LITERARY DEVICESuse these well, my young apprentices

PARADOX (also called

oxymoron): Using contradiction in a manner that oddly makes sense on a deeper level. Common paradoxes seem to reveal a deeper truth through their contradictions, such as noting that "without laws, we can have no freedom.”

“A dog growls when it’s angry, and wags it’s tale when it’s pleased. Now, I growl when I’m pleased and wag my tail when I’m angry.” – Alice in Wonderland

One must be cruel to be kind

Killing with kindness

ALLEGORY The word derives from the

Greek allegoria ("speaking otherwise"). The term loosely describes any writing in verse or prose that has a double meaning. This narrative acts as an extended metaphor in which persons, abstract ideas, or events represent not only themselves on the literal level, but they also stand for something else on the symbolic level.

“Allegory of the Cave” by Plato: someone living in a cave and the person in the cave believes this is reality. Until the person sees the world of light, he/she doesn’t know he/she is living in shadow.

The Truman Show: Truman saw things one way until he realized the truth.

A Christmas Carol: Scrooge represents the part of all of us that wants to hoard things, the part of us forgetting what it is to be rich.

MAGIC REALISM painters blended

realistic, smoothly painted, sharply defined figures and objects--but in a surrealistic setting or backdrop, giving them an outlandish, odd, or even dream-like quality. In the 1940s and 1950s, the term migrated to the prose fiction. This mixture creates truly dreamlike and bizarre effects in their prose.

A “crazy man” decides to climb up a tree to grab the moon because he wants to taste it. He does.

This occurs in a world that looks like ours but weird things happen.

MELODRAMA A dramatic form

characterized by excessive sentiment, exaggerated emotion, sensational and thrilling action, and an artificially happy ending.

Shakespeare: Taming of the Shrew; Midsummer Night’s Dream = love triangle

Soap opera Twilight = Bella and

Edward think people and vampires are conspiring against them, but it’s pretty much in their mind.

NEW COMEDY The Greek comedy

the developed circa 300 BCE, stressing romantic entanglements, wit, and unexpected twists of plot.

Shakespearean plays Twilight = Edward and

Jacob

NUMEROLOGY Number symbolism,

especially the idea that certain numbers have sacred meanings. Classical Hebrew writers, following the lead of other Mesopotamian cultures, often embody certain numbers with sacred meanings--such as three, seven, twelve, forty, etc., an idea that develops more fully under the medieval kabala.

#7 = Christianity: 7 days of creation, divine, Heaven, God

#3 = trinity #4 = Japan unlucky

number; in pagan religions 4 elements

#6 = Christianity: evil, Devil, Hell; Judaism: star of David

#0= Buddhism is interconnected, circular, etc.

SUBJECT IDEAS Angels and Demons Riding a dirt bike Taking a walk Dreams Dog park The perfect scene

(can be nature or something else)

Drinking a cup of tea

Birds and the bees

Yulexy & Heather: allegory

Marily & Vanessa: melodrama

Jessica & Chloe: paradox

Zach & Shelby Nathan & Cameron:

numerology Anton & Stevie: new

comedy

LITERARY DEVICESan excellent way to jazz up your writing