Techniques and figurative language
used by authors to create interest in
stories.
Imagery: writing that uses
descriptive language to appeal to our
sense of taste, touch, smell, sight and
sound. It's often said that imagery
paints a picture in the reader's mind.
Find the imagery in this poem:
On a starry winter night in Spain
Where the ocean kissed the southern shore
A dream I had would come to pass
Like time spent through an hourglass
Alliteration: the repetition of the
first sounds of words that are close
together.
The purpose of alliteration is to
create rhythm or musical effects in
the reader's mind.
Example of Alliteration
The cat quickly clawed the carpet.
Example of Alliteration
Betty Botter bought some butter,
but, she said, the butter’s bitter;
if I put it in my batter
it will make my batter bitter,
but a bit of better butter
will make my batter better.
So she bought a bit of butter
better than her bitter butter,
and she put it in her batter
and the batter was not bitter.
So ’twas better Betty Botter
bought a bit of better butter.
-Betty Botter, Mother Goose
Onomatopoeia: the use of
words whose sounds imitate or
suggest their meaning.
Foreshadowing: the use of
clues or hints to suggest events
that will occur later in the plot.
Flashback: an interruption in the
present action of a plot to show
events that happened at an
earlier time.
(a.k.a. Figurative Language) the
use of language that is different
from its literal meaning.
•
•
typically work by comparing something to another
very different thing.
are not meant to be understood literally!
Simile: a comparison of two unlike
things using words such as like, as,
than, seems, or resembles.
Which phrases are similes?
A. a smile as bright as a sunny day
B. a frozen lake like a mirror
C. a cold, gray stone wall
D. a mind sharper than a blade
Metaphor: a comparison of two
unlike things where one thing is
said to be another thing.
Metaphors often use is or was.
Which phrases are metaphors?
A. He was a thorn in her side.
B. Her eyes were like emeralds.
C. She is as stubborn as a mule.
D. His voice is a trumpet.
Which phrases are hyperboles?
A. The rainbow seemed to smile at me
Hyperbole: an exaggeration used to give
this morning.
emphasis or show strong emotion.
B. That guy is old as dirt.
C. I will die if he asks me to dance!
D. My cat weighs a ton.
Personification: the description of an object or
animal using human
characteristics (feelings, actions,
attitudes, etc.)
Personification specifically giving human traits
to animals is called
anthropomorphism.
Which phrases use personification?
A. The flowers waltzed in the gentle breeze.
B. That run-down house looks so depressed!
C. The old lady moves slower than molasses.
D. The fire ran wild through the forest.
What do these idioms mean?
A. A picture paints a thousand words.
Idiom: a commonly used expression that
B. I'm going to give you a taste of your own
means something different from
medicine.
the literal meaning.
C. He lost his head in the principal's office
today.
D. They tied the knot this weekend.
To what do these allusions refer?
Allusion: a reference to someone or something
If ever you're homesick, just click your
from literature, religion,
heels together and repeat, "there's no
history or another field or branch
place like home."
in culture. The author assumes you
already have background knowledge
Kristy didn't like to spend money. She was no
of the reference.
Scrooge, but she seldom purchased anything
except bare necessities.
What do the underlined words
symbolize?
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more
Symbol: an object (concrete noun)
opens
that represents an idea or concept
(abstract noun). The use of symbols
I hope you never fear those mountains in the
in writing is called symbolism.
distance
When you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance.
Practice
Identifying
Figures of
Speech
Read the story.
Our steps were as light as feathers as we carried
our picnic basket into the wide, grassy, green park.
Even though clouds scowled down on us, we
would have a good time if it killed us. The first
drops of rain were a gentle gift. But soon it started
to pour. Mom became a general, marching her
troops to the shelter of a gazebo. There we
enjoyed our picnic lunch.
1. The phrase "Our steps were as light as feathers"
is an example of
hyperbole
personification
simile
Our steps were as light as feathers as we carried our
picnic basket into the wide, grassy, green park. Even
though clouds scowled down on us, we would have
a good time if it killed us. The first drops of rain
were a gentle gift. But soon it started to pour. Mom
became a general, marching her troops to the
shelter of a gazebo. There we enjoyed our picnic
lunch.
2. The phrase "into the wide, grassy, green park" is
an example of
hyperbole
metaphor
imagery
Our steps were as light as feathers as we carried our
picnic basket into the wide, grassy, green park. Even
though clouds scowled down on us, we would have
a good time if it killed us. The first drops of rain
were a gentle gift. But soon it started to pour. Mom
became a general, marching her troops to the
shelter of a gazebo. There we enjoyed our picnic
lunch.
3. The phrase "clouds scowled down upon us" is
an example of
hyperbole
personification
metaphor
Our steps were as light as feathers as we carried our
picnic basket into the wide, grassy, green park. Even
though clouds scowled down on us, we would have
a good time if it killed us. The first drops of rain
were a gentle gift. But soon it started to pour. Mom
became a general, marching her troops to the
shelter of a gazebo. There we enjoyed our picnic
lunch.
4. The phrase "we would have a good time if it
killed us" is an example of
foreshadowing
metaphor
hyperbole
Our steps were as light as feathers as we carried our
picnic basket into the wide, grassy, green park. Even
though clouds scowled down on us, we would have
a good time if it killed us. The first drops of rain
were a gentle gift. But soon it started to pour. Mom
became a general, marching her troops to the
shelter of a gazebo. There we enjoyed our picnic
lunch.
5. The phrase "the first drops of rain were a
gentle gift" is an example of
hyperbole
metaphor
simile
Our steps were as light as feathers as we carried our
picnic basket into the wide, grassy, green park. Even
though clouds scowled down on us, we would have
a good time if it killed us. The first drops of rain
were a gentle gift. But soon it started to pour. Mom
became a general, marching her troops to the
shelter of a gazebo. There we enjoyed our picnic
lunch.
6. The phrase "Mom became a general, marching
her troops to the shelter of a gazebo" is an
example of
simile
personification
metaphor
Chicago is a city that is
fierce as a dog with a
tongue lapping for
action.
What happens to a dream
deferred? Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
 ~ Langston Hughes
Let me tell how I love thee,
my rose garden, my heart,
my fixed mark,
my beginning and my end...
I could stare into your eyes
a thousand years come
and go.
All the world's a stage, and men
and women merely players.
  
 
~ Shakespeare
The sunshine threw his hat
away.
Endless wealth
held out its arms to me.
Time is a green orchard.
Hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul
and sings the tune - without
the words
and never stops at all.
 ~ Emily Dickinson
Answers:
The sunshine threw his hat away.
Chicago is a city that is
personification
fierce as a dog with a tongue lapping for action.
simile; personification
Endless wealth
held out its arms to me.
What happens to a dream
personification
deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?
simile
Time is a green orchard.
metaphor
Let me tell how I love thee,
my rose garden, my heart, my fixed mark,
Hope is the thing with feathers
my beginning and my end...
metaphors
that perches in the soul
I could stare into your eyes
a thousand years come and go.
hyperbole
All the world's a stage, and men
and women merely players.
metaphor
and sings the tune - without
the words
and never stops at all.
metaphor