Literary, Rhetorical, and Sound Devices

Flashcards of literary, rhetorical, and sound devices with definitions and examples.

Irony (Dramatic)

When the readers know something that the characters do not

Irony (Situational)

When the opposite of what you expect, happens; Plot Twist/Surprise

Irony (Verbal)

Sarcasm

Anaphora

Repetition of the initial word(s) over successive phrases or clauses

Climax

Words or phrases or sentences are arranged in order of increasing intensity or importance

Allegory

An extended narrative in which characters, events, and settings, represent qualities and in which the writer intends a second meaning to be read beneath the surface of the story; the underlying meaning may be moral, religious, political, social, or satirical

Selection of Detail

A literary device OR just a detail that contributes to characterization.

Apostrophe

Calling out to an imaginary, dead, or absent person or to a place, thing, or personified abstraction

Colloquialism

Language that is vernacular or everyday slang. Can include words of a dialect

Epistrophe

Repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses. The counterpart of anaphora

Alliteration

The repetition of initial consonant letters (or sounds) in two or more different words across successive sentences, clauses, or phrases. Can be immediate or non-immediate juxtaposition

Consonance

Repetition of identical consonant sounds within two or more words in close proximity Or within a compound word (ping-pong/fulfill)

Assonance

Repetition of vowel sounds between different consonants

Asyndeton

Normally occurring conjunctions (and, or, but, for, nor, so, yet) are intentionally omitted in successive phrases or clauses

Polysyndeton

The deliberate and excessive use of conjunctions in successive words or clauses

Anastrophe

The inversion of the usual order of words or phrases

Euphemism

A more acceptable and usually more pleasant way of saying something that might be harsh, inappropriate, or uncomfortable

Satire

A work that reveals a critical attitude towards some element of human behavior by portraying it in an extreme way

Metonymy

Replaces the name of a thing with the name of something else with which it is closely associated.

Parallelism

Arranging words, ideas, or structural parts side by side by making them similar in form

Chiasmus

A figure that reverses grammatical structure to emphasize a point; an inversion of the relationship between the elements of phrases

Antithesis

A device by which two contrasting ideas are juxtaposed in parallel form

Juxtaposition

Ideas or things purposely being placed close together for a contrasting effect

Paradox

A statement that seems to contradict itself but that turns out to have a rational meaning

Oxymoron

Contradictory words or phrases

Pun

Play on words

Bildungsroman

A "coming-of-age" story

Foil

A character who contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist, to highlight qualities of the other character

Cliché

A phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original though

Syntax

Sentence structure Arrangement of words Length of sentence as well as kinds of sentences Questions, exclamations, rhetorical questions Simple, Complex, Compound