Literary Techniques Flashcards
“‘plain folks”
one in which the speaker presents him or herself as an average Joe — a common person who can understand and empathize with a listener’s concerns. sensing intuitively what his much poorer supporters want to hear and then saying what they are thinking.
Adnomination
Adnomination refers to the repetition of root words, where (for example) “some” is the root word shared by both “someone” and “somewhere”. So, if a man were to wonder to there is someone, somewhere, who would have any interest in what he is talking about, this would be an adnomination.
Alliteration
the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words
Allusion
Making indirect reference, quickly stimulates different ideas and associals using only a couple of words
Ambiguity
“the quality of being open to more than one interpretation; inexactness.
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Anadiplosis
a figure of speech in which a word or group of words located at the end of one clause or sentence is repeated at or near the beginning of the following clause or sentence
Anaphora
a rhetorical device that consists of repeating a sequence of words at the beginnings of neighboring clauses, thereby lending them emphasis
Antithesis
juxtapose contrasting and opposite ideas, parallel grammatical structures.
Assonance
Repetition of a vowel. Assonance provides poetic writing with rhythm and musicality. It also mirrors or changes the mood of a poem in order to match the subject matter. Beyond literature, assonance is also found in pop culture, especially in music. As you will hear, it is possible to use assonance in everyday speech.
Aural imagery
words that describe what you hear
bandwagon
Psychological pressure is applied to the natural human desire to be part of the group, to be accepted, to fit in.
bdelygmia
Bdelygmia is sequence of abusive phrases or statements.
Denouement
the final part of a play, film, or narrative in which the strands of the plot are drawn together and matters are explained or resolved.
direct address
when the writer speaks directly to the audience
Dissonance
Dissonance means a lack of harmony or agreement between things. In poetry, dissonance refers to a disruption in the harmonic sounds or rhythm of a verse. It is a deliberate awkwardness inserted into the work for disturbing effect.
Ellipsis
a series of dots which indicates an intentional omission of words
Emotive Language
words used to evoke certain emotional response to the reader
Enjambment
a continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of the line
Ethos
The use of language or visual cues to signify the trustworthiness or status of the speaker or writer
Euphemism
Mild, indirect or vague term to substitute for a harsh, blunt or offensive term.
expletives
A swear word - effect of amplifying raw shock value and dispicable nature
Figurative language
language that’s intended to create an image, association, or other effect in the mind of the listener or reader that goes beyond the literal meaning or expected use of the words involved
Foreshadowing
indicating a future event; either subtly or obviously
hyperbole
exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally
Hypophora
A figure of speech in which a writer raises a question, and then immediately provides an answer to that question.
Idiolect
the speech habits peculiar to a particular person.
Imagery
Visual descriptive of a piece of work
irony
A figure of speech in which there is a contradiction of expectation between what is said and what is really meant
Jargon
special words or expressions used by a profession or group that are difficult for others to understand.
kairos
the “timeliness” of an argument “Kairos means taking advantage of or even creating a perfect moment to deliver a particular message”
litote
texts that contradict each other
Logos
statistics as evidence to convince the audience
metaphor
a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable
Metonymy
A thing or concept is not called by its own name, but by the name of something intimately associated with that thing or concept e.g. “crown” for the “power of a king” crown is the metonymy for king
modal auxilaries
a verb that indicates modality. - modality: Modality is the linguistics of judgement. It is the the way in which writers express attitudes towards their subject matter. and towards their addresses.
modality
Modality is the linguistics of judgement. It is the the way in which writers express attitudes towards their subject matter. and towards their addresses.
Motif
recurring idea in a novel
Onomatopoeia
sound effects
Oxymoron
contradictory terms appearing in conjunction with each other
Parallelism
Parts of the sentence are grammatically the same or are similar in construction
Pathos
A quality that evokes empathy in the reader or listener
Personification
the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.
phrase
a small group of words that form a component of a clause
polysyndeton
using many conjunctions to slow down rhythm
pun
a joke with different possible meanings or words that sound alike but have different meanings individually
Repetition
When a word, line or phase is repeated for emphasis
Rhetorical Question
a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect, or to make a point
Satire
Making fun of certain issues which are informally reported and analysed
Semantic Field
a collection of words which are related to one another be it through their similar meanings, or through a more abstract relation.
Sensationalism
the use of exciting or shocking stories or language at the expense of accuracy, in order to provoke public interest or excitement. Look at tabloid headlines.
Simile
A simile compares two unlike things with the words “like” or “as”.
Slogan
Catch phrase used in advertisments to attract consumers
Socioelect
Language which is unique or belonging to your social group
Superlative
highest degree or quality
Synecdoche
A part of something is used to represent the whole or the whole of something is used to represent part of it - Special kind of metonymy
tricolon
rhetorical term for three parallel words, phrases; also called POWER OF THREE
Bathos
An anticlimax created by a change of mood from the serious to the trivial
Sensory laguage
a way for a writer to help the reader see or connect with an image, description, action, or scene throught desribing senses
aphorism
a brief saying or phrase that expresses an opinion or makes a statement of wisdom without the flowery language of a proverb. … For example, “A bad penny always turns up” is an aphorism for the fact that bad people or things are bound to turn up in life. We just have to deal with them when they do.
Anastrophe
the inversion of the usual order of words or clauses
Antimetabole
It is a literary term or device that involves repeating a phrase in reverse order e.g. “I know what I like, and I like what I know”
Chiasmus
Chiasmus is a figure of speech in which the grammar of one phrase is inverted in the following phrase, such that two key concepts from the original phrase reappear in the second phrase in inverted order. The sentence “She has all my love; my heart belongs to her,” is an example of chiasmus.
Epistrophe
the repetition of a word at the end of successive clauses or sentences.
Epigram
An epigram is a short, pithy saying, usually in verse, often with a quick, satirical twist at the end. The subject is usually a single thought or event.
Euphony
Euphony is any combination of words that is harmonious and beautiful to hear
Apostrophe
a speech or address to a person who is not present or to a personified object
Epithet
Epithet is a descriptive literary device that describes a place, a thing, or a person in such a way that it helps in making its characteristics more prominent than they actually are. Also, it is known as a “by-name,” or “descriptive title.”
Hypophora
Hypophora is a figure of speech in which a writer raises a question, and then immediately provides an answer to that question.
Refrain
phrase, line, or group of lines repeated at intervals throughout a poem, generally at the end of the stanza
