| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Analogy | a literary device employed to serve as a basis for comparison |
| Simile | an indirect comparison that uses the words like or as to link the different items in the comparison (her eyes were like the stars of heaven) |
| Metaphor | a direct comparison between dissimilar things (Here eyes were the stars lighting up the night) |
| Personification | the assigning of human qualities to inanimate objects or concepts |
| Allusion | a reference to a notable person, place, or even contained in a text (The Herculian task daunted him, "Let Heaven requite it with the serpent's curse") |
| Images/imagery | an impression or visual effect created by an author through the use of language that appeals to the senses |
| Pun | a play on words that often has a comic effect. Associated with wit and cleverness |
| Euphemism | a more acceptable and usually more pleasant way of saying something that might be inappropriate or uncomfortable (Sanitation engineer - "putting the dog to sleep") |
| Metonymy | a figure of speech in which a representative term is used for a larger idea (the white house released a statement today) |
| Synecdoche | a figure of speech that utilizes a part as a representative of the whole (all hands on deck, lend me your ears, i need a hand) |
| Periphrasis | the use of circumlocution |
| Apostrophe | a figure of speech in which someone absent or dead or something nonhuman is addressed as if it were alive and present and could reply |
| Symbol/symbolism | something in a literary text that stands for something else |
| Motif | the repetition or variation of an image or idea in a literary text used to develop theme of character |
| Archetype | a character type or an image that recurs consistently enough in life and literature to be considered universal (paradise as a garden) |
| Irony | an unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended or expected to happen |
| Oxymoron | an image of contradictory terms |
| Paradox | a statement that, while apparently self-contradictory, is nonetheless essentially true |
| Dramatic irony | centers around the ignorance of those involved: whereas, the audience is aware of the circumstance ("Honest Iago") |
| Situation irony | a situation in which what happens is different from what the reader expects or what the characters expect |
Combine with other sets
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