Language Techniques Flashcards
Allegory
A story or narrative with two meanings; the obvious or literal meaning
that is immediately clear, and a second, usually hidden meaning.
second meaning often is a commentary on real world events orissues
Example: Many people claim Lord of the Rings is an allegory for the World
War I because it portrays war (and especially industrialisation for war
production) negatively
Alliteration
Repetition of consonants at the beginning of successive words or
within sentences/phrases to create a sense of rhythm
(as in tongue twisters, like “Peter piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”
Allusion
A subtle or passing reference to a famous event, person, place or another text,
etc. that is intended to be noticed by readers
ones
mostly you’ll see religious allusions especially Christian
Remus Lupin in Harry Potter is named for Remus of ‘Remus and
Romulus’, twins in Greek mythology who were raised by a wolf. This is a
mythological allusion that ties into his being a werewolf.
Ambiguity
When something is left to the reader’s imagination. Often this involves
the author not stating explicitly what is happening, what has been said,
etc.
The ending of Inception (Christopher Nolan) is incredibly
ambiguous. In the film audiences are shown that the main character’s
spinning top will continue to spin if he’s in a dream and topple if he’s in
reality – however the final shot cuts just as the spinner begins to wobble,
leaving audiences to wonder if he’s in reality or still dreaming.
Analogy
Uses two similar concepts or ideas to create a relationship or draw
comparisons between the two.
Often
features the phrase “is to”, though not always.
most commonly used to
prove how something is similar or use one idea to explain another
Example: “A sword is to a warrior as a pen is to a writer.”
Antithesis
Using two sentences with contradictory or contrasting meanings close
to one another, sometimes even in immediate succession.
(the two sentences are usually
designed to balance each other out through opposite connotations and then
represent a whole idea.
Antitheses often show how a character or idea may be contradictory but still
whole.)
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” (Charles
Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities).
Archetype
an immediately recognisable character, concept or
object that makes it easy for audiences to categorise them based on
what they resemble in literature.
(Character archetypes are most common, with popular ones including: the
femme fatale, the average joe, the class clown, the anti-hero, the bad boy,
etc. Most characters fit into at least one archetype.)
Example: Hagrid (Harry Potter) and Hodor (Game of Thrones) fit the ‘gentle
giant’ archetype, while Batman is the ultimate ‘lone vigilante’ archetype.
Assonance
Similar to alliteration, however in this case it is vowel sounds that are
repeated
may be at the start of words/phrases, or in the words
themselves
“A long song.” has a repeated long ‘o’ sound in the last two words
that creates assonance, however the name “Rita Skeeter” from Harry Potter
also features assonance, as the ‘i’ and ‘ee’ create the same sound.
Atmosphere
o the feeling or mood created by a place, situation or text
– it usually changes from scene to scene and is built by sensory imagery
and word choices.
This is what makes dark, stormy nights in novels feel
eerie/foreboding.
“The floorboards creaked in time with the wind whistling around
the houses’ jagged edges, and waves crashed angrily against the rocky cliffs
below. She clutched her coat tighter around her and stepped into the
flickering light of the fire.”
The process by which characters are introduced, described and then
fully formed through their choices, interactions, etc.
what makes characters feel like real people
Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games) is characterised as being
independent, resourceful, focused on survival and having poor social skills.
These traits determine how she interacts with people and makes choices, as
seen in her initially being vocal in her hatred for the Capitol, but then doing
as the Capitol tells her if it means protecting her family and surviving
Cliché
A common and/or overused expression, often found in similes and
metaphors
Example: “He ran like the wind.”
Connotations
The ideas, feelings or concepts associated with specific words,
phrases or situations that go beyond their literal meaning.
‘Beautiful’ and ‘cute’, while both describing how something is
visually appealing, have different connotations. ‘Beautiful’ creates a sense of
grace, elegance and maturity, while ‘cute’ is more associated with youth,
pettiness and the colour pink.
contrast
Any situation wherein two different or opposing things are presented
together in order to highlight their differences.
Timon and Pumbaa (The Lion King) are visually contrasting, with
Timon being small, angular and lightly coloured, while Pumbaa is large,rounded and a darker colour. This emphasises their differences and the
unlikeliness of their friendship
context
The time, place and social setting within which a text was created,
including the values of the time, the world events, major topics of
discussion, key figures, etc.
three kinds of context;
literary
(what was happening in the literary
world at the time)
historical
(what year it was and what major world events
were occurring)
personal
(who the author was, their experiences and
values).
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley explores the idea of science being
used to create life, reflecting Shelley’s own interest in science and the actual
reanimation experiments of the time period.
Dramatic Irony
Any situation wherein the audience is privy to some sort of information
that the characters do not know, building audience tension, suspense,
etc.
Romeo and Juliet uses dramatic irony to create audience tension
and emotional reactions when Romeo believes Juliet to be dead and kills
himself, as audiences know she’s actually alive and will wake up any
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