Examples
In this chuckle-worthy passage from Purple Hibiscus, Kambili is following her dad up the stairs and describing what she sees, requiring the reader to visually process the scene. This would be an example of what literary element? ___________________
"As he climbed the stairs in his red silk pajamas, his buttocks quickered and shook like akamu, properly made akamu, jellylike."
Imagery
figure of speech that treats something nonhuman as if it were a person by giving it humanlike qualities
Personification
The maximum score you can earn on the Prose Essay Rubric is
6
This woman, the first ever inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, used the metaphor of "kisses sweeter than honey."
Aretha Franklin
In Things Fall Apart, the narrator describes how Ikemefuna "grew rapidly like a yam tendril in the rainy season." This is an example of _____________
simile AND/OR imagery
In Their Eyes Were Watching God, Janie realizes that Joe Starks wants only her submission to him as a husband. This realization is something that we would call an ____________.
Epiphany
Person, place, thing, or event that represents or stands for something else
Symbol
Once you read the prompt, what should you do next in order to focus your reading of the passage (BEFORE you even start reading the passage)?
Turn the prompt into a question
If you aren't sure what literary element a piece of evidence is, but you KNOW it's an important part of the passage and you want to include it in your essay, a good approach is to call it ___________
a key detail
the author's selection of detail
In Their Eyes Were Watching God, Daisy is a character that the women are mesmerized by and the men are enchanted with. When she comes around and the men flock to her, one character says, "It must be uh recess in heben if St. Peter is lettin' his angels out lak dis." This remark is an example of _________________
allusion AND metaphor (either gets you points)
In the excerpt below from Purple Hibiscus, the characters' dialogue reveals a CONFLICT about what? Hint: It's NOT diction
"The Standard would never write this nonsense," Papa said..."Not to talk of calling the man a 'president.'"
"'President' assumes he was elected," Jaja said. "'Head of state' is the right term."
Conflict over word choice/diction; connotation vs denotation
side by side placement of two ideas or things, to create contrast, tension, or emphasis
Juxtaposition
True or False:
You should annotate the passage carefully to find each and every one of the literary elements
FALSE! Annotate the passage to identify how you want to answer the prompt, and then only worry about identifying the literary elements or techniques represented in your chosen evidence
Denotatively speaking, this is the very center of an archery or darts target. Connotatively speaking, it means to be "right on" or get something just right.
Bullseye!
In Wuthering Heights, Catherine says the she and Heathcliff will not be parted, and whoever keeps them apart will "meet the fate of Milo," the greek athlete who was punished and eaten by wolves. This is an example of _________________
allusion
If I am analyzing the way There There uses short, pointed, sentences, I am analyzing ____________
Syntax
the way words are put together to form phrases, clauses, and sentences
Syntax
The Prose Essay prompt varies in terms of what it might focus on (character, setting, tone, emotions, etc), but it will ALWAYS ask you to focus on something that is
complex!
So, if the focus is on setting, you'll being analyzing the complex portrayal of the setting
If it's on a character's emotions, you'll be analyzing the character's complex emotions.
In the world of sports, this athlete gave us the famous back-to-back similes AND juxtaposition evident in "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."
Muhammad Ali
In Things Fall Apart, Nwoye and Maduka are both sons, but one is curious and gentle, and the other traditional and aggressive. We would say that these two characters together are an example of ___________
Juxtaposition; conflict; complexity
In Wuthering Heights, Nelly says that Mr. Linton will stay by Catherine out of a sense of "duty" and "humanity." Heathcliff argues that he can't possibly leave Catherine to his "duty and humanity." The disagreement here is because of the ______________ that each character assigns to those words.
Connotation
sudden revelation of truth
Epiphany
What is one strategy we have learned that you can use if you know that you will have a hard time writing a full essay in the amount of time given?
Answers vary, but can include:
Limit the intro to the thesis only
Aim for only 2 body paragraphs
Skip the conclusion
If you use this phrase to analyze imagery, Dr. Ray will feed your essay to her neighbor's pet.
Paints a picture/paints a mental picture
In Othello, Iago plans to put in motion extensive deceit and lies, and he describes it as "setting down the pegs that make this music." This is an example of what literary element or technique?
Metaphor