Literary Devices

Front 1

alliteration

Back 1

repeated use of consonant sound at the beginning of words

Ex. Try a trip by train.

Front 2

assonance

Back 2

repeated vowel sounds in words

Ex. The whole bowl of oats was thrown.

Front 3

consonance

Back 3

repeated consonant sounds at the end of words

Ex. I was too weak to speak Greek.

Front 4

stanza

Back 4

a group of lines of poetry

Front 5

metaphor

Back 5

comparison without "like" or "as"

Ex. He's a clown.

Front 6

simile

Back 6

comparison using "like" or "as"

ex. Your hands are as cold as ice.

Front 7

onomatopoeia

Back 7

words spelled like they sound

Ex. boom, crash, crisp, honk, tweet

Front 8

personification

Back 8

The description of a non-human thing using human characteristics

Ex. The sun hid behind the angry cloud.

Front 9

tone

Back 9

The feelings of an author about something, communicated via word choice

Front 10

mood

Back 10

The feeling the reader produced while reading a text, intentionally caused by the author's choice of words

Front 11

hyperbole

Back 11

Extreme exaggeration to make a strong point

Ex. I've driven around here a thousand times.

Front 12

protagonist

Back 12

The main character in a work of fiction

Ex. Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol

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antagonist

Back 13

A secondary character working against or opposite the protagonist to highlight the protagonist's behavior

Ex. Bob Cratchit in A Christmas Carol

Front 14

exposition

Back 14

The presentation of basic background info. at the beginning of a work of fiction

Front 15

rising action

Back 15

Mounting or growing tension between characters in a work of fiction

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climax

Back 16

Moment of maximum tension or conflict in a work of fiction

Front 17

falling action

Back 17

Follows climax; tension is reduced and things may or may not begin to return to normal

Front 18

conclusion/resolution

Back 18

End of a work of fiction which entails resolution of conflict

Front 19

imagery

Back 19

the use of vivid descriptions to create a picture in the reader's mind:

Exs. hyperbole, personification, simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia

Front 20

foreshadowing

Back 20

Hints of what will happen in the future to the character, which the character him/herself doesn't see, but the reader does. AND
Where future events in a story, or perhaps the outcome, are suggested by the author

Front 21

Irony

Back 21

Where an event occurs in absurd or mocking opposition to what is expected or appropriate.

Ex. The Gift of the Magi

Front 22

Tragedy

Back 22

Where a story ends with a negative or unfortunate outcome which was essentially avoidable, usually caused by a flaw in the central character’s personality

Front 23

Plot

Back 23

Sequence of events in a story

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Theme

Back 24

Main lesson or message of a piece of literature
Ex. A Christmas Carol contains themes of the evil of greed, and the importance of forgiveness and charity.

Front 25

Symbolism

Back 25

The use of specific, tangible Objects or images to represent abstract ideas
Ex. Money, cashboxes and ledgers are symbols of greed in A Christmas Carol by Dickens

Front 26

Narrator

Back 26

A character outside the story who helps present or explain the plot

Front 27

Point of view

Back 27

The identity of the narrative voice; the person or entity through whom the reader experiences the story. May be third-person (no narrator; omniscient or limited) or first-person (narrated by a character in the story)

Front 28

Setting

Back 28

The time and place a story occurs

Front 29

Conflict

Back 29

Struggle between opposing forces which is the driving energy of the story

Front 30

Repetition

Back 30

A specific word, phrase or structure is repeated in order to emphasize a particular idea

Ex. E.A.Poe's Raven: "Nevermore"

Front 31

chant

Back 31

musical beat to poetry

Front 32

free verse

Back 32

poetry which follows no specific rules of rhyme or meter

Front 33

cinquain

Back 33

five-line poem

Front 34

couplet

Back 34

two lines of rhyming poetry

Front 35

form/shape

Back 35

how the poem is presented on the page

Front 36

haiku

Back 36

three line, Japanese-style poem with a pattern of 5, 7, 5 syllables

Front 37

line

Back 37

a horizontal presentation of words in a poem

Front 38

rhyme

Back 38

words that end with the same sound

Front 39

rhyme scheme/pattern

Back 39

pattern of rhyme in a poem

Ex. A,B,A,B,C,C

Front 40

rhythm

Back 40

The "beat" produced by the pronunciation of stressed syllables in a line of poetry

Front 41

Flashback

Back 41

A character experiences vivid memories in a later time period

Ex. Scrooge's flashback to his lonely youth at boarding school while he accompanies the Ghost of Christmas Past