Literary Devices Found in Rhetorical Writing In Frederick Douglass’ Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

ALLUSION Allusion is a reference to a mythological, literary, or historical person, place or thing. Example: When I visited New York last year I visited the site of 9/11.

Anaphora The repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive clauses. Example: We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing-grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. Winston Churchill

Polysyndeton Polysyndeton is the deliberate use of many conjunctions. For example: I said, “Who killed him?” and he said, I don’t know who killed him but he’s dead all right,” and it was dark and there was water standing in the street and no lights and windows broke and boats all up in the town. Ernest Hemingway

Asyndeton Asyndeton is the deliberate omission of conjunctions between related clauses. It is the opposite of polysyndeton. Example: When I go home I turn left, then right, get on the freeway, go south, ride a long time, exit, drive West and I’m home.

Imagery Imagery consists of the words or phrases a writer uses to represent persons, objects, actions, feelings and ideas descriptively by appealing to the senses. Example: A walk through the woods is my favorite thing to do. I can smell the leaves, and hear them crunch beneath my boots. The air is crisp to the skin, yet warming when the sun shines making me shiver.

Irony Situational irony occurs when a situation turns out differently from what one would normally expect – though the twist is oddly appropriate. Example: A deep sea diver drowned in his bathtub this week.

Mood Mood is the atmosphere or predominant emotion in a literary work.

Protagonist and Antagonist The protagonist is the central character of a drama, novel, short story, or narrative poem. Conversely, antagonist is the character who stands directly opposed to the protagonist.

Repetition Repetition is the deliberate use of any element of language more than once – sound, word, phrase, sentence, grammatical pattern, or rhythmical pattern.

Shift or turn Shift or turn refers to a change or movement in a piece resulting from an epiphany, realization, or insight gained by the speaker, a character, or the reader.

Ethos, Pathos, Logos Ethos – Ethical approach – the author proves his/her validity in being an expert on the piece. Pathos – Emotional approach – draws on the emotions of the reader. Logos – Logical approach – uses facts and statistics to gain the reader’s acceptance of the piece.

Diction Diction is the study of word usage within a piece. Specific words are used specifically and with careful choice by the author. Example: We’re here to smash the Americans.

Syntax Syntax studies: Sentence structure The use of italics, bold or underlining that is out of place. Punctuation. Example: Get . . . Out of here! I told you – I told you so many times to leave me ALONE.

Extended Metaphor A comparison of two unlike things that extends into more than one sentence. Example: He was a greek god in my eyes, strong, tall, and gorgeous. He swept me away on his stallion to the point where I lost all sense.

Poetry: A Douglass Inspired Poem Choose a topic: Cruelty, desire, death, hope, helplessness, loss of innocence, love, loss, etc. Choose one of Douglass’ literary sentences, such as “I have often wished myself a beast,” but make sure that the line corresponds with your topic. Build a poem based on Douglass’ line and your topic. Use the line somewhere in the poem. Use a minimum of five literary elements in your poem. Make sure to title the poem.