Literary devices

Allusion–

an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.

"an allusion to Shakespeare"

Monologue–

a long speech by one actor in a play or movie, or as part of a theatrical or broadcast program.

"he was reciting some of the great monologues of Shakespeare"

Anagnorisis–

the point in a play, novel, etc., in which a principal character recognizes or discovers another character's true identity or the true nature of their own circumstances.

"we see the tormented figure of Oedipus come to recognize the truth in a classical moment of anagnorisis"

Mood–

As a literary device, mood refers to the emotional response that the writer wishes to evoke in the reader through a story.

Anaphora–

the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses.

Oxymoron– 

a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction (e.g. faith unfaithful kept him falsely true ).

"that fashionable rhetorical novelty, the humblebrag, is itself an oxymoron"

Antithesis–

a figure of speech in which an opposition or contrast of ideas is expressed by parallelism of words that are the opposites of, or strongly contrasted with, each other, such as “hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins”.

Paradox–

a statement that appears to contradict itself, but upon further rumination, either reveals a deeper meaning or actually makes sense.

Apostrophe–

refers to a speech or address to a person who is not present or to a personified object.

Paralipsis–

a rhetorical device that occurs when the writer pretends to hide the idea or statement they actually want to express. Paralipsis (also spelt as paralepsis) emphasizes that one thing while claiming not to care about or be thinking about that very thing.

Asyndeton–

a rhetorical device where the omission of conjunction is marked by a comma. On the other hand

Parallelism–

a literary device in which parts of the sentence are grammatically the same, or are similar in construction. It can be a word, a phrase, or an entire sentence repeated.

Catastrophe–

the final action that completes the unraveling of the plot in a play, especially in a tragedy.

Pathos–

Pathos, or the appeal to emotion, means to persuade an audience by purposely evoking certain emotions to make them feel the way the author wants them to feel.

Catharsis–

the process in which a story's tragic ending allows audiences to experience profound emotional release.

Personification–

the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

Logos–

the appeal to logic, means to appeal to the audiences' sense of reason or logic. To use logos, the author makes clear, logical connections between ideas, and includes the use of facts and statistics. Using historical and literal analogies to make a logical argument is another strategy.

Point of view–

the writer's way of deciding who is telling the story to whom.

Understatement–

a literary device by which a particular quality of a person, object, emotion, or situation is downplayed or presented as being less than what is true to the situation.

Polysyndeton–

the repeated use of coordinating conjunctions to connect different items in a sentence. The repetition of conjunctions—and, but, or, nor—in close succession is a deliberate style choice to place emphasis on each listed word or phrase. The effect is often an excited or serious mood.

Ethos–

the writers attempt to persuade by appealing to the reader's moral values. The writer presents their expertise, authority, trustworthiness, and commonality to persuade the reader to agree with an argument and take an action.F

Repetition–

a literary device that involves using the same word or phrase over and over again in a piece of writing or speech.

Euphemism–

the substitution of a less offensive or agreeable expression for an expression that may offend or suggest something unpleasant. Euphemisms are polite, indirect expressions. A euphemism is often used in writing or speech to avoid a more harsh or blunt term.

rhetorical question–

a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer.

first-person retrospective–

a retrospective narrative is told from the point of view of a character looking back on past events.

rule of three–

a storytelling principle that suggests people better understand concepts, situations, and ideas in groups of three. Over time, the rule has been confirmed by anthropological experts as an archetypal principle that works on three levels: sentences, situations, and stories.

Foil–

a character who is presented as a contrast to a second character so as to point to or show to advantage some aspect of the second character.

Setting–

refers to the time, place, and environment in which a story occurs. Through its use, authors can establish mood, develop their characters, and enhance the conflict.

Foreshadowing–

a literary device used to give an indication or hint of what is to come later in the story. Foreshadowing is useful for creating suspense, a feeling of unease, a sense of curiosity, or a mark that things may not be as they seem.

Soliloquy–

a speech that a character in a play speaks aloud, but it can only be heard by that character and the audience. It is used as a way of expressing the inner thoughts and feelings of a character to an audience, or revealing important plot details that we couldn't otherwise know about.

Hamartia–

the tragic flaw of a main character in a story, which ultimately leads to the character's downfall. Errors of judgment or specific character traits like excessive pride, greed, or jealousy can be a character's fatal flaw or lead to a reverse of fortune.

Symbol–

an object, a person, a situation, or an action that has a literal meaning in a story but suggests or represents other meanings.

Hubris–

excessive pride and arrogance that consumes a character and often leads to his downfall.

Syntax–

defines the arrangement of words and sentences that are placed together. It determines how words from different parts of speech can be put together to convey a thought. Syntax also defines the way in which sentences are supposed to be composed to give complete meaning.

Hyperbole–

a rhetorical and literary technique where an author or speaker intentionally uses exaggeration and overstatement for emphasis and effect.

Theme–

the main idea or underlying meaning a writer explores in a novel, short story, or other literary work.

Irony–

a situation in which there is a contrast between expectation and reality.

Situational Irony–

takes place when the opposite of what is expected actually happens.

Verbal Irony–

a statement in which the speaker's words are incongruous with the speaker's intent.

Dramatic Irony–

a literary and theatrical device in which the reader or audience knows more than the characters they are following.

Third-person limited–

When the narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of one character. All characters are described using pronouns, such as 'they', 'he', and 'she'. But, one character is closely followed throughout the story, and it is typically a main character.

Juxtaposition–

placing two things side by side so as to highlight their differences. Writers use it for rhetorical effect. Writers juxtapose divergent elements frequently: wealth and poverty, beauty and ugliness, or darkness and light.

Third-person omniscient–

a point of view where the narrator knows all the thoughts, actions, and feelings of all characters. The author may move from character to character to show how each one contributes to the plot.

Loaded language–

A word or phrase is “loaded” when it has a second, emotive meaning in addition to its primary meaning. These words often carry strong associations with certain moral concepts, ideologies, terms, and so on. These connotations evoke strong emotions and imagery for readers and listeners.

Tone–

a literary device that reflects the writer's attitude toward the subject matter or audience of a literary work.