1. Introduction to Literary Techniques Objective: By the end of this lesson we will: Know the essential poetic techniques to use when annotating your anthology

2. Noun Definition: A naming word – could be an object, place, name… Example: boy, table, school, farm (common) London, Ravens Wood School, Harper, The Simpsons, Liverpool FC (proper) happiness, weight, soul (abstract) herd, pack, team, choir (collective)

3. Adjective Definition: A word that describes how a noun looks, behaves, feels… Example: the beautiful girl a happy family the red book

4. Verb Definition: An action word – if you can put to in front of it, it is a verb Example: to play, to swim, to walk, to break, to compare

5. Adverb Definition: A word that describes how a verb is ‘done’ – normally ends in ‘ly’ Example: happily, quickly, shyly, badly

6. Stanza Definition: A verse of poetry – like a paragraph

7. Theme Definition: What a poem is really about Example: Once Upon A Time’s themes are: truth superficiality Westernisation All of the poems we will study have a common theme - identity

8. Mood/Tone Definition: The mood or tone of a poem is the feeling expressed Example: A poem can be – sad, positive, hopeful, pessimistic, joyful…many others Once Upon A Time is a sombre, pessimistic poem but ends on a hopeful tone

9. Simile Definition: To compare one thing with another using ‘like’ or ‘as’ Example: “The man stood still as a pillar” “The green grass shone like a field of emeralds”

10. Metaphor Definition: To say one thing IS another – this could be anything from a small detail to the whole poem. Example: “The mirror was a portal to her soul” In “Once Upon A Time” the ‘son’ represents all of Africa’s people

11. Personification Definition: To give an object or animal human features or characteristics Example: “The horse nodded in agreement” “The fingers of the plant reached around the fence”

12. Onomatopoeia Definition: A word or phrase that represents and resembles a sound Example: “plop” “bang” “gurgle”

13. Meter Definition: The beat or rhythm of a piece of poetry

14. Imagery Definition: The use of words or phrases to create a picture in the reader’s mind

15. Alliteration Definition: The same sound at the start of word next or close to one another – used to emphasise or create a mood Example: “The phone was frantically ringing” “The beach ball bounced over the boat”

16. Sibilance Definition: A special type of alliteration using the ‘s’ sound Example: “The sea snake slithered over the sand”

17. Enjambment Definition: Where one line of a stanza is continued into the next stanza Example: See “Follower”

18. Rhetorical Question Definition: A question used to persuade or make the reader think