WORD CHOICE SENSORY DETAILS A.K.A. IMAGERY

SENSORY DETAILS (Imagery) draws a reader in and involves him or her in your topic, bringing the audience into the experience. Writers use SENSORY DETAILS to make scenes life-like and multi- dimensional.

Sensory detail brings imagery into your writing. In terms of vocabulary, pay special attention to the connotation of each word. Connotation is the emotional meaning (the feeling) of a word.

Denotation is a word’s dictionary meaning. Connotation is a word’s emotional meaning.

Connotation People use connotations, positive or negative, to shade their meaning. We tend to choose words or phrases with a positive connotation to describe ourselves. We tend to use neutral words to talk directly about someone. We might use words with bad connotations to talk about someone who is not in the room.

Examples of Connotation Overweight POSITIVE NEGATIVE

Example: I am selective. You are choosy. She is fussy. I am energetic. You are jumpy. He is unable to sit still. I am confident. You are cocky. He is conceited.

SENTENCE FLUENCY EUPHONY AND CACOPHONY

EUPHONY Definition: a pleasant, harmonious quality of sound formed when words are combined to create smooth enunciation of letters and syllables. An example may be seen in “The Lotos- Eaters” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson: “The mild-eyed melancholy Lotos-eaters came.”

CACOPHONY refers to the use of words that combine sharp, harsh, hissing, or unmelodious sounds. Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” illustrates cacophony: With throats unslaked, with black lips baked Agape they heard me call.

One Paragraph Challenge (assignment) Use imagery to describe a Hershey’s Kiss. Write at least one sentence for each sense, but do not use any of the following terms:

Sight shiny, silver, wrinkled, crinkled, point, foil Sound crinkle, rustle, crackle, foil, tin Scent sweet, chocolate, cocoa, rich Taste soft, smooth, melt Texture sweet, smooth, melting, chocolate, sugary