Poetic Devices and Literary Terms Creative Writing Ms. Bosarge

Poetic Devices

Alliteration Repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning or within a word

Assonance Repetition of vowel sounds within a word or phrase

Not to be confused with… Repetition Repeating a word or phrase more than once

Also not to be confused with… Rhyme Based on the end sounds of words

Alliteration=consonants Assonance=Vowels Repetition= word or phrase rhyme= end sounds

Personification Gives human-like objects to non-human things

Simile vs. metaphor What’s the difference?

Onomatopoeia Words imitate their sounds in nature

Now on to some of the harder stuff…

Enjambment The carryover of one line to the next without a grammatical break HAMLET: To be, or not to be- that is the question: Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them. To die- to sleep- No more; and by a sleep to say we end The heartache, and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to. ‘Tis a consummation Devoutly to be wish’d. To die- to sleep. To sleep- perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub! For in that sleep of death what dreams may come When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause. There’s the respect That makes calamity of so long life.

Oxymoron Contradictory words or phrases Jumbo shrimp Walking dead Passive aggressive

Literary Terms

Exposition Comprehensive description and explanation of an idea or theory

Rising Action Series of events that create tension, interest, and suspense

Climax The turning point—changes the character’s fate

Falling action Action after the climax

Denouement Final part of the story that ties everything together

Moving on the characters

Protagonist Main character in the story

Antagonist Character that acts in opposition to the protagonist

Characterization The way an author reveals important aspects about the people in a story

What does indirect characterization involve? What the character does, think, and say

What does direct characterization involve? Author tells the reader about the character

First person POV Contains “I” and reveals the thoughts and feelings of only one character

Third person POV Uses pronouns such as “s/he” and they but only gives one character’s perspective

Omniscient POV Contains “s/he” and/or “they” and reveals the thoughts and feelings of many characters

Three dimensional character Has own story, imperfect, unique past, a lot of detail

And the harder stuff…

Flashback When the author presents scenes or incidents that have happened before the opening scene

Symbolism A physical or concrete object/person that stands for an abstract idea

Irony Difference between what is real and what is considered real

Dramatic Irony The reader knows something a character doesn’t know

Verbal Irony The character says the opposite of what she means

Situational Irony The character does the opposite of what the reader expects