Metaphor
One thing is compared to something very different
Simile
Comparison of two dissimilar things using as, like, or than
Metonymy
Metaphor in which the things aren’t that different (figurative language and literal are similar)
Synecdoche
Part of a thing used in place of a whole
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Conceit
Surprising and unusual comparison between two very different things
Pun
Word play in which a phrase or word has two different meanings of have the same sound
Personification
Human characteristics given to nonhuman thing
Apostrophe
Addressing an absent person or a personified thing (“i can’t wait to see you again, it’s only a matter of time…..”
Symbol
Anything that represents something else, usually an idea or abstraction
Onomatopeia
Words that imitate sounds
Irony
Technique that involves interesting contradictions; verbal irony uses the opposite meanings of words
Paradox
Statement that seems contradictory but actually contains truth
Oxymoron
Juxtaposing two contradictory terms
Hyperbole
Exaggeration on purpose
Litotes
An affirmation expressed by the negation of its opposite (“This is no small problem”)
Tone
Writers attitude toward subject
Mood
Atmosphere created by words
Diction
Word choice
Rhyme
Repetition of sounds at the ends of words
Masculine rhyme
Single stressed ending syllable (the cat in the hat)
Feminine rhyme
Rhyme with two sounds that rhyme with the second syllable unstressed (pleasure and treasure)
Internal rhyme
Rhyme within a single line of poetry
Near, slant, approximate rhyme
Similar but not identical sounds
Alliteration
Repetition of initial consonant sounds
Assonance
Repetition of similar vowel sounds with different consonant sounds
Consonance
Religion of consonant sounds with different vowel sounds preceding
Sonnet
A 14-line poem usually composed of a statement and a resolution
English/Shakespearean sonnet
3 quatrains and a couplet (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG)
Italian/petrachan sonnet
Octave and sestet (ABBA ABBA CDE)
Ballad
Narrative poem intended to be sung and broken into refrains
Epic
Long narrative poem about adventure of gods or hero
Folk epic
Anonymous author, passed down by talking
Literary epic
Crafted by one poet
Elegy
Lyric poem about death
Lyric
Poem that expresses feelings of single speaker but does not tell full story
Allegory
Work with two levels of meaning, one literal and one symbolic
Narrative
Tells a story in verse
Didactic
It’s purpose is to teach a moral lesson
Villanelle
19-line French verse form with lots of refrains and lastly and ABA rhyme scheme
Pastoral
Poem which deals with pleasures of simple rural lofe
Ode
Long and formal poem with serious theme
Dramatic monologue
Poem in which an imaginary character speaks to a silent listener
Stanza
Group of lines in a poem considered a unit
Couplet
2 lines
Tercet
3 lines
Quatrain
4 lines
Sestet
6 lines
Octave
8 lines
Blank verse
Unrhymed iambic pentameter
Free verse
Poetry not written in regular meter
Antithesis
Contrasting or paradoxical ideas presented in parallel form
Allusion
Reference to a well known thing like the bible
Aphorism/epigram
A general truth or observation about life, usually stated pointedly
Denotation
The object meaning of a word independent of any associations one may make with it
Connotations
The associations one makes with a word
Heroic/closed couplet
Rhymed pair of iambic pentameter lines that form a complete thought
Imagery
Descriptive language used to recreate the sensory experience
Mock epic
Poem about a trivial matter written in serious epic style
Run on line
Line of poetry that does not stop at the end of the line
Scansion
Process of analyzing the metrical pattern of a poem
Speaker
The imaginary voice assumed by the writer of the poem
Sibilant
Characterized by use of z or s sounds
Theme
A central idea, concern, or purpose in a literary work
Foot
Combination of stressed and unstressed syllables
Dissonance/cacophony
Harsh or disagreeable sounds
Plosive
Sounds like D or PT
Euphony
Agreeable sounds
This card is unnecessary but I couldn’t have 99 cause it would bother me so yup good luck on the test
Metaphor example
“Death, that long sleep.
“
Simile example
“The two sisters were like blossoms on a stem.”
Metonym example
“For a handful of silver he betrayed me.”
Synecdoche example
“O, beautiful, for pilgrims feet…
“
Conceit example
Dionne’s comparison of God to a gypsy thinker
Pun example
“She used to be Snow White but she drifted.”
Personification example
“Bright star, would I were as steadfast as thou art.”
Apostrophe example
“Brought star, would I were steadfast…”
Symbol example
Red rose = love
Onomatopoeia example
“My mother set up sounds that slugged and thumped for hours.”
Irony example
“Yes, curious and quaint war is.
“
Paradox example
“Unless you imprison me, I shall never become free.”
Oxymoron example
“Darkness visisble”
Hyperbole example
“I will love thee, my dear, till the seas run dry.”
Litotes example
“This is no small problem.
“
Feminine rhyme example
Pleasure and treasure
Masculine rhyme example
The cat in the hat
Internal rhyme example
“All is seared with trade, blender, smeared with toll.”
Near/slant/approximate rhyme example
Love and prove
Assonance example
“In XandU did KUbla Khan…” Geez what kind of example is that
Consonance example
“Over hill and dale”
Sibilant example
“Soft in the moon the white road lies.”
Plosive example
“Batter my heart, three-personed God.
“
Folk epic example
Beowulf
Literary epic
Paradise lost
Allegory example
Lord of the flies
Narrative example
The rime of the ancient mariner” (apparently that’s a book?)
Villanelle example
“Do not go gentle into that good night”
Dramatic monologue
Mary robt. Browning poems
Antithesis example
“To err is human, to forgive, divine.”
Allusion example
“By cupid’s strongest bow…”
Heroic/closed couplet example
“True ease in writing comes from art, not chance, As those move easiest have learned to dance.”
