ATAR English - Language Features

Adjectives

Describing words

Adverbs

Describe actions (verbs); often end in -ly

Connotative

use of words that have a strong positive or negative association. For example, beach.

Sensory details

words and details that appeal to a reader's senses (sight, touch, taste, hearing, smell, emotion)

Metaphor

comparison of two things by saying one IS the other. For example, love is a battlefield.

Personification

A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes

Simile

A comparison of two things using "like" or "as". For example, love is like a battlefield.

Symbolism

anything that stands for or represents something else

Alliteration

Repetition of initial consonant sounds

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the sound it represents.

Rhyme

Repetition of sounds at the end of words

Pun

A play on words

Allusion

A reference to another work of literature, person, or event

Analogy

A comparison of two different things that are similar in some way or familiar with the audience

Colloquialism

A word or phrase (including slang) used in everyday conversation and informal writing but that is often inappropriate in formal writing (y'all, ain't)

Emotive language

words used deliberately to create an emotional impact or response

Generalisation

A sweeping statement that suggests what is true for some is true for most or all.

Hyperbole

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

Inclusive language

Language, such as personal pronouns (e.g. 'we,' 'us,' 'our), that makes the audience feel included in the writer's argument

Repetition

Repeated use of sounds, words, or ideas for effect and emphasis

Rhetorical question

A question asked merely for effect with no answer expected.

Anecdotes

A short, personal story, typically about an experience the writer has had, used to illustrate a point

Statistics

The presentation and analysis of data, often expressed numerically

Low Camera Angle

A camera angle which looks up at its subject; it makes the subject seem important and powerful.

Eye Level Camera Angle

The camera views actors or scenes from a neutral position that is roughly level with the height of the characters

High Camera Angle

A camera angle which looks down on its subject making it look small, weak or unimportant

Close Up (CU)

A shot that captures a subject from the top of the head to just below the shoulders. Also called a narrow angle shot.

Extreme Close-Up Shot

Shows a particular part of a subject with extreme detail

Medium shot

A framing in which the scale of the object shown is of moderate size; a human figure seen from the waist up would fill most of the screen.

Extreme long shot

A framing in which the scale of the object shown is very small; a building, landscape, or crowd of people will fill the screen.

Framing

The positioning of the subject within the image

Tone

Attitude a writer takes toward the audience, a subject, or a character

Figurative language

When a word or phrase that does not have its normal everyday, literal meaning is used to create a picture in the reader's head or make a story more interesting or more dramatic.

Descriptive

The use of strong verbs and adjectives. For example using adore instead of like

Language features

Features of language that support meaning (for example, sentence structure, vocabulary, punctuation, figurative language).