lit terms 4

Antimetabole

A rhetorical device in which words or phrases are repeated in successive clauses but in reversed grammatical order to emphasize contrast or create a memorable effect.

Antithesis

A literary device that places contrasting ideas, words, or phrases close together (often in parallel structure) to highlight their differences.

Anthropomorphism

The attribution of human characteristics, emotions, or behaviors to animals, objects, or abstract ideas.

Apostrophe (literary)

A figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses a person who is absent, dead, imaginary, or an abstract idea.

• Example: "O Death, where is thy sting?"

Elegy

A poem or literary work that mourns the death of a person or reflects on loss, often moving from grief to consolation.

Epigraph

A brief quotation, phrase, or poem placed at the beginning of a literary work or chapter that hints at its theme or meaning.

Farce

A type of comedy that relies on exaggerated characters, absurd situations, and improbable events to create humor.

Litotes

A figure of speech that uses understatement by negating the opposite to emphasize a point.

Motif

A recurring image, symbol, phrase, or idea in a literary work that helps develop a theme.

Tricolon

A rhetorical device consisting of 3 parallel words, phrases, or clauses used together to create rhythm and emphasis.