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Literary Devices
English 9
Maguire
2013-2014
Imagery
the figurative language used in poetry, plays, and other literary works which appeals to the senses
Example: In Calypso, the Sweet Nymph from the Odyssey, Calypso’s island is described in great detail so that the reader (listener) can picture it in her mind.
Homeric simile
Also called an “epic simile” A long, detailed comparison in the form of a
simile (uses “like” or “as”); often many lines in length
epithet
a descriptive word or phrase added to or substituted for the name of somebody or something, highlighting a feature or quality
Example: Michael Jackson was known as “The King of Pop”
Irony
something said or written that uses humor based on words suggesting the opposite of their literal meaning
incongruity between what actually happens and what might be expected to happen, especially when this disparity seems absurd or laughable
Elements of Plot
Types of Plays TragedyTragedy- deals with someone’s downfall due to fate or
personal flaw (“tragic flaw”) ComedyComedy-light and amusing, usually with a happy ending HistoryHistory- deals with the life of a historical figure DramaDrama-tells the life of a character through dialogue and
events, usually involving some conflict
Romance-NOT a type of play! a medieval tale based on legend, chivalric love and
adventure, or the supernatural Romanticism- a literary movement in the late 18th/ealry
19th century There may be romantic elements to the plot of a play
Differences/Similarities between plays and stories
Stories Have a plot Have characters Have a setting Have a conflict (usually) MAY have dialogue
Dialogue uses quotation marks “..”
DO NOT have stage directions
Plays Have a plot Have characters Have a setting Have a conflict (usually) Have dialogue
Dialogue DOES NOT use quotation marks!
Have stage directions
Conflict
The struggle, or problem, in the story. Internal
Man vs. Himself External
Man vs. Nature Man. Vs. Man
Characterization
The way the author reveals a character’s personality and motives to the reader/audience
Direct characterization What the character does
and says
Indirect characterization What other characters
(or a narrator) tell us about the character
Oxymoron
A figure of speech where contradictory terms are combined
Example: In “Romeo & Juliet,” Act I, scene 1:
Romeo “Why then, O brawling love, O loving hate…O heavy lightness…Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, still-waking sleep…”
Pun
The humorous use of a word, or different words sounding alike, so as to play on the various meanings
Example: “Romeo & Juliet” Act I, scene 1, lines 1-30 (Sampson and Gregory walking on the street); Shakespeare uses similar-sounding words, “coals,” “colliers,” “choler,” “collar”; heads of the maids/maidenheads
Symbolism
Symbolism-literary and artistic device where the author or artist uses symbols to convey deeper, less tangible concepts in his or her work
Symbol- an object, action or idea that represents something other than itself, usually something more abstract.
Allegory
Characters or events in a story symbolize concepts or ideas.
e.g. In Lord of the Flies, Piggy represents civilized society and its values; Jack represents the savage inner nature of man.
Setting
The time and place of a story or play. Often contributes to the mood of the story.
Tone
The author’s attitude toward a subject, a character, or the audience. Conveyed through word choice and details.
Mood
The feeling a story evokes in the reader. How the story makes me feel. Often created by setting.
Purpose
What the author wishes to achieve through the story. Why the author wrote the story.
Don’t confuse this with motivation, which is why the characters do what they do in the story.
Theme
The fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.
ForeshadowingPresentation of events, characters, or details that previews, hints, or suggests at later events in the narrative.
Can be subtle subtle (like storm clouds in LoF foreshadowing danger) or direct direct (like Romeo & Juliet talking about how they want to die rather than be apart- and then they do die)
Alliteration
The repetition of an initial consonant sound
Examples: Tybalt “What? Art thou drawn among these heartless
hinds?” Lady Capulet “Thou shall not stir one foot to seek a
foe.” Friar Laurence “Now, ere the sun advance his
burning eye/The day to cheer and night’s dank dew to dry,…”
Allusion
An implied or indirect reference to a person or event not directly part of the story
Example: “Maycomb County had recently been told that it
had nothing to fear but fear itself” (Lee 6). Reference to FDR’s inaugural address in 1932 (TKAM
is set in 1930s rural Alabama).
Euphemism
A mild or pleasant word that is used in place of one that is unpleasant or offensive
Example: “the disturbance between the North and the
South” = the U.S. Civil War
simile
An explicit comparison between two unlike things.
Example: The toddler eats likelike a bird. The student is asas smart as a whip.
metaphor
a figure of speech where one thing is used in place of something else to suggest or imply a similarity between the two
Example: He was drowning in paperwork.
Bildungsroman
a novel about the moral and psychological growth of the main character
Also called a “coming of age” novel
Example: To Kill a Mockingbird
German, from Bildung education + Roman novel
Dialect
A particular form of a language that is unique to a specific area or group
Example: Southern United States English as seen in To Kill a Mockingbird “Keep onKeep on —I reckonreckon he even sent you a mounted
police uniform! You just keep on tellin’ ‘em, sontellin’ ‘em, son” (Lee 63).
Character
A person in a story, novel, play, or movie
Dynamic character- a character who changes throughout the course of the story,novel, play, or movie Example: Scout Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird
matures and grows morally and psychologically. Static character- a character who stays the same
throughout the story, novel, play or movie Example: Bob Ewell in TKAM
Character
Protagonist- the leading character or one of the major characters in a drama, movie, novel, or other fictional text.
Antagonist-the character who opposes or competes with the main character; the adversary of the main character
Motivation
The underlying reason why a character acts or behaves in a certain way.
Example: Scout’s motivation for beating up her cousin and kids at school who disparage Atticus is that she loves and respects her father and wants to defend his honor.
Gothic literature Gothic literature is a style of literature that combines
elements of romanticism and horror (think Bram Stoker’s Dracula or Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein). First popularized in the late 1700s and early 1800s during
the Romantic Period.
Gothic elements are features of Gothic fiction, such as terror (both psychological and physical), mystery, the supernatural, ghosts, haunted houses, death, madness, secrets, and the like. To Kill a Mockingbird is considered a Southern Gothic
novel. Why?
Realism
A form of literature that attempts to recreate life in literature.
Deals with common, everyday characters dealing with real situations truthfully (as opposed to idealistically).
Often has a moral or ethical characteristic as it tries to leave an impression on the reader. Late 1800s to early 1900s American realist: Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom
Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn French realist: Guy de Maupassant, “The Necklace”