Allegory: Hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.

Alliteration: The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.
Ex: Alice’s aunt ate apples and acorns around August.

Analogy: Comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared to another thing that is quite different from it.
Ex: You are as annoying as nails on a chalkboard. You must be pretty annoying for someone to say that.

Antithesis: Two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect.
Ex: Antithesis of friendly is a grump.

Allusion is a brief reference to a person, event, or place, real or fictitious, or to a work of art. Casual reference to a famous historical or literary figure or event. An allusion may be drawn from history, geography, literature, or religion.

Cacophony: Use of words with sharp, harsh, hissing and unmelodious sounds.

Conflict is the struggle found in fiction. Conflict/Plot may be internal or external and is best seen in (1) Man/Woman in conflict with another Man/Woman: (2) Man/Woman in conflict in Nature; (3) Man/Woman in conflict with self.

READ:
David Williamson’s The Club: Summary, Theme, Analysis

Diction: Choice of words which separates good writing from bad writing.

Flashback is action that interrupts to show an event that happened at an earlier time which is necessary for better understanding.

Foreshadowing is the use of hints or clues to suggest what will happen later in literature.

Hyperbole: Exaggeration of ideas for the sake of emphasis.

Imagery: Use of particular words that create visual representation of ideas in our minds.

Irony: Words used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words.

Metaphor:  Draws resemblance without the help of the words “like” or “as”.

Oxymoron: Combination of an adjective proceeded by a noun with contrasting meanings.

Onomatopoeia: Sound effect that mimics the thing described.

Personification: A thing, an idea or an animal is given human attributes.

Point of view: Mode of narration.

Pun: Play on words in which a humorous effect is produced by using a word that suggests two or more meanings or by exploiting similar sounding words having different meanings.

Satire: Comical piece of writing which makes fun of an individual or a society to expose its stupidity and shortcomings.

READ:
What is Location, Time, Space, Tone, Tropology?

Setting: The place or type of surroundings where something is positioned or where an event takes place.

Simile is the comparison of two unlike things using like or as. Example: He eats like a pig. Vines like golden prisons.

Stanza: In poetry are similar to paragraphs.

Theme is the general idea or insight about life that a writer wishes to express. All of the elements of literary terms contribute to theme. A simple theme can often be stated in a single sentence.

Tone: Attitude of a writer toward a subject or an audience.

author avatar
William Anderson (Schoolworkhelper Editorial Team)
William completed his Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts in 2013. He current serves as a lecturer, tutor and freelance writer. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, walking his dog and parasailing. Article last reviewed: 2022 | St. Rosemary Institution © 2010-2024 | Creative Commons 4.0

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