Poet's Toolbox

Front 1

Simile - A comparison using "like" or "as" between two unlike things that have something important in common.

Back 1

Same as Metaphor.

O my Love's like a red, red rose, that's newly sprung in June (Robert Burns)

Front 2

Metaphor - An implied comparison between two unlike things that have something important in common.

Back 2

Clarifies the qualities of the thing the author is comparing-- e.g., hope, like a bird, sings and gives happiness to a person.

Hope is a thing with feathers (Emily Dickinson)

Front 3

Extended Metaphor - A metaphor that continues for several stanzas or the length of a poem.

Back 3

By using this device, the author can thoroughly examine the similarities between the two unlike things.

"The Fog" by Robert Frost is a short poem with extended metaphor.

Front 4

Personification - A device where inanimate objects are given human characteristics.

Back 4

Helps the reader understand the purposed or visualize the inanimate object. Heightens the importance of the object.

The eyes of the old house watch me as I pass by ( Sharon Ruebel)

Front 5

Allusion - A device where the speaker refers to something that the reader needs prior knowledge of or experience with in order to understand.

Back 5

It functions similarly to a Metaphor. The reader can understand a complex concept quickly.

This sports team is a Cinderella story!

Front 6

Apostrophe - A device where the speaker talks directly to an absent person, living or dead, or even a nonexistent person or thing as if it was capable of understanding.

Back 6

Heightens the emotion of the poem.

O, Death, be not proud (John Donne)

Front 7

Vivid Word Choice - A device where the author chooses nouns, adjectives, or verbs that paint a strong mental picture and often have layers of meaning.

Back 7

Helps the reader visualize the images.

Instead of saying " The dogs are mean," the author says. " The dogs prowled, looking to attack."

Front 8

Juxtaposition - Placing two things that directly oppose each other (often abstract concepts) near each other or directly side-by-side so the reader can compare them.

Back 8

Helps the reader see the differences and similarities between the two thing being juxtaposed and come to a deeper understanding of both.

" A Long Walk to Water," or Love is like a soft cushion to sleep on and Hate is a stone.

Front 9

Alliteration - The repetition of beginning consonant sound.

Back 9

Creates rhythm, mood, and emphasizes the phrase.

Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before ( Edgar Allen Poe)

Front 10

Onomatopoeia - Words that imitate the sound they are.

Back 10

Creates a strong mental image.Bark, buzz, squishy

Front 11

Repetition - When the author repeats something.

Back 11

Creates emphasis, rhythm, mood.

Front 12

Assonance - Repetition of internal vowels

Back 12

Helps create rhyme, mood, and musicality in a poem.

The crumbling thunder of seas ( Robert Louis Stevenson)

Front 13

Consonance - Repetition of ending (of the word or stressed syllable) consonant sound

Back 13

Helps create rhythm and mood and emphasize a phrase.

Do not go gentle into that good night (Dylan Thomas)

Front 14

Rhyme Scheme - The pattern of rhyme in a poem

Back 14

Creates rhythmic, memorable language and makes the poem "sing." Also, when the pattern is broken, can create emphasis.

Front 15

Line Length - The numbers of words in a line.

Back 15

Short lines can provide emphasis or give a choppy feel to the rhythm. On the other hand, long lines can heighten emotion.

Front 16

Poetic Inversion - When a poet deliberately writes a sentence in a grammatical unusual way.

Back 16

Catches the reader's attention, highlights the information in the line, or keeps the rhythm of the poem.Like men, we'll face the murderous, cowardly pack. (Claude McKay)