Poetic devices Flashcards
Simile
A comparison made using the words like or as
Metaphor
A comparison - made directly or indirectly - without using like or as
Extended metaphor
When the metaphor is continued throughout the poem
Personification
Giving humans characteristics to something which is not human
Onomatopoeia
Words which attempt to imitate sounds
Alliteration
A repetition of consonant sounds
plosive
b,p,t and d sounds - which can be harsh , aggresive or shocking .
Sibilance
Repeated s sound - most often caused by s , ss and c these can be harsh smooth or sickly
Assonance
A repetition of vowel sounds
Anaphora
A repetition of words , phrases or clauses
Juxtaposition
Two things being placed close together for contrasting effect.
Oxymoron
A figure of speech in which two contradictory things are placed together in a way which makes peculiar sense for example , friendly fire
Semantic field
A set of words relating to the same topic , foul and , shot would appear in the semantic field or sport
Pathetic fallacy
When a characters feelings , thoughts or emotions are displayed through the environment around them . For example when a character is depressed and its raining .
Anachronism
A person or object placed in a inappropriate time
Cliche
An overused phrase or saying
Hyperbole
Exaggeration
Irony
A use of words to mean something very different from what they appear to mean
Rhyme
The repetition of syllables - usually. At the ends of ones , but sometimes in the middle of a line ( called internal rhyme )
Couplet
A pair of rhyming lines which follow on from one another
Stanza
A group of lines separated from others in a poem
Enjambment
The running over of a sentence form one line to the next without a piece of punctuation at the end of the line .
Caesura
A stop or a pause in a line of poetry - usually caused by punctuation .
Blank verse
Poetry written in non rhyming Ten syllable lines
Dramatic monologue
A poem in which an imagined speaker address the reader
Elegy
A form of poetry which is about the death of its subject
End stopped
A Line of poetry ending in a piece of punctuation which results in a pause
Epigraph
A quotation from another text included in a poem
Lyric
An emotional , rhyming poem , most often describing the emotions caused by a specific event
Ode
A formal poem written to celebrate a people place object or a idea .
Free verse
Non , rhyming , non rhythmical poetry which follows the rhythms of natural speed
Quatrain
A four line stanza
Sestet
A six line stanza
Sonnet
A fourteen line poem , with variable rhyme scheme , usually on the topic of love for a person , object or situation
Volta
A Turing point in the line of thought or argument in poem
Tone
The poets attitude toward the poem speaker , reader and the subject matter , overall emotion
Allegory
A story , poem or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning
Allusion
An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly
Internal rhyme
Rhyme that occurs within a line of poetry
Cacophony
Harsh , discordant sounds within a phrase or verse
