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”