21st Century

Allusions

is when a writer mentions a famous person, place, event, story, or character without explaining it, expecting the reader to already know it.

Allegory

is a narrative in which the characters and their actions, and sometimes the setting, are contrived by the author to represent a currently significant event/issue.

Dichotomy

divides a concept, idea, story, or plot into two equal and contradictory parts; or between two opposing groups.

Juxtaposition

places two different things next to each other so people can compare them.

SOUND DEVICES

help form visual images and highlight the mood and tone of a text.

ALLITERATION

is the repetition of similar sounds at the beggining of closely spaced words.

ASSONANCE

is the repetition of vowel sounds that form internal rhymes in a line.

CONSONANCE

is the repetition of consonant sounds, usually at the end of words.

CACOPHONY

is the use of jarring sounds, meant to convey disorder

EUPHONY

is the use of sound devices meant to create a pleasant experience to the ear.

ONOMATOPOEIA

is the use of words that mimic the natural sound of what is being described.

R E P E T I T I O N

is the repetition of words or phrases to form rhythm or to emphasize an idea.

R H Y M E

is the repetition of identical (or simila r ) sounds in two or more words, most often at the end of lines in a poem.

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

is a way of using words or expressions beyond their literal meaning to create deeper meanings, emotions, and stronger images in the reader’s mind.

Analogy

A comparison that presents the similarities between two concepts or ideas.

CLICHÉ

A word, phrase, sentence, or whole text that used to be perceived as clever but has become démodé or overused.

connotation

The secondary or suggestive meaning of a word, one that is not its literal or primary meaning in the dictionary.

hyperbole

A gross exaggeration used to achieve an effect, usually for humor or emphasis.

metonymy

A word or phrase that is substituted for another that is closely associated to it.

OXYMORON

A combination of two ideas that appear to be opposite or contradictory.

paradox

An assertion that seems to be contradictory or silly but actually reveals some truth.

Personification

A statement wherein an animal, object, or abstract idea is given human attributes or characteristics.

simile

Compares two seemingly unlike objects by using the words “like” or “as.”

Used when a part of something is used to represent the whole or vice versa.