Literary Definitions
A character who contrasts with another character - usually the protagonist— to highlight particular qualities of the other character.
Foil
Ethos
In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo says, “My life were better ended by their hate, than death prorogued, wanting of thy love”
Foreshadowing
Indirectly referencing Alice in Wonderland by saying that you went "down a rabbit hole" with your research
Allusion
What is a theme that's explored in The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa?
Memory shapes identity.
A form of figurative language in which something that is not human is given human characteristics.
Personification
When words are used to suggest the opposite of the literal meaning
Verbal Irony
"“While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping / As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door." - "The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe
Onomatopoeia
When the ad says the phone has 512 GB and a 7 MP front camera, it's using this rhetorical appeal.
Logos
Who are five famous protagonists?
1. Harry Potter (Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling)
2. Elizabeth Bennet (Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen)
3. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee) –
4. Frodo Baggins (The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien)
5. Winston Smith (1984 by George Orwell)
The writer or speaker refers either directly or indirectly to a person, event, or thing in history or to a work of art or literature.
Allusion
A polite, indirect way of saying something harsh and rude, or unpleasant
Euphemism
"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."- F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby
Alliteration
A teacher trying to appeal to Gen Z students by saying, "I was just chilling at home, and then my bestie pulled up with the drip. No cap, her outfit was fire. I was shook."
Diction
What are two different literary devices that appear in the following sentence? "A cool breeze carried carnival music and the aroma of popcorn my way. Just over the rise the lights blinked in a million colors."
The author’s use of developing a character through speech, thoughts, emotions, actions, and looks.
Indirect Characterization
Combining two contradictory ideas or situations in a way that, although illogical, still seems to make sense
Paradox
Jay Gatsby's very large, grand, and loud mansion is next to Tom's small, quiet, and modest house in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Juxtaposition
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin begins with a quote from “Mary Don't You Weep": “God gave Noah the rainbow sign, / No more water, the fire next time!”
Epigraph
Give a shout out to three classmates. Explain what you admire or appreciate about each of them.
Answers will vary.
A repeated pattern—an image, sound, word, or symbol that comes back again and again within a particular story
Motif
The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues
Satire
In Hamlet's famous “To be or not to be” speech, Hamlet speaks aloud to himself as he considers whether to endure the hardships of life or end his life
Soliloquy
George Orwell famously critiqued the use of terms like "collateral damage" as a way to manipulate public perception and avoid confronting the true consequences of war
Euphemism
Name, define, and give examples of any five literary or rhetorical devices.
Answers will vary.