LITERARY DEVICES
USED IN POETRY
STANZA
Definition: a group of consecutive lines in a
poem that form a single unit

expresses a unit of thought

stanza = an Italian word for “stopping
place” or “place to rest”
STANZA EXAMPLE— “LIFE” BY
PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR
Stanza 1
A crust of bread and a corner to sleep in,
A minute to smile and an hour to weep in,
A pint of joy to peck at trouble,
And never a laugh but the moans come double;
And that is life!
Stanza 1
expresses
one key
idea.
STANZA BREAK (THE SPACE BETWEEN STANZAS)
A crust and a corner that makes love precious,
Stanza 2
With a smile to warm and the tears to refresh us;
expresses
And joy seems sweeter when cares come after;
another
Stanza 2
And a moan is the finest of foils for laughter;
key idea.
And that is life!
COUPLET
Definition: a two (2) line stanza

Ex) But do not so; I love thee in such sort,
As, thou being mine, mine is thy good report.
~ from “Sonnet 36” by William Shakespeare
QUATRAIN
Definition: a four (4) line stanza

Ex) Let me confess that we two must be twain,
Although our undivided loves are one;
So shall these blots that do with me remain,
Without thy help, by me be borne alone.
~ from “Sonnet 36” by William Shakespeare
SESTET
Definition: a six (6) line stanza

Ex) I may not evermore acknowledge thee,
Lest my bewailed guilt should do thee shame;
Nor thou with public kindness honour me,
Unless thou take that honour from thy name:
But do not so; I love thee in such sort,
As, thou being mine, mine is thy good report.
~ from “Sonnet 36” by William Shakespeare
OCTAVE
Definition: an eight (8) line stanza

Ex) Let me confess that we two must be twain,
Although our undivided loves are one;
So shall these blots that do with me remain,
Without thy help, by me be borne alone.
In our two loves there is but one respect,
Though in our lives a separable spite,
Which though it alter not love’s sole effect,
Yet doth it steal sweet hours from love’s delight.
~ from “Sonnet 36” by William Shakespeare
METER
Definition: a pattern of stressed and
unstressed syllables
 ´ for stressed

˘ for unstressed
RHYME SCHEME
Definition: a pattern of end rhymes in a
poem

To indicate the rhyme scheme of a poem, use a letter of the
alphabet for each rhyme
Ex) aabb
Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower,
But only so an hour.
--Robert Frost
END RHYME
Definition: rhymes at the end of lines

Ex) If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.
~ Emily Dickinson
INTERNAL RHYME
Definition: Rhymes within a line

Ex) Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over man y a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore –
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
“’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door –
Only this and nothing more.”
~ Edgar Allan Poe
SLANT RHYME
 Definition: rhymes involving sounds that
are similar but not exactly the same

Ex) Leave/Live or Pain/Again
REFRAIN
Definition: a line or group of lines that is
repeated at regular intervals in a poem

used to build rhythm or provide emphasis
 Ex) A repeated chorus in a song.
REFRAIN EXAMPLE
The cat so silent
Lay curled up on the rug
The fire a blaze
The room so snug.
Purring, purring
Quiet and still
Purring, purring
Content from his fill.
Tatters the cat
Big, fat cat.
He had just eaten
A dinner of fish
What a treat to have
Filling up his dish.
Purring, purring
Quiet and still
Purring, purring
Content from his fill.
REPETITION
Definition: the use of any element of language—
a sound, word, or phrase—more than once.
Example: The golden sun was
Bright
Bright
Bright
SPEAKER
Definition: the voice talking to us in a poem

best to think of voice as a character the poet has
created
– character could be a child, a woman, a man, an
animal, or an object; it is best to think of voice
as a character the poet has created, not the
actual poet
METAPHOR
Definition: a comparison between two unlike
things in which one is described as if it were
something else.

does NOT use like or as

Ex) She has a heart of stone.
He is a bear in the morning.
My homework was a mountain waiting
to be climbed.
SIMILE
Definition: a comparison between two unlike things,
using a word such as like, as, than, or resembles

Ex) When you see me sitting quietly,
Like a sack left on the shelf,
Don’t think I need your chattering.
I’m listening to myself…
~ from “On Aging,” by Maya Angelou
ALLITERATION
Definition: The repetition of consonant
sounds at the beginning of words.

Helps establish mood, emphasize words,
and serve as a memory aid
 Ex) nodded, nearly napping
 Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled
peppers.
CONSONANCE
Definition: the repetition of ending or internal
(inside the word) consonant sounds .
Ex. In the phrase “Black Rock” both have the
repetition of the consonant sound “ck” at the
end of the word. This is different from
alliteration, which presents this at the beginnning.
ASSONANCE
Definition: the repetition of vowel sounds in
words that are close together

Ex) Life doesn’t frighten me at all
Not at all
Not at all
Life doesn’t frighten me at all
--Maya Angelou
ONOMATOPOEIA
Definition: the use of words whose sound
imitates or suggests its meaning
 Ex) Hear the sledges with the bells –
Silver bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night!
While the stars that oversprinkle
All the Heavens, seem to twinkle
With a crystalline delight.
~ from “The Bells” by Edgar Allan Poe
IMAGERY
Definition: language that appeals to the senses

Ex) Taste the green in the lettuce,
Hear the crunch of its freshness,
Smell its earth perfume.
PERSONIFICATION
Definition: a figure of speech in which an
object or animal is spoken of as if it had
human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes.
 Ex) The fingertips of rain
rapped and tapped
a steady beat on the windowpane.
SYMBOLISM
Definition: Anything that stands for or
represents something else.

Ex) bald eagle = United States
Star of David = Judaism
cross = Christianity
white dove = peace
HYPERBOLE
Definition: an exaggeration or overstatement used
for effect

Ex) “His smile was so wide he’d have to break it into
sections to fit it through the doorway.”
~ from Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli