Tropes & Schemes

Prosody

refers to discussions of the kinds of stressed and unstressed syllables inkinds of stressed and unstressed syllables in poems.

foot

a basic unit of measurement in metrical poetry, consisting of a combination of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Trochee

a metrical foot consisting of a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable.

lamb

a metrical foot consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.

dactyl

a metrical foot consisting of one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables.

anapest

a metrical foot consisting of two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed syllable.

Iambic Pentameter

A type of poetic meter consisting of five iambs (feet) per line, where each iamb is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.

spondee

A metrical foot consisting of two stressed syllables.

Pyrrhic

A metrical foot consisting of two unstressed syllables.

tropes

Figures of speech or rhetorical devices used to convey meaning or create effects.

metonymy

Using a vaguely suggestive, physical object to embody a more general idea

Synecdoche

Using a part of a physical object to represent the whole object

Apostrophe

A figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses an absent person, an abstract idea, or a thing, often to express strong emotion.

Erotema

Asking a rhetorical question to the reader as a transition or as a thought-provoking tool before proceeding

schemes

Figures of speech that deal with word order, syntax, letters, and sounds, rather than the meaning of words

Antithesis

A figure of speech that juxtaposes contrasting ideas in a balanced structure to highlight differences.

Anastrophe

Inverted word order from what one expects

Chiasmus

Taking parallelism and deliberately turning it
inside out, creating a “crisscross” pattern

Alliosis

Presenting alternatives in a balanced manner

Ellipsis

Omitting a word implied by the previous clause

Asyndeton

Using no conjunctions to create an effect of speed or simplicity

Polysyndeton

Using many conjunctions to achieve an overwhelming effect

Climax

Arrangement in order of increasing importance

Assonance

Repetition of vowel sounds within a phrase

Anaphora

Repetition of beginning clauses

Epistrophe

Repetition of a concluding word

Analepsis (Epanalepsis)

repeating a word from the beginning of a clause at the end of the same clause

Anadiplosis

Repeating the last word of a clause at the beginning of the next clause

Symploce

Repetition of words at the beginning and end of lines

Amplification

extend the meanings of a plain statement

Omission

condense, concentrate, and refine statements to a point

Epithet

A bold or vivid adjective describing a noun