Figurative Language
If you've ever responded to betrayal with a dramatic cry of "Et tu, Brute?" ("You too, Brutus?"), then you've made this kind of reference to Julius Caesar
What is an ALLUSION?
Figure that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel of truth or reason: "Life is much too important to be taken seriously."
What is a PARADOX?
First sentence(s) of a written piece and helps catch the reader's attention. Can consist of dialogue, a thought-provoking question or quote, a startling fact, an anecdote, etc.
What is a HOOK?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!! A type of poem that tells a story and was traditionally set to music, typically composed of four-line stanzas that follow an ABCB rhyme scheme.
What is a BALLAD?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!! A comparison that aims to explain by likening one thing to something else: "Being the successful boss or CEO of a company is like being an orchestra conductor: Both have to to stand up front where everyone can see."
What is an ANALOGY?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!! A person, thing, event, or way of speaking that is deliberately placed in the wrong time period as way of commenting on the events that transpire. For instance, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson having a rap battle that represents the Founder's debates over Federalist tax policies.
What is an ANACHRONISM?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!! Element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Made of collections of related symbols that develop the central themes of a book or play. In Romeo & Juliet, opposite symbols are juxtaposed next to each other throughout the play, such as night and day, moon and sun, crows and swans.
What is a MOTIF?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!! "You can't always get what you want." These are often (though not always) witty or humorous, and they're used everywhere, from philosophical texts and great works of literature, to pop songs and everyday conversation.
What is an APHORISM?
Name given to poetry that lacks rhyme but does follow a specific meter--usually iambic pentameter if the poem is in English. EX: "It is not nor it cannot come to good, / But break, my heart, for I must hold my tongue."
What is BLANK VERSE?
Words that sound pleasant together because they contain lots of consonants with soft sounds like L, M, N, and R) instead of consonants with harsh, percussive sounds (like T, P, and K): "So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,/ So long lives this, and this gives life to thee."
What is EUPHONY?
A figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses someone (or something) that is not present or cannot respond in reality such as an abstract idea (like love or fate), or a being (such as a Muse or god).
What is APOSTROPHE?
The writer attributes human emotions to things that aren't human, often used to make the environment reflect the inner experience of a narrator or other characters. EX: If a writer mourning the death of a loved one writes that "the flowers on the grave drooped in sadness." FYI: This is BIGGER than "Personification."
What is the PATHETIC FALLACY?
The use of humor, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule to criticize something or someone. It's an entertaining form of social commentary, and it occurs in many forms: Alec Baldwin's impersonation of Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live is an example.
What is SATIRE?
The continuation of a sentence across a line break without any terminating punctuation mark, such as "I became a rabbit /Just the other day"
What is ENJAMBMENT?
Name given to poetry that doesn't use any strict meter or rhyme scheme or required number of beats per line. EX: William Carlos Williams's short poem "The Red Wheelbarrow" is written in free verse. It reads: "so much depends / upon/a red wheel/barrow / glazed with rain / water / beside the white / chickens."
What is FREE VERSE?
A figure of speech and a form of understatement in which a sentiment is expressed ironically by negating its contrary. EX: "It's not the best weather today" during a hurricane.
What is LITOTES?
The final section of a story's plot, in which loose ends are tied up, lingering questions are answered. This follows the story's RESOLUTION, and may be considered a scene that occurs "The day after" the end of the actual story
What is the DENOUEMENT?
If a person asks, "How many times do have to tell you not to eat my dessert?" the speaker's goal is to emphasize his or her growing frustration and ideally change the behavior by using this.
What is a RHETORICAL QUESTION?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!!! An poem of serious reflection, especially one mourning after the death of a person a or even an idea.
What is an ELEGY?
Excessive pride or overconfidence, which drives a person to overstep limits in a way that leads to their downfall. In Greek mythology, the legend of Icarus: Icarus is given artificial wings made of wax and feathers so that he can fly (a superhuman feat), but he ignores his father's warnings and flies too close to the sun, melting his wings and drowning in the ocean.
What is HUBRIS?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!! Unfolds across multiple lines or even paragraphs of a text, making use of multiple interrelated figures within an overarching one. "Life is a highway" may become "Life is a highway that takes us through green pastures, vast deserts, and rocky mountains. Sometimes your car breaks down."
What is an EXTENDED METAPHOR?
A piece of information in a story that distracts readers from an important truth, or leads them to mistakenly expect a particular outcome. A "false clue"-a piece of evidence that misleads readers to believe that a crime (or other action) was committed by someone other than the actual culprit.
What is a RED HERRING?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!! A statement that gives the opposing view of the author's. It acknowledges the other side of a perspective for the purpose of de-legitimizing that claim.
What is a COUNTERARGUMENT?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!!!! She sells seashells by the seashore is an example of what type of figurative language?
What is ALLITERATION?
DOUBLE JEOPARDY!!! When an author places two things side by side as a way of highlighting their differences. In fairy tales, the good-natured main character is often paired with a cruel step-sibling or step-parent.
What is JUXTAPOSITION?