal, factual meaning of a word.

Question 9

diction

Answer 9

Word choice.

Question 10

direct speech

Answer 10

Also known as dialogue. It’s opposite would be indirect speech, where the writer summarises what the character says for the reader.

Question 11

double entendre

Answer 11

Something that has two meanings on purpose, one that typically has sexual connotations. It is similar to a pun, but does not have to be sexual.

Question 12

ellipsis

Answer 12

Three full stops to indicate an omission of information or trailing off in the middle of saying something.

Question 13

epistrophe

Answer 13

The opposite of anaphora - where a certain phrase or words is repeated at the end of sentences that follow each other. This creates a rhythm while emphasising the repeated phrase.

Question 14

expletive

Answer 14

Swear words

Question 15

euphemism

Answer 15

A word or phrase that makes something sound better than it actually is.

Question 16

hyperbole

Answer 16

Exaggeration for effect.

Question 17

hypophora

Answer 17

When you ask a question, then answer it.

Question 18

imagery

Answer 18

How the writer conjures up the senses in your head. There are five types of imagery:
● Visual: what you see
● Auditory: what you hear
● Olfactory: what you smell
● Tactile: what you touch
● Gustatory: what you taste

Question 19

imperative

Answer 19

‘Bossy verbs’, commanding someone/something.

Question 20

irony

Answer 20

A device which states something that is in discordance with what is expected.

Question 21

jargon

Answer 21

The special technique language of any trade, profession, branch, or scholarship. It may be used for the purpose of obfuscation.

Question 22

juxtaposition

Answer 22

The placement of two opposite ideas in close proximity. These ideas can be expressed through words or images and is often used to draw our attention to an inherent tension or conflict.

Question 23

listing

Answer 23

Can be asyndetic (where the items are separated by commas) or syndetic (when they are separated by ‘and’)

Question 24

litote

Answer 24

An understatement for effect.

Question 25

metanoia

Answer 25

Self-correction, where a writer or speaker deliberately goes back and modifies a statement that they just made, usually either to strengthen it or soften it.

Question 26

motif

Answer 26

A repeated symbolic image or idea. Motifs can be symbols, sounds, actions, ideas, or words.

Question 27

onomatopoeia

Answer 27

Language that sounds like what it literally means - for example, ‘hiss’. If something is not quite onomatopoeia, say ‘onomatopoeic’.

Question 28

oxymoron

Answer 28

When two contradictory words are combined. If you are not sure if it is an actual oxymoron, call it ‘oxymoronic’.

Question 29

paradox

Answer 29

A statement that on the surface appears to make no sense

Question 30

personification

Answer 30

Attributing human qualities to something that is not human.

Question 31

semantic field

Answer 31

A group of words that are related or analogous in meaning.

Question 32

synecdoche

Answer 32

When you refer to an entity by one of its parts. For example, calling your car your ‘wheels’.

Question 33

syntax

Answer 33

The order of words.

Question 34

analepsis

Answer 34

Flashback

Question 35

prolepsis

Answer 35

Flashforward

Question 36

caesura

Answer 36

A pause within a line of verse, indicated by a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark, which does not conform to the metrical pattern.

Question 37

exposition

Answer 37

The opening of a story in which the characters, setting, and basic information is produced.

Question 38

foreshadowing

Answer 38

The act of providing vague advance indications or warnings of what is to come.

Question 39

idiom

Answer 39

A figure of speech, something thats meaning cannot be conveyed by the meaning of the words in it. E.g: over the moon, see the light, spill the beans.

Question 40

pathetic fallacy

Answer 40

When the natural world represents the mood of the story.