Literary Tools

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Paradox  Definition: a statement whose two parts seem contradictory yet make sense with more thought.  "They have ears but hear not.“  "Deep down he's really very shallow."  Paradox attracts the reader's or the listener's attention and gives emphasis.

oxymoron  apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction. "A yawn may be defined as a silent yell." (G.K. Chesterton)

Motif (leitmotif)  A recurring important idea or image.  A motif differs from a theme in that it can be expressed as a single word or fragmentary phrase, while a theme usually must be expressed as a complete sentence.  Weather in The Great Gatsby Weather in The Great Gatsby

Parody  Conan O’Brien Conan O’Brien a humorous or satirical imitation of a serious piece of literature or writing: his hilarious parody of Hamlet's soliloquy.

Synecdoche  a part is used to represent the whole  "Take thy face hence." (William Shakespeare, Macbeth)

Pun  A play on words, either on different senses of the same word or on the similar sense or sound of different words.  "Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight" (Dylan Thomas, "Do not go gentle into that good night")  "Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana." (Groucho Marx)

Metonymy  one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated  "The B.L.T. left without paying." (waitress referring to a customer)

Hyperbole  Hyperbole is exaggeration. It puts a picture into the "reader" mind. Hyperbole is frequently used in humorous writing.  It's a slow burg—I spent a couple of weeks there one day. —Carl Sandburg, "The People, Yes"

Onomatopoeia --The use of words to imitate sounds is called onomatopoeia. Cynthia in the Snow  It SHUSHES It hushes The loudness in the road. It flitter-twitters, And laughs away from me. It laughs a lovely whiteness, And whitely whirs away, To be Some otherwhere, Still white as milk or shirts, So beautiful it hurts. --Gwendolyn Brooks

invective  As defined in our glossary, invective is language that denounces or casts blame on somebody or something. That language is often highly abusive and sometimes witty.invective  Shakespeare Insult Kit Shakespeare Insult Kit

Conceit  An extended metaphor— Identity

Analogy  Rather than a figure of speech, an analogy is more of a logical argument.  demonstrate how two things are alike  pointing out shared characteristics

Shakespeare’s Language  Translating Elizabethan English Translating Elizabethan English  Shakespearean Syntax Shakespearean Syntax  Common Expressions Common Expressions