1. Literary Terms
Poetry

2. poetry: highly concise, musical, and emotionally charged language
stanza: a group of lines in a poem
speaker: the imaginary voice assumed by the writer of the poem
lyric poetry: highly musical poetry achieved through the use of many sound devices
narrative poetry: poetry that tells a story
symbol: something that stands for (or represents) something else. Typically, something concrete that represents something abstract. Ex: flag=freedom
imagery: the use of descriptive language (use of 5 senses) to create “word pictures” for the reader

3. figurative language: used by a writer to create vivid impressions by setting up comparisons; NOT meant to be taken literally (figure of speech)
simile: a figure of speech in which like or as is used to make a comparison of two basically unlike ideas
Example: “Life is like a box of chocolate; you never know whatcha gonna get.” –Forrest Gump
metaphor: a figure of speech in which one thing is spoken of as if it were something else (also a comparison- without using like or as)
Example: Life is a box of chocolate… or the wrinkled sea
personification: a device used to give a non-human subject human characteristics (i.e. Death walks through the door or Trees cry in the wind)
hyperbole: a deliberate exaggeration or overstatement. Example: Jim will follow a bug as far as Mexico to win a bet. OR Do you ever feel so paper thin?

4. sound devices: used by a writer to create a musical quality
onomatopoeia: the use of words that imitate sounds (i.e. pop, buzz, ring, boom)
repetition: the use of a word or group of words more than once
alliteration: a sound device that involves the repetition of the first consonant sound (i.e. Sally sells seashells by the seashore or the forest’s ferny floor)
rhyme: the repetition of the ending sounds of words (mop & top, hat & cat, mend & bend)
rhythm: formed by the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables used within the lines of a poem (beat)