Poetry Terms Figurative Language

Figurative Language—Metaphor Comparison between essentially unlike things without using the words “like” or “as” A Three Point Shot From Andromeda By Paul Beatty rain rusted orange ring of saturn in urban orbit over an outdoor gym What two things are being compared?

Figurative Language—Simile comparison between two essentially unlike things using words such as "like," as," or "as though” Example: “Of asphodel, that greeny flower, like a buttercup upon its branching stem-” William Carlos Williams, “Asphodel, that Greeny Flower”

Figurative Language—Hyperbole An exaggeration for emphasis Let’s come up with some hyperboles! The Storm James K. McAlister Wind rustled crunching leaves That on the sidewalk lay. There was a big storm coming On a windy Autumn day. Thunder rumbled overhead And shook me through and through. A jagged bolt of lightning struck! The sky then cracked in two! Rain washed down the dirty road. It hissed, and gushed, and muttered. The downpour swept dead leaves away Into the bubbling gutter.

Figurative Language—Imagery A word or sequence of words representing a sensory experience (sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste) Example: Billy Collins, “Litany” “ You are the bread and the knife, the crystal goblet and the wine. You are the dew on the morning grass and the burning wheel of the sun. You are the white apron of the baker, and the marsh birds suddenly in flight.”

Figurative Language—Allusion A reference to the person, event, or work outside the poem or literary piece Example: Dylan Thomas’s “Fern Hill” And then to awake, and the farm, like a wanderer white With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder: it was all Shining, it was Adam and maiden, The sky gathered again And the sun grew round that very day.

Figurative Language—Symbol An object or action that stands for something beyond itself Green Light and Gamma Ways By Thylias Moss Miss Liberty is green, the horizon and sky plus yellow skin. She is a minority too, color of ridiculous Martian fable and not a man. Handicapped, disabled. Another immigrant.

Figurative Language—Personification The attribution of human characteristics to something nonhuman like an animal or inanimate object Autumn’s Season By: Unknown Author brushes her hair slowly Letting the glorious colors flow gently to the earth below. Showing off vibrant colors in contrast to summer's green dress. Out doing the starkness, of winter's white coat. Autumn compares the mutable shades of spring to her fall Giving a sigh,end of another season. She packs her brush as frost touches her tips.