Literary Techniques
Literary techniques are used in text to express artistic meaning through the use of language.
Active Voice
Allegory
Alliteration
Allusion
Analogy
Antithesis
Apostrophe
Argument
A verb is said to be in the active voice if the subject acts on the object.
Eg. Peter shot the bull.
Story with a double meaning: one primary (on the surface) and one secondary.
The presentation of an idea or subject not directly, but by means of symbols. This means that it can be
understood at two levels: the obvious one where a story is told, and the deeper one, where the real
meaning is understood. An example of allegory is George Orwell’s Animal Farm, which, on the surface,
is a story about power struggles between animals in a farmyard. At a deeper level it is about the abuse
of power by some forms of political structures, in this case, totalitarian government.
Repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of two or more consecutive, or nearly consecutive,
words in a sentence or phrase so that similar sounds follow each other. Eg. ‘Sleepy snakes sizzle in the
sun’ or ‘five flags flapped forth’
Refers to something in passing, assuming that the audience is familiar with the reference, which might
be to mythology, history, religion or literature. Eg. ‘He’s just suffering from sour grapes’ is an allusion to
one of Aesop’s fables.
The drawing of a comparison between things that are partially similar – to draw an analogy between the
functioning of the heart and the functioning of a pump.
A form of contrast where opposing ideas are balanced against each other. Eg. ‘Many are called but few
are chosen’ & ‘heard melodies are sweet but those unheard are sweeter’.
• A mark denoting possession or abbreviation
• A figure of speech in which an object or an absent/dead person is addressed in order to
concentrate the attention of the audience on a particular idea or notion. Eg. O Death, where is thy
sting?
The marshalling of a series of points with supporting evidence with the intention of convincing the
audience of the truth of some statement or idea. To present an effective argument, you would need
evidence to support your viewpoint, and this evidence would have to be given in a logical and convincing
way.
Assonance
Atmosphere
Audience
Balanced Sentence
Bathos
Bias
Circumlocution
Cliché
Climax
Colloquial Language
Connotation
Consonance
Contrast
Criticism
The use of a series of similar vowel sounds in words that occur in the same sentence or phrase. The
sounds do not have to be identical, but can just be similar.
The creation of a particular environment in which the surrounding feelings and actions of characters all
combine to convey a definite impression. Eg. Eerie atmosphere, suggesting impending doom, darkness
and the supernatural.
Any person or persons whom the speaker or writer intends should hear, see or read the communication
that they have made. Sometimes the audience that is apparently the target is not the only person
intended to be reached.
A sentence that has two ideas and is usually separated by a semi-colon. Both parts of the sentence
express connected ideas.
A failed attempt to arouse the feelings of the audience by an appeal to their emotions. If you find yourself
laughing when the writer clearly meant you to be deeply moved and sad, then you have bathetic
communication.
The tendency to present one side of an argument unfairly, or to be so prejudiced that you cannot accept
any points against your own ideas.
A fault in expression where the person goes round and round in circles, either never getting to the point
of the communication, or confusing and boring the audience so much that the point is not recognised
when it is reached.
An over-used, common expression that when first used was arresting and effective but through overuse
has become almost meaningless. Eg. ‘He was as mas as a cut snake’ and ‘my heart was in my throat’.
This is a rhetorical device in which the arrangement of ideas is in a series, in ascending order of
importance. The climax is the peak to which ideas and actions build, and is the most exciting or
important part of a play, novel or poem. It is built up by a series of events, and therefore appears near
the end of the chapter, novel, play etc.
Anti-climax occurs when details are added that weaken, rather than strengthen, the climax.
The everyday, spoken, informal language that most people use in ordinary communication.
The implied associated meanings that a word collects about itself as it is used in language over a period
of time. Also seen as the emotional overtone that expands the denotation.
Repetition of consonants throughout a sentence or phrase.
This occurs when an idea or image is set against another in order to emphasise some particular quality.
Paradox, antithesis, oxymoron, juxtaposition, contrast in description etc.
The systematic examination of any form of communication in order to discover its strengths and
weaknesses.
Cumulation
Denotation
Didactic
Direct Speech
Disjunction
Ellipsis
Emotive language
Emphasis
Enjambment
Epigram
Euphemism
Exclamation
Feeling
Form
Figurative language &
sound devices
Fractured / truncated
sentences
Gaps & silences
Generalisations
Humour
Hyperbole
The accumulation of images or ideas, one after the other, so that each reinforces the other, producing
an effect stronger than any part taken by itself.
The dictionary meaning of a word.
Any text that instructs the reader or is obviously delivering a moral message.
This refers to the words that were actually spoken; sometimes referred to as ‘reported speech’ because
the actual spoken words are written and placed in inverted commas.
A conjunction (e.g. ‘but’ or ‘yet’) that dramatically interrupts rhythm of sentence.
A dramatic pause (…) creates tension or suggests words can’t be spoken. The omission of words
necessary to complete the sentence grammatically, although the audience understands the meaning
because of the words remaining.
Words that stir the readers’ emotions.
To increase the importance or significance of a word, an image or an idea by the use of techniques of
juxtaposition or by repetition or some other form of stress, such as intensity or force of expression in
spoken English.
A poetic technique, when a sentence or phrase runs over more than one line (or stanza). This assists
the flow of a poem.
A rhetorical device that is closely identified with a wise proverb.
Mild, indirect or often vague expression used to replace a harsh, embarrassing or upsetting one.
Exclamatory sentence ending in “!” to convey high emotion.
There is a close association between mood and feeling. It is the creation of a certain emotion by the
writer or speaker in the audience. For example, you could have a feeling of horror, an atmosphere that is
eerie, and a mood of desolation and despair.
Purpose and features of a text influence its construction and will suggest its structure.
Metaphor, metonymy, hyperbole, simile, personification, assonance, alliteration, consonance,
onomatopoeia, etc. These devices have a powerful impact as they work on our senses to strengthen the
subject matter of the text.
Incomplete sentences used to increase tension or urgency, or reflect the way people speak to each
other.
What is not said; whose voice isn’t heard and whose voice dominates?
These are sweeping statements that cannot, in most cases, be literally true.
Incongruity, parody, satire, exaggeration, irony, puns etc. used to lighten the overall tone.
The use of extravagant exaggeration for a certain effect. Hyperbole is not meant to be taken literally, it is
an obvious exaggeration.
Icons
Imagery
Imperative Voice
Indirect Speech
Intertextuality
Inversion
Irony
Journalese
Juxtaposition
Level of usage of
language
Linear
Metaphor
Metonymy
Modality
Mood
Non-linear
Objective
Onomatopoeia
Oxymoron
A single person, object or image that represents complex ideas and feelings.
The creation in the imagination of a powerful, vivid impression that uses the senses of sight, hearing,
touch, smell or taste, created by words.
Forceful use of the verb at the start of sentence or phrase. A verb in the imperative expresses a
command.
The form used for reporting direct speech. Eg. “I’m coming over tomorrow” becomes ‘She’s coming over
tomorrow’.
A text makes a reference to other texts, may be explicit, implied or inferred.
This technique reverses the normal sentence order and puts the emphasis on the first part of the
sentence including an idea or image. Eg. “Quoth the raven ‘Never more’”
Subtle mockery or humour that implies the opposite to the normal or apparent meaning of the work,
phrase or statement. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience is aware of some significant fact that
the characters of a play are not.
The level of language associated with the press, in particular, popular newspapers and magazines,
which is characterised by the use of clichés, colloquial structures and repetitious images.
Layering contrasting images/scenes to have a dramatic impact.
Two broad divisions of language usage into formal and informal. Formal language is very correct in its
structure and word choice. Informal language is relaxed and conversational.
Sequential – in chronological order.
A figure of speech which compares two essentially dissimilar things by identifying one as being the other
– adds further layers of meaning about object being compared. The intention when using a metaphor is
to vividly present a particular quality that the two things share. An extended metaphor occurs when the
comparison originally made is continued for some time.
The substitution of one single word to stand for an idea.
The force the words are delivered at. High modality = forceful. Low modality = gentle.
The creation in the audience of a state of mind that is made up of certain feelings and emotions. Eg. A
mood of despair may be created using the feelings of sadness, resignation and hopelessness.
Non-sequential narrative, events do not occur in chronological order
The viewpoint of a person who does not allow his or her personal feelings and opinions to influence their
judgement.
A word that echoes the sound it represents. Reader hears what is happening.
Eg. Buzz, tinkle, crash, boing.
A rhetorical device that compresses a paradox into one brief expression. Eg. An open secret.
Paradox
Parody
Passive Voice
Pathos
Person
Persona
Personification
Perspective
Persuasive Language
Plosive consonants
Pun
Repetition
Representation
Rhetorical Devices
Rhetorical Questions
A rhetorical device and a statement, which is an apparent contradiction, but actually contains a hidden
truth. Eg. The child is father to the man.
Conscious imitation of a writer’s style or work for a satiric purpose.
A verb is said to be in the passive voice when the sentence is turned in such a way that the action
expressed by the verb has its effect on the subject. In the passive voice, the person/thing doing the
action is characteristically preceded by ‘by’ and follows the verb. Eg. Mary was hurt by Paul.
The creation of strong pity and sympathy for someone or something.
First, second or third person. First person refers to the speaker himself or a group that includes the
speaker (i.e., I, me, we and us).Second person refers to the speaker’s audience (i.e., you).Third person
refers to everybody else (e.g., he, him, she, her, it, they, them), including all other nouns (e.g. James,
Swedish, fish, mice).
This is the personality that the writer or speaker pretends to be, especially in poetry, where a poet will
assume a particular personality of an imaginary character in order to vividly create convincing images of
a certain time and place.
A figurative device that is a form of metaphor, which attributes human or living characteristics to nonliving objects, or ideas. Personification allows inanimate objects to take on a life.
A particular way of looking at individuals, issues, events, texts, facts etc.
This is also known as coloured language, emotive language or effective language. Persuasive language
uses all the techniques of English usage to create certain emotions in the audience, usually with a view
to changing attitudes and opinions, or to modify behaviour.
Harsh sounds in a sentence or phrase.
Often criticised as being the weakest type of joke, a pun relies on the fact that English words often have
more than one distinct meaning. A pun is therefore a deliberate play on words. Eg. Life depends on the
liver.
The deliberate use of a word, an idea, a phrase or an image over and over again to increase the impact
or to paint a more vivid picture. Repetition becomes a serious fault in writing if it is not used carefully and
sparingly.
How a composer conveys meaning through textual features.
Refers to structures or patterns of words used to make the ideas those words express, more striking or
easier to understand (refer to epigram, paradox, oxymoron, climax, irony).
These questions are included to focus the attention of the audience on a particular point being made. It
is not intended that the rhetorical questions be answered, but that they direct attention, encouraging the
responder to think about the idea or point and thus emphasise an idea.
Rhyme
Rhythm
Satire
Setting
Sibilance
Simile
Style
Subjective
Symbolism
Syntax – sentence
structure
Tautology
Tense
Theme
Tone
Words or syllables that have the same, or very similar, sounds.
A regular pattern of stresses and pauses in language, where certain words and syllables receive more
emphasis than others.
A composition in which faults in society are held up to ridicule in a scornful and/or humorous way to
make the audience aware of their existence. Unlike parody, satire always has an underlying
seriousness.
Location of a story – internal and external.
Repetition of ‘s’ – can sounds melodious and sweet or cold and icy.
A figure of speech that incorporates a comparison, using ‘like’ or ‘as’, of two objects that for the most
part differ but have some point of resemblance. Eg. The sky was as black as ebony.
The individual way in which a person expresses himself or herself when using language. People may
vary their style according to the situation. All writing has some kind of style or manner, and it is good or
bad according to whether it is suitable to its purpose. Suggested terms to describe style are: simple,
direct, clear, concise, terse, rich, warm, ornate, artistic, refined, aloof, serious, dignified, colloquial,
informal, conversational, exaggerated, rhetorical.
The viewpoint taken when the writer or speaker allows personal feelings and opinions to colour their way
of looking at something.
When one or more (often complex) ideas are represented by one image, that stands for more than the
word deserves.
Short, simple sentences or truncated sentences create tension, haste or urgency; compound or complex
sentences are slower, often feature in formal texts.
The use of too many words to express an idea. It is a fault in expression.
Present, past, future (events are predicted).
The composer’s underlying idea, message or moral of a story – makes us ponder bigger issues in life.
The theme may not be apparent immediately but should be absolutely clear by the end of the
communication. Different people may have different ideas about the theme of any particular work, and
this will depend on their life experiences, age, social background and any other factor that forms values
and opinions.
This aspect of style denotes the attitude of the composer towards the subject being discussed, whose
tone could be described as dignified, sarcastic, serious, exaggerated, or apologetic. The tone is usually
determined by understanding the audience to whom the writer addresses himself or herself. Tone is also
heavily dependent on the connotation and denotation of words.
Understatement
Verbosity
Word choice or
Diction
Deliberate modesty or when a composer wants to emphasise something deliberately by playing it down.
When the audience has something stated less strongly than expected, it has the effect of focusing
attention on it.
Related to tautology and circumlocution, this is a serious fault in expression and is quite simply the use
of too many words. Verbose expression is the opposite of concise, brief and clear communication.
Emotive, forceful, factual, descriptive, blunt, graphic, disturbing, informative etc. E.g. use of forceful
verbs ‘insist’ & ‘demand’ can be very persuasive.