Literary Devices

HL LIT

Hyperbole 

an extreme exagguration create storng emphasis or create a sense of humor or anger

Metaphor

A figure of speech that compares two different things by stating that one is the other, highlighting similarities for emphasis or symbolism.

Understatement

Used to downplay a situation as less serious, less significant, or smaller than it really is

Simile

A comparison between two things, usually using the words ‘like’ or ‘as’.

Symbolism

When characters, objects, actions, or ideas are ingrained or associated with a deeper meaning beyond the literal sense. Simply put, symbolism is the idea that things can represent other things.

Personification

When something non-human (such as an animal, object, or even abstract idea) is ascribed human qualities.

Archetype

A symbol, pattern, plot, or character template that appears in multiple stories from across cultures.

Allegory

A form of narrative that uses plot, setting, or character to stand for a message that has a larger moral or lesson or makes a far-reaching commentary on real-world issues.

Irony (Verbal)

Using words to convey a meaning that is opposite to or markedly different from their literal interpretation, often to emphasize a point, express humor, or level a sharp criticism.

Motif

A symbolic image or idea that appears frequently in a story.

Irony (Situational)

Occurs when the actual outcome of a situation is starkly different from what was expected, creating a surprising twist.

Imagery

Words that trigger the reader to recall images, or mental pictures, that engage one of the five senses: sight, sound, taste, smell, and touch.

Allusion

Used to refer to something well-known, like a famous person, story, place, or event, without saying it explicitly, allowing the audience to glean the meaning and recognize the reference themselves.

Irony (Dramatic)

Occurs when the audience is aware of critical information that the characters are unaware of, creating a contrast between the characters’ understanding and the audience’s insight.

Euphemism

An appropriate expression used in the place of a phrase or words that may be found inappropriate or offensive.

Oxymoron

Combines two seemingly contradictory words to form an often though-provoking concept or idea (e.g., controlled chaos and silent scream).

Connotation

A feeling or idea that a word has, in addition to its literal or main meaning.

Paradox

A self-contradictory statement or scenario that challenges conventional thinking (e.g., “you have to spend money to make money”).

Assonance

The use of repeated vowel sounds within nearby words (e.g., “the need for speed”).

Denotation

The literal meaning, or “dictionary definition,” of a word. This contrasts to connotation, which is the emotions and ideas suggested by a word.

Onomatopoeia

When a word sounds like the thing that it refers to (e.g., “bang”, “zoom”, and “hiss”).

Juxtaposition

Placing two objects, ideas, or images alongside each other (physically or in the imagination) in order to highlight their differences.

Rhyme (End)

When the final words of two or more lines in a poem rhyme.

Alliteration

The repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession.

Free Verse

Poetry that is free from limitations of a regular meter or rhythm and does not rhyme with fixed forms.

Rhyme (Internal)

A rhyme that occurs in the middle of lines of poetry instead of at the ends of lines.

Blank Verse

An unrhyming verse in poetry written in iambic pentameter.

Meter

Describes the rhythm (or pattern of beats) in a line of poetry. Meter is a combination of the number of beats and the arrangement of stressed and non-stressed syllables.

Caesura

A poetic device in which there is a pause between a line of poetry.

Iambic Pentameter

A rhythm structure, used most commonly in poetry, that combines unstressed and stressed syllables in groups of five.

Epistrophe

Involves the repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive lines or phrases.

Enjambment

A poetic device that involves the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of the line, couplet, or stanza.

Parallelism

When parts of the sentence are grammatically the same, or are similar in construction.

Refrain

A word, phrase, line, or even an entire stanza that is repeated at regular intervals, often at the end of stanzas.

Chiasmus

When words, grammatical constructions, or concepts are repeated in reverse order.

Anaphora

The use of repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses, sentences, or lines to create emphasis, rhythm, and emotional agreement.

Foreshadowing

When an author provides hints or clues about future events in a story, building suspense and tension for the reader.

Polysyndeton

The deliberate and repeated insertion of conjunctions (like “and,” “or,” “but”) to connect words or clauses, even when they are not grammatically necessary.

Flashback

A scene or event from the past that interrupts the current timeline of a story to provide context, explain character motivations, or reveal crucial backstory.

Asyndeton

The deliberate omission of conjunctions (like “and,” “but,” or “or”) from a series of words, phrases or clauses.

Frame Narrative

A story-telling technique where one story contains another, known as the “story within a story.”

Repetition

The intentional repeating of words, phrases, or lines to achieve effects like emphasis, clarity, creating rhythm, and evoking emotion.

Hubris

The excessive pride or overconfidence of a character, often leading to their downfall.

Epiphany

A moment of sudden, profound insight or realization that fundamentally changes a character’s understanding of themselves or the world around them.

Tragic Hero

The noble, sympathetic protagonist of a tragedy who possesses virtuous traits but also a fatal flaw, which leads to their downfall and suffering

Catharsis

The purging or cleansing of strong emotions, such as pity and fear, experienced by an audience through a literary work, particularly tragedies.

Deus ex Machina

A plot device where an unexpected, improbable event or character suddenly resolves an apparently insoluble problem, often near the end of a story.

Hamartia

A tragic flaw or error in judgment that causes a protagonist’s downfall, often a trait such as excessive pride, greed, or jealousy.

Exposition

The part of a narrative that provides necessary background information, such as character details, setting, and historical context, to help readers understand the story.

In Media Res

A narrative technique where a story begins not at the chronological beginning, but partway through the plot, at a point of action or crisis.

Denouement

The final stage of a story after the climax and falling action, where all the remaining plot points are resolved.

Climax

The most intense or turning point of the story, where the main conflict is confronted and a significant change occurs, leading to the resolution.

Conflict (Internal)

A character’s psychological struggle with their own inner thoughts, desires, emotions, or beliefs, often manifesting as a “man vs. self” battle against opposing inner forces.

Falling Action

The part of the plot that occurs after the climax, where plot tension decreases and the story begins to move toward its resolution.

Static (Flat) Character

A character who remains essentially unchanged from the beginning to the end of a story, retaining the same personality, beliefs, and outlook throughout the plot.

Conflict (External)

A struggle between a story’s protagonist and an outside force, which can be a specific character (antagonist), society, nature, technology, or even the supernatural.

Foil Character

A secondary character designed to highlight the distinct traits, qualities, and aspects of a main character, typically the protagonist, through contrast

Protagonist

The central or main character of a story; their journey, motivations, and conflicts drive the plot forward and are the focus of the narrative.

Ethos

The writer’s or narrator’s credibility and ethical appeal to the audience, establishing trust and authority by demonstrating expertise, honesty, and a strong moral character.

Antagonist

The character or force that opposes the protagonist’s goals, creating the central conflict of the story.

Aphorism

A short, memorable statement that expresses a general truth or a profound idea concisely, often with wit or insight.

Pathos

An appeal to an audience’s emotions, used by authors to evoke specific feelings like sympathy, anger, or joy to persuade readers to connect them to the story’s characters and themes.

Epigram

A short, memorable, and often witty statement, phrase, or poem that expresses a complex idea in an ingenious and concise way.

Logos

An appeal to an audience’s sense of reason or logic, using facts, evidence, statistics, and clear reasoning to build a persuasive argument.

Idiom

A phrase or expression that has a figurative, non-literal meaning, different from the literal meanings of its individual words.

Rhetorical Question

A question posed for dramatic effect, to make a point, or to provoke thought, rather than to elicit an actual answer from the reader or another character.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech where a part of something is used to represent the whole, or less commonly, the whole represents a part.

Pun

A play on words involving a word or phrase with multiple meanings or similar-sounding words to create humor.

Metonymy

A figure of speech where one word or phrase stands for another that is closely associated with it, rather than using a direct comparison. (e.g., “the Crown” refers to the monarchy).

Double Entendre

A word, phrase, or expression that has two meanings, where one meaning is typically innocent or straightforward, and the other is often a hidden or suggestive one.

Anachronism

A chronological error or inconsistency where a person, object, custom, or idea appears in a historical period where it does not belong.

Apostrophe

A rhetorical device where a speaker addresses a person or thing that is dead, absent, or inanimate, such as an abstract idea, an object, or a deity.

Visual Imagery

Appeals to the reader’s sense of sight, using descriptive language to create mental pictures of colors, shapes, forms, and movement to describe settings, characters, or actions.

Colloquialism

The use of informal, everyday language, words, or phrases that are common in casual conversation rather than formal writing or speech.

Auditory Imagery

The use of language to create a vivid and detailed description of sounds, music, or even silence in a reader’s mind.

Tone

The author’s attitude toward the subject matter and audience, conveyed through their specific word choice (diction), sentence structure (syntax), and overall narrative style.

Olfactory Imagery

The use of descriptive language to evoke the sense of smell in the reader’s mind.

Mood

The overall feeling or atmosphere a story creates for the reader.

Organic Imagery

Descriptive language that appeals to the reader’s internal, physical, and emotional sensations, such as hunger, thirst, fatigue, pain, or even happiness and sadness.

Gustatory Imagery

The use of vivid descriptions of taste and flavor to appeal to the reader’s sense of taste, evoking flavors, sensations, and memories associated with eating and drinking.

Thermal Imagery

The use of words to evoke the sense of heat and cold in a reader’s mind.

Tactile Imagery

The use of descriptive language to evoke the sense of touch in the reader, appealing to their physical sensations of temperature, texture, and movement.

Prop

Any movable object, distinct from the scenery or costumes, that actors interact with or that enhances the story by providing a visual or tactile element, like a weapon, a book, a piece of fruit, or a symbolic item.

Kinesthetic Imagery

The use of descriptive language to create the feeling of motion and physical sensation in the reader’s mind, making them experience the movement and tension of actions or bodies within the text.

Anthropomorphism

A literary device that gives human characteristics, such as emotions, personalities, and behaviors, to nonhuman entities like animals, objects, or natural phenomena.

Mise en Scène

From French it means “setting the stage” and refers to everything in front of the camera/audience, including the set design, lighting, and actors. 

Atmosphere

The overall emotional tone and feeling a story evokes in the reader, created by the author through the skillful combination of setting, imagery, sensory details, and tone.

Stage Direction

Non-dialogue instructions from the playwright to the director, designers, and actors that describe the play’s setting, character actions, tone of delivery for lines, and even emotional states.

Cliché

An expression, phrase, or idea that has become so overused that it has lost its original impact, novelty, and ability to convey specific or fresh meaning.

Analogy

A specific type of comparison between two things, concepts, or ideas that are fundamentally different but share a similar relationship or function.

Chremamorphism

A literary device that attributes the characteristics of an inanimate object or non-human thing to a human being.

Pathetic Fallacy

A device where human emotions or traits are attributed to non-human things like animals, objects, or the weather.

Contrast

Involves placing distinct or opposite elements side-by-side to highlight their differences, thereby emphasizing meaning, developing characters, or underscoring themes.

Stanza

A grouped series of lines within a poem or song that is set apart from other lines by a blank space or indentation, functioning like a paragraph in prose to organize related ideas or a single thought.

Dynamic (Round) Character

When characters, objects, actions, or ideas are ingrained or associated with a deeper meaning beyond the literal sense. Simply put, symbolism is the idea that things can represent other things.

Zoomorphism

A figure of speech that attributes animal characteristics, behaviors, or forms to non-animal entities, such as humans, objects, or even abstract concepts.

Syntax

The author’s arrangement of words, phrases, and clauses to create meaningful sentences and convey specific meanings, tones, and effects.

Characterization

The literary process an author uses to develop and explain the distinct traits of characters, making them believable and understandable to the audience.

Grammar

The fundamental structural rules, or the linguistic patterns, that writers use to organize words and sentences to convey meaning, allowing for both clear communication and creative expression.

Hypophora

Where a speaker or writer asks a question and then immediately answers it, guiding the audience’s thoughts, emphasizing a point, or creating a conversational tone.