Year 12 Language Features

Rhyme

The ends of words have the same sound. Usually at the end of lines in poetry, but may be internal (within a line).

E.g.

The seconds day they hunted me

From hill to plain, from shore to sea.

Rhythm

A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables

E.g.

I went to town to buy a phone

Alliteration

Repetition of the same constant sounds at the beginning of words- usually close in succession

E.g.

Having heard a song, he sang it softly

Assonance

Vowel sounds are repeated at the beginning or middle of nearby words

E.g.

Her early leaf's a flower

But only so an hour

Sound Clusters

A group of sounds is repeated throughout a sentence or a group of lines in a poem, not just at the beginnings of words

E.g.

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness

Onomatopoeia

Words sound like the sounds they name

E.g. The brrrrrring of the alarm woke him.

Repetition

Repeating the same or nearly the same words for effect

E.g. "Come on, come on!" She shouted

Parallel Construction

Using the same word class order twice ( in same or two sentences)

E.g. Into the valley, through the marsh, rode the hunting pair.

Triple Construction

Repeating three times a group of words which have the same pattern of word classes. Each group may or may not start with the same words.

E.g. "...that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the face of the earth."

Simile

An image which compares two things using like or as

E.g. The black smoke rose like a wizard's tower spiralling into the sky.

Metaphor

An image which compares two things without using like or as

E.g. We emerged from the cool dark of the hut into the blast furnace heat of a Central Otago summer afternoon.

Personification

An image which gives human qualities to non-human things.

E.g. Raindrops danced on the pavement.

Choice of words

(vocabulary)

Using more unusual or specialized or technical words

E.g. he wind moaned, a low-pitched, unutterably eerie threnody (sad song).

Use of slang

Most likely used in direct speech.

E.g. "Hey, you guys, let's cut loose tonight and paint the town red."

Use of direct or indirect speech

Quoting or reporting spoken words.

E.g."Come over here!" Jack yelled, then proceeded to tell us all how he'd won the Melbourne Cup pool in his office.

Use of incorrect grammar

Generally used in direct speech but may also be used in autobiography for particular effect.

E.g. "Let's have ourselves a few beers."

Pun

Word play involving the use of a word with two different meanings or two words that sound the same but mean different things.

Often used in advertising.

E.g. An advert for an omega-3 margarine has this statement: The way to a man's heart is through his stomach. This gives new literal meaning to an old figurative phrase which involved romance rather than health.

Hyperbole

Deliberate exaggeration

E.g. I've told you thousands of times to clean up your bedroom.

Litotes

Deliberate understatement

E.g. "Well, I was sure was brassed off when he walked out on me."

Use of multiple adjectives or adverbs

The adjectives give more information about the noun and the adverbs about the verb.

E.g. Slowly, stealthily, the wind was lifting a swell.

Simple sentences

These have only one complete verb, though there may be one or more incomplete verbs.

E.g. Passing the school, we saw the flames pouring out of the office.

Compound sentences

These have a minimum of two complete verbs and each part of the sentence can stand on its own.

E.g. We danced all night, then climbed the hill to see the sun rise.

Complex sentences

These have a minimum of two complete verbs; the part of the sentence which has one of those verbs, but cannot stand on its own, is called a subordinate clause.

E.g. We left the party because the level of violence was getting way over the top.

Rhetorical question

A question that does not expect an answer from the reader or audience

E.g. So what would result from such a plan? Chaos, that's what.

Use of command

This is the verb used alone (without a noun or pronoun). Can be used with adverbs or other word classes.

E.g. Stop! Come here and sit down while I talk to you.

Use of first and second person pronoun

1st person singular = I, me, my, mine, plural = We, us, our, ours

2nd person singular and plural = You, your, yours

Mostly used in

• autobiography

• 1st person narrative

• direct speech

• oral presentations.

E.g. I would like you to think hard about what I'm going to tell you next.

Symbolism

Use of an object (concrete noun) to represent some emotion or belief system or other abstract noun

E.g. Simple symbols are widely accepted, eg. heart / love, dove with an olive branch / peace. Others are more complex and individual to an author / character, eg. neon lights / urban sophistication

Euphemism

Use of a less objectionable or harsh expression to avoid upsetting or offending people

E.g. She is vertically challenged (short).

Neologism

New word - an invented word

E.g. nylon, radar, Thermos

Listing

Objects/reasons/parts of a whole, etc. are listed - in text, usually with commas separating them; in adverts/web pages or text, can be with bullet points

E.g. There was a clammy self-congratulating illiteracy of the heart drooling from every word.

Emotive language

Choice of words which have specifically intended emotional effects or are intended to evoke an emotional response in the reader

E.g. There was a clammy self-congratulating illiteracy of the heart drooling from every word.

Sarcasm

Unkind humour directed against what the writer / speaker doesn't like

E.g. ...fluff-filled catalogues..

Irony

saying the opposite of what you mean

E.g. ..cultural icons like McDonald's carparks..

Contrast

Using word of opposite meaning close together

E.g. In a city that never sleeps, she seems to be trying to keep us awake.

Use of numbers / statistics

E.g. Thousands died and hundreds of thousands are homeless

Use of authority figures

The words (or image) of a famous person or celebrity are used

E.g. (Paris Hilton wears only Versace). (Daniel Carter loves Jockeys).

Allusion

A reference to another work

E.g.

Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries plays during Apocalypse Now

"It'll be just like Coral Island."

Quotation

Direct use of another's words (spoken or written)

E.g. Churchill famously said, "We will fight them on the beaches...."