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Literary Devices Flashcards

1
Q

Allegory

A
  • Narrative (poetry or prose)
  • characters/events/setting represent deeper truths
  • deals with religious, political or personal issues
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2
Q

Alliteration

A

Ohhhh I love a lilting line of lyrical alliteraaationnn

  • The repetition of similar initial consonant sounds
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3
Q

Allusion

A
  • A brief, indirect reference to a historical or literary person, event or object

So magnus chase

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4
Q

Anaphora

A

Rhetoric - the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses

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5
Q

Antithesis

A

The arrangement of contrasting words, sentences or ideas in a balanced grammatical structure

Vb: “Do not doubt the man who tells you he is afraid, but be afraid of the man who tells you he never doubts.”

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6
Q

Anthropomorphism

A

The attribution of human characteristics or behaviour to a god, animal or object

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7
Q

Anastrophe

A

🎶Turn arouunnndd🎶

English language syntax usually follows a subject-verb-object order, and this one inverts that order for effect (a little too extra if you ask me)

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8
Q

Assonance

A

The repetition of similar stressed vowel sounds

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9
Q

Asyndeton

A

Apply human traits or qualities to a non-human thing

So exactly the same as anthropomorphism

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10
Q

Atmosphere

A

The mood or feeling created by the story

Sets up expectations

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11
Q

Cacophony

A

The use of unpleasant sounds or rhythms to create a jarring effect.

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12
Q

Chiasmus

A

When two or more parallel clauses (zinsdelen) are inverted

“Why would I do that?”
“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”

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13
Q

Consonance

A

The repetition of FINAL consonant sounds

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14
Q

Colloquialism

A

The use of casaul and informal language in writing, which can include slang

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15
Q

Characters Pt. 1

A
  1. Round Characters- convincing, true to life, exhibit many different and even contradictory personalities traits
  2. Dynamic Characters- these characters undergo some type of change or development in a story, often because something happens to them
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16
Q

Characters Pt. 2

A
  1. Flat Characters- stereotyped, shallow and often symbolic. These characters exhibit only one or two personality traits
  2. Static characters- these characters do not change in the course of the story
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17
Q

Deus ex machina

A

A) a god introduced into a play to resolve the entanglements of the plot
B) any artificial or improbable device resolving the difficulties of the plot

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18
Q

Foreshadowing

A

Foreshadowing is a device which hints or warns the events to happen later in the story. Foreshadowing prepares the reader for the climax, the “denouement” and any changes in the character

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19
Q

Frame story

A

Is any part of a story that ‘frames’ another part of it, such as one character telling about their past, or someone uncovering a dairy or a series of news articles that tell the readers what happened.

Vb: A murder most unladylike

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20
Q

Euphony

A

The musical effect achieved when a poet uses words and phrases that create pleasant, harmonious sounds and rhythms

21
Q

Exposition

A

The first act of a play. - provide information, introduce characters establish mood en good start.

22
Q

Euphemism

A

The use of inoffensive, mild or vague words in place of harsher, more blunt ones. Reduce risk of offending or upsetting peeps

That old lady died —> the old lady passed away

23
Q

Hyperbole

A

Deliberate exaggeration in order to emphasise a fact or feeling

Ik heb honger als een paard ouwhoer
She’s as tall as a skyscraper

24
Q

Hypophora

A

Is much like a rhetorical question, but in hypophora, the person asks a question and answers it immediately themselves - reasoning out loud

25
Imagery
Descriptions and figures of speech that help the mind form forceful/bootyful pictures Sensory imagery: 1. Visual imagery - sense of sight 2. Olfactory imagery- sense of smell 3. Auditory imagery- sense of hearing 4. Tactile imagery- sense of touch 5. Gustatory imagery- sense of taste
26
Irony
Reveals concealed or contradictory meanings. 1. Verbal Irony - contrast between what a character says and actually means 2. Dramatic Irony - Author shares info with the reader not known by the character 3. Situational Irony - a set of circumstances turns out differently from what is expected or considered appropriate
27
Juxtaposition
Places two or more dissimilar characters, themes, concepts, etc. side by side, and the profound contrast highlights their differences Vb: - All is fair in love and war (very different things, still something in common) - Better late than never - When the cat’s away, the mice will play
28
Litotes
Literary device of the double negative. Writers use it to express sentiments through their opposites, by saying that that opposite is not the case. Vb: - You won’t be sorry (you’ll be happy) - You’re not wrong (You’re right) - I didn’t not like it (I did like it) Sounds like there is a ‘but..’ coming after
29
Metre
The rhythmic arrangement of syllables in verse, usually according to the number and kind of -metrical- feet in a line Vb: - Humpty dumpty sat on a wall etc. - zeg kortjakje waar ga je heen, zo alleen, zo alleen - who’s afraid of the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf - Jack be nimble, jack be quick, jack, jump over the candlestick
30
Meiosis
An understatement
31
Metaphor
An implied comparison between two different things, which does NOT use the words LIKE or AS in the comparison. A word or phrase that ordinarily means one thing is used to describe another thing in orde to suggest a likeness between the two Vb: - it was raining cats and dogs - never look a gift horse in the mouth - people who live in glass houses should not throw stones
32
Metonymy
The use of a closely related term to represent an object with which it is associated. “Its like symbolism, but even more so” Vb: - The Crown - representing the monarchy - Washington- representing the us government
33
Motif
A recurring subject, theme, idea, etc. especially in a literary, artistic, or musical work. It helps develop the theme of the narrative. This might be a symbol, concept, or image. The camera van Damokles
34
Onomatopoeia
The use of a word that closely resembles the sound to which it refers. “Bark.”
35
Oxymoron
Comes from two contradictory words that describe one thing. Vb: - “Parting is such, sweet, sorroww” - “Random Order” - “Deafening Silence” - “Almost Always”
36
Paradox
It is a statement that asks people to think outside the box by providing seemingly illogical, and yet true, premises Vb: - Schrödinger’s Cat: cat in box, could be alive or dead, exists in both states - A male barber shaves all and only those men who don’t shave themselves. Doe the barber shave himself? Yeahhh try to solve this one - you can’t - It’s weird not to be weird - John Lennon - I know one thing: that I know nothing - Socrates
37
Personification
A special form of metaphor in which human characteristics are attributed to animals, inanimate objects or ideas
38
Perspective
The point of view from which a story is told 1. First person — narrator refers to themselves as I 2. Second person — the reader is included in the story 3. Third person — the narrator refers to characters as he/she/them and is omniscient
39
Point of view
The mode of narration in a story
40
Polysyndeton
Instead of using a single conjunction in a lengthy statement, polysyndeton uses several in succession for a dramatic effect. - Basically een opsomming Vb: The dinner was so good; I ate the chicken, and the salad, and the turkey, and the wild rice, and the bread, etc. The repetition of ‘and’ is not necessary, but it adds a sense of the amazing abundance of the dinner and how the speaker could not eating and describing the dishes
41
Rhyme
A) End Rhyme - occurs at the end of a line of poetry | B) Internal Rhyme - occurs when a word within a line rhymes with another word within the same line
42
Repetition
Though too much repetition is rarely good, it may be used to drill home a point, or create a certain atmosphere Shatter me
43
Satire
To make fun of some aspect of human nature or society - usually through exaggeration, ridicule or irony
44
Simile
A comparison using the words “like” and “as” Her lips were red AS blood Her eyes were like the sea
45
Symbolism
The use of symbols that stand for or represent something else
46
Synecdoche
Usage of a part to represent the whole Vb: - “Nice wheels you got there” (meaning the whole car) - “Stanford won the game” (meaning the Stanford football team)
47
Theme
The central idea of a story, usually implied than directly stated. Not to be confused with either moral or plot
48
Tone
The attitude of the author toward their subject. Examples: serious, playful, formal and informal
49
Thesis
The main argument (claim) in a non-fiction work expressed in a statement. A strong thesis expresses a significant assertion.

Engels (2 decks)

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