Literary Terms/Poetic Devices and Forms

all-knowing narrator: says the facts but also shows the thoughts and feelings of any character

clues as to what is to come later in a literary work

the expression of the author's, speaker's or narrator's attitude.

the facts of a story are reported by a seemingly neutral, impersonal observer or recorder

when the reader or audience knows more about a character's situation than the character does.

a sonnet consisting of 3 quatrains and a final couplet with the rhyme scheme abab cdcd efef gg.

when what is expected is different from what actually occurs.

the opposition of two forces or characters

the implied meaning of a word

a statement that uses extreme exaggeration to get an emotional response.

a poetic meter in a pattern of stressed-stressed syllables; like faithful and freshness

the perspective from which a story is told

the feeling the story creates in you as a reader

a type of rhyme where either the consonants or the vowels match but not both.

when a character has a sudden insight or realization that changes his or her understanding

repetitive sounds produced by consonants within a sentence or phrase

regular rhythmic patterns in poetry, measured in units called feet.

the main character who struggles for something.

a comparison of 2 different things where one thing is said to be another

 literary device where two or more words in a phrase share the same beginning sound

a statement that appears to be contradictory but contains a basis of truth

character whose telling of the story is not credible due to mental state or maturity

a poem consisting of 14 lines rhyming: abbaabba cdcdcd

the writer's choice of words

poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular meter.

a brief mention of a person, place, thing, idea of historical, cultural, literary importance  

point of view where the story is narrated by one character at a time; pronouns: I, me, we

the close repetition of sounds

comparison using like or as

narrator reports the facts and interprets events from the perspective of a single character

What kind of rhyme is this...sky/high

Poetic meter in a pattern of unstressed-stressed; like Inez.

 speaker conveys less importance than the subject would seem to demand; used for comedic effect

the assumed identity of the writer or the fictional "I".

a character who does not change over the course of the literary work.

a figure of speech containing 2 apparently contradictory terms; ex. Jumbo shrimp

the fixed pattern of rhyme for an entire poem

the use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning.

a form of symbolism in which objects , setting and characters represent abstract ideas.

Poem with unrhymed iambic pentameter: also defined as poetry that has no rhyme but has meter.

includes the time, place and environment of the story

point of view using he, she, it, or they.

the voice that is telling you the story; it is typically not the author

a unit of rhythm in poetry; the count of stressed and unstressed syllables in each word

Poetic meter of stressed-unstressed; like Trudy

a character who changes over the course of the literary work.

the central meaning of a literary work-different than the central subject

repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words

the character in opposition to the main character

Poetic meter in a pattern of unstressed, unstressed, stressed; like Mary-Kate

 figurative language used to represent objects, actions and ideas to appeal to our senses

Poetic meter in a pattern of stressed-unstressed-unstressed; like syllable

the literal meaning of a word