LITERARY DEVICES/RHETORICAL

DEVICES Vocabulary

Vocabulary ChartIn Journal

Word Definition Example Your own Example

Allusion

Allusion

An allusion is a figure of speech that makes a reference to a place, person, or something that happened. This can be real or imaginary and may refer to anything, including paintings, opera, folk lore, mythical figures, or religious manuscripts. The reference can be direct or may be inferred, and can broaden the reader’s understanding.

EX: He lies so much I’m surprised his nose isn’t

growing. I want to be like Mike.

Analogy

Analogy

Compares two things which are alike in several aspects, for the purpose of explaining some unfamiliar or difficult idea by showing how the idea or object is similar to some familiar one.

Formula: a is to b as c is to d Ex:

Being in a relationship with you is about as useful as trying to ride across the ocean on a bike.

Bringing home a bad report card is the same as getting suspended in my house.

Winston Churchill:

“We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills.”

ANAPHORA• Repetition of the same word or words at the

beginning of successive phrases.• Ex: Copy at least three lines

I do not like them in a box.I do not like them with a fox.I do not like them in a house.I do not like them with a mouse.I do not like them here or there.I do not like them anywhere.I do not like green eggs and ham.I do not like them, Sam-I-am.

Antithesis“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

ANTITHESISClear, contrasting relationship between 2 ideas by joining them together or juxtaposing them, often in parallel structure.Ex:• It seemed the only love he would accept was

the kind that looked like hate.• "Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing."

– Goethe• “To err is human; to forgive divine.” - An Essay

on Criticism by Alexander Pope

Rhetorical Questions

RHETORICAL QUESTION

Question that is not answered by the writer, because the answer is obvious or is just yes or no. It is used for effect, or provocation, or for drawing a conclusionary statement from the

facts at hand.Ex: 1. Are you serious?2. What’s your problem?3. Is the sky blue?

Euphemism

Euphemism

The act or an example of substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive.

Overstatement/Hyperbole

OVERSTATEMENT/HYPERBOLE

Exaggeration: Deliberately exaggerates conditions for emphasis or effect.

“going to the dentist is the worst thing ever”“I’m so hungry I could eat a steak the size of Texas”

CHIASMUS

CHIASMUSMirror image/inverted parallel

structure

PARADOX

PARADOX

A seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless

be true.

Ex. When the hurlyburly’s done, when the battle’s lost and won

(Macbeth I.i.1).

Parallelism

They are laughing at me, not with me."(Bart Simpson, The Simpsons)

"Buy a bucket of chicken and have a barrel of fun."(slogan of Kentucky Fried Chicken)

"Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal."(T.S. Eliot)

"I don’t want to live on in my work. I want to live on in my apartment."(Woody Allen)

PARALLELISMSimilarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases,

or clauses. Also called parallel structure.

Metaphora figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Similea figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion, crazy like a fox ).

Motif

In the movie “The Village” the produces used the color red as a motif (idea). The color red was a warning of danger to come.

Motif

Motif is an object or idea that repeats itself throughout a literary work. Motifs turn into themes. A motif can be a color, an object, a feeling, an element, etc…

EX: In many famed fairytales, the motif of a ‘handsome prince’ falling in love with a ‘damsel in distress’ and the two being bothered by a wicked step mother, evil witch or beast and finally conquering all to live ‘happily ever after’ is a common motif.

Another common motif is the simple, pretty peasant girl or girl from a modest background in fairytales discovering that she is actually a royal or noble by the end of the tale.

Symbolism

the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities.

Represents light/darkYing/yangGood/evilMale/female

Allegory

allegory a representation of an abstract or

spiritual meaning through concrete or material forms; figurative treatment of one subject under the guise of another. The usually teach morals or lessons.

A Fable is a type of Allegory. For instance, “The Tortoise and the Hare” is a fable/allegory.