Lit Terms Quiz: Sound Devices, Drama, Rhetoric

alliteration

when a letter/sound is repeated at the beginning of nearby words

example of alliteration

Timothy the tiger trotted through the tunnel

assonance

when vowel sounds repeat in nearby words, usually in the middle

example of assonance

bright night lights

onomatopoeia

a word or phrase that imitates the natural sound of the thing it describes

examples of onomatopoeia

POW, BANG, CRUNCH

antithesis

a contrast between 2 ideas in a parallel grammar structure

example of antithesis

it was the best of times, it was the worst of times

parallelism

sentences with the same grammatical structure

example of parallelism

she loves reading, writing, and painting

anaphora

repetition of one word

example of anaphora

and now let’s now discuss how the time is now, we must act now

dialogue

conversation between 2 or more people

example of dialogue

P: “Did you hear the news, John?” J: “No, Peter, what happened?”

aside

a line spoken to the audience

example of aside

*looks to the camera* “Well, isn’t that just crazy!”

soliloquy

a speech in which a character who is onstage alone expresses their thoughts aloud

example of soliloquy

O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo!

monologue

a speech in the presence of other characters

example of monologue

Marc Antony’s speech at Caesar’s funeral

ethos

using credibility to persuade people

example of ethos

“I’m a doctor, and I say you should eat this food!”

pathos

using emotions to persuade people of something

example of pathos

Smoking kills. Quit now to save your life.

logos

using facts and reason to persuade people

example of logos

“well, did you ever make anything happen? anything … when you were scared or angry?”