Literary Techniques Flashcards
Story with a double meaning: one primary (on the surface) and one secondary.
An allegory is a symbolism device where the meaning of a greater, often abstract, concept is conveyed with the aid of a more corporeal object or idea being used as an example. Usually a rhetorical device, an allegory suggests a meaning via metaphoric examples.
Example:
Faith is like a stony uphill climb: a single stumble might send you sprawling but belief and steadfastness will see you to the very top.
Allegory
Repetition of consonants at the start of words or in a sentence or phrase.
Example:
The Wicked Witch of the West went her own way. (The ‘W’ sound is highlighted and repeated throughout the sentence.)
Alliteration
An allusion is a brief, usually indirect reference to a person, place, or event—real or fictional.
Example: Referring to someone as ‘a scrooge’ when they are stingy, alludes to Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol
Allusion
refers to a literary practice wherein the writer embellishes the sentence by adding more information to it in order to increase its worth and clarity. When a plain sentence is too abrupt and fails to convey the full implications desired, amplification comes into play when the writer adds more to the structure to give it more meaning.
Example:
Original sentence - The thesis paper was difficult.
After amplification - The thesis paper was difficult: it required extensive research, data collection, sample surveys, interviews and a lot of fieldwork
Amplification
used when the writer employs two sentences of contrasting meanings in close proximity to one another. Whether they are words or phrases of the same sentence, an antithesis is used to create a stark contrast using two divergent elements that come together to create one uniform whole. An antithesis plays on the complementary property of opposites to create one vivid picture. The purpose of using an antithesis in literature is to create a balance between opposite qualities and lend a greater insight into the subject.
Example:
When Neil Armstrong walked on the moon it might have been one small step for a man but it was one giant leap for mankind.
Antithesis
a concise statement that is made in a matter of fact tone to state a principle or an opinion that is generally understood to be a universal truth. Aphorisms are often adages, wise sayings and maxims aimed at imparting sense and wisdom. It is to be noted that aphorisms are usually witty and curt and often have an underlying tone of authority to them.
Example:
Upon seeing the shoddy work done by the employee the boss told him to “either shape up or ship out”
Aphorism
Listing of words or phrases without use of a conjunction.
Example: “In all my dreams, before my helpless sight/ He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.” from Wilfred Owen’s Dulce et Decorum Est
Asyndeton or parataxis
Is a grammatical pause or break in a line of poetry.
Example:
“Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots/ But limped on, blood-shod…
Caesura
a figure of speech containing two phrases that are parallel but inverted to each other.
Example:
You can take the patriot out of the country but you cannot take the country out of the patriot.
Chiasmus
An over-used, common expression.
Example:
As cold as ice.
Cliché
It is a literary device used for expressing a resistance the protagonist of the story finds in achieving his aims or dreams. The conflict is a discord that can have external aggressors or can even arise from within the self. It can occur when the subject is battling his inner discord, at odds with his surroundings or it may be pitted against others in the story.
Example:
John tried hard to convince himself that his Hollywood dreams were worth the struggle but his parents, and his inner voice of reason, failed to agree.
Conflict
The meaning that a word suggests or implies. A connotation includes the emotions or associations that surround a word.
Example:
And once again, the autumn leaves were falling.
This phrase uses ‘autumn’ to signify something coming to an end.
Connotation
Repetition of consonants throughout a sentence or phrase.
Example: He struck a streak of bad luck.
Consonance
Paradox, antithesis, oxymoron, juxtaposition, contrast in description for effect.
Contrast
is two lines of verse or two lines in a poem, especially when they are the same length and they rhyme.
Couplet
is defined as the literal dictionary definition of a word, as opposed to the feelings or emotions the word brings up.
Denotation
the distinctive tone or tenor of an author’s writings. not just a writer’s choice of words it can include the mood, attitude, dialect and style of writing. is usually judged with reference to the prevailing standards of proper writing and speech and is seen as the mark of quality of the writing. It is also understood as the selection of certain words or phrases that become peculiar to a writer.
Example:
Certain writers in the modern day and age use archaic terms such as ‘thy’, ‘thee’ and ‘wherefore’ to imbue a Shakespearean mood to their work.
Diction
Any text that instructs the reader or is obviously delivering a moral message.
Didactic
A conjunction (e.g. ‘but’ or ‘yet’) that dramatically interrupts rhythm of sentence.
Disjunction
is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to be understood in either of two ways, having a double meaning.
A double entendre
A poem in which a speaker’s character is revealed in a monologue usually addressed to a second person
Dramatic Monologue
A dramatic pause (…) creates tension or suggests words can’t be spoken.
Ellipsis
Words that stir the readers’ emotions.
Emotive Language
A poetic technique, when a sentence or phrase runs over more than one line (or stanza). This assists the flow of a poem.
Enjambment
A quotation set at the beginning of a literary work or one of its divisions to suggest its theme.
Epigraph
Repetition of a word or expression at the end of successive phrases, clauses, sentences, or verses.
Epistrophe
a literary device that is used as a descriptive device. It is usually used to add to a person or place’s regular name and attribute some special quality to the same. remarkable in that they become a part of common parlance over time. These descriptive words and phrases can be used to enhance the persona of real and fictitious places, objects, persons and divinities.
Example:
“Alexander the Great” is the epithet commonly used to refer to Alexander III of Macedon. The young king has come to be recognized by this epithet in all of history and popular culture owing to his spectacular achievements in creating one of the largest ever historical empires.
Epithet
refers to the use of phrases and words that are noted for possessing an extensive degree of notable loveliness or melody in the sound they create. is predominant in literary prose and poetry, where poetic devices such as alliterations, rhymes and assonance are used to create pleasant sounds. the opposite of cacophony, which refers to the creation of unpleasant and harsh sounds by using certain words and phrases together. This literary device is based on the use and manipulation of phonetics in literature.
Example:
It has been said that the phrase “cellar door” is reportedly the most pleasant sounding phrase in the English language. The phrase is said to depict the highest degree of euphony, and is said to be especially notable when spoken in the British accent.
Euphony
Mild expression used to replace a harsh one.
Euphemism
Exclamatory sentence ending in “!” to convey high emotion.
Exclamation
another character in a story who contrasts with the main character, usually to highlight one of their attributes.
Example:
In the popular book series, Harry Potter, the character of Hogwarts principal Albus Dumbledore, who portrays ‘good’, is constantly shown to believe in the power of true love (of all forms and types) and is portrayed as a strong, benevolent and positive character while the antagonist Lord Voldemort, who depicts the evil and ‘bad’ in the series is constantly shown to mock and disbelieve the sentiment of love and think of it as a foolish indulgence, a trait that is finally his undoing.
Foil
