Definitions I
The literal meaning of a word.
Denotation
a reference to a preexisting person, work, event, or well-known piece of pop culture
Allusion
"A cool breeze carried carnival music and the aroma of popcorn my way. Just over the rise the lights blinked in a million colors."
Imagery
“The raging winds,” “The wise owl,” and “The warm and comforting fire”
Personification
The continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line.
Enjambment
The idea or feeling evoked by a word.
Connotation
an object, a person, a situation, or an action that has a literal meaning in a story but suggests or represents other meanings
Symbol
“The sun was a toddler insistently refusing to go to bed: It was past eight-thirty and still light.”
Metaphor
The way Morrison uses the names of characters in Song of Solomon
Motif
The line from the famed poem Ancient Mariner, “We were the first that ever burst”.
Internal rhyme
A comparison using like or as
Simile
Visually descriptive or sensory language
Imagery
The slaughterhouse in Slaughterhouse-Five.
A symbol
The reader's awareness that Billy Pilgrim is insane even though he is not aware of it.
Dramatic Irony
A lyric poem in the form of an address to a particular subject and in praise of that subject.
An ode
a great exaggeration, often unrealistic, to add emphasis to a sentiment
Hyperbole
A character who contrasts with another character - usually the protagonist— to highlight particular qualities of the other character.
A foil
Clary closed her cluttered clothes closet.
Alliteration
Slaughterhouse-Five is written from this narrative point of view.
1st Person
Poem with no rhyme scheme and no meter.
Free verse
the substitution of the name of an attribute or adjunct for that of the thing meant
Metonymy
any distinctive feature or idea that recurs across a story and contributes to a work's meaning or theme
Motif
"Gentlemen! You can't fight in here! This is the war room!"
Verbal Irony
"The pen is mightier than the sword."
Metonymy
The rhyme scheme used in all of Shakespeare's Sonnets
ABABCDCDEFEFGG