POETIC DEVICES

POETIC TERMS Assonance: the repetition of a similar vowel sound, but with different end consonants in a line or passage of verse or prose, a vowel rhyme as in the words “date” and “fade” Example:

POETIC TERMS Cacophony: Cacophony is a technique which was used by the famous poet and author Lewis Carroll. Lewis Carroll makes use of cacophony in the poem 'Jabberwocky' by using an unpleasant spoken sound created by clashing consonants. Example: ’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves       Did gyre and gimble in the wabe: All mimsy were the borogoves,       And the mome raths outgrabe. - Lewis Carroll

POETIC TERMS Connotation: is what a word suggests or evokes beyond its “dictionary” definition. Example: Positive Negative Hollywood (fame) Babe (woman) Wall Street (wealth) Pig-headed (stubborn) Modest Nitpicking Youthful Fired

POETIC TERMS Consonance: is the repetition, at close intervals, of the middle or final consonants of accented syllables or important words, especially at the ends of words, as in blank and think or strong and bring. Example:

POETIC TERMS Denotation: of a word is its dictionary definition whereas the connotation of a word is its emotional content. Example: Positive Negative Hollywood (city in California) Babe (woman) Wall Street (street in NYC) Pig-headed (stubborn) Modest (unassuming) Nitpicking (meticulous) Youthful (young) Fired (termintated)

POETIC TERMS Enjambment: comes from the French word for “straddle.” Enjambment is the continuation of a sentence from one line or couplet into the next. Example:

POETIC TERMS Euphemism: is the substitution of a harmless expression instead of using a harsh or unpleasant one. Like when we 'pass away' as opposed to 'die.' Example:

POETIC TERMS Euphony: is from Greek meaning "good sound." The opposite of cacophony, euphony refers to pleasant sounds created by the smooth phonetic quality of chosen words. Example:

POETIC TERMS Free Verse: is a form of poetry which uses few rules and limitations with either rhymed or unrhymed lines that have no set or fixed pattern. Early 20th-century poets were the first to write what they called "free verse" which allowed them to break the formula and rigidity of traditional poetry. Example:

POETIC TERMS Hyberbole: is a type of figurative language that depends on intentional overstatement (exaggeration). Example:

POETIC TERMS Iambic pentameter: most common meter in English poetry. An “iamb” is a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable. Pentameter is the repetition five times. This creates a phrase that is 10 syllables long. Example:

POETIC TERMS Imagery: is the use of images and senses to intensify the words and meanings. Example:

POETIC TERMS Irony: illustrates a situation, or a use of language, involving some kind of discrepancy. The result of an action or situation is the reverse of what is expected. Example:

POETIC TERMS Metaphor: is a relationship comparing two unlike objects. A metaphor is a direct comparison, naming something as something else. Example:

POETIC TERMS Onomatopoeia: is a figure of speech where words are used to imitate sounds. Example:

POETIC TERMS Persona: refers to the narrator or speaker of the poem, different than the author: a narrative voice other than the poet tells the entire poem. Example:

POETIC TERMS Prose poetry: combines the characteristics of poetry with prose containing structure or verse. Prose poetry deliberately breaks some of the normal rules of prose to create heightened imagery or emotional effect. Example: next slide

PROSE POETRY (CONT’D)

POETIC TERMS Refrain: comes from the Old French word “refraindre” meaning to repeat. Refrain is a phrase, line, or group of lines that is repeated throughout a poem, usually after each stanza. Example:

POETIC TERMS Rhythm: is significant in poetry because poetry is so emotionally charged and intense. Rhythm can be measured in terms of heavily stressed to less stressed syllables. Example:

POETIC TERMS Simile: is a figure of speech in which two things are compared using the word "like” or "as.” Example: