Literary Devices in The Outsiders

What is the main purpose of authors using literary devices?

What literary device is used in the phrase 'They walked around slowly, silently, smiling.'?

What is the term for when an author vaguely mentions something and leaves it up to the reader to interpret it?

What is the term for dropping hints to the reader that something is about to happen?

What is the meaning behind Johnny's last words, 'Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold...'?

What literary device is used when Ponyboy compares Darry to Superman?

What is the literary device used when the author writes 'with a bang' in the church scene?

What literary device is used when Dally says 'I thought I'd killed you'?

What literary device is used when Ponyboy writes about the country and his desires?

What literary device is used when Dally slams his fist against the wall?

Figurative Language

Authors use literary devices to make their writing more engaging and to evoke an emotional or sensual response in readers.
Figurative language relies on literary devices or special literary techniques to convey meaning beyond the literal.

Literary Devices

Alliteration: Repetition of similar sounds, e.g., "slowly, silently, smiling" in The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton.
Allusion: Vaguely mentioning something and leaving it to the reader to interpret, e.g., Johnny's "Stay gold, Ponyboy" referencing Robert Frost's poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay".
Foreshadowing: Dropping hints to the reader that something is about to happen, e.g., Ponyboy's comment about the church catching fire.
Hyperbole: Exaggeration used to make a point, e.g., Dally's "I thought I'd killed you" when Ponyboy got hurt.
Irony: A big departure between what happens and what is expected to happen, e.g., Ponyboy wanting to escape excitement in the country, but ending up saving children from a burning building.
Metaphor: Comparing two unlike things without using "as" or "like", e.g., Ponyboy comparing Darry to Superman.
Onomatopoeia: A word used for its sound effect, e.g., "bang" when Steve drops a hymn book.
Personification: Giving human characteristics to non-human things, e.g., the wall taking the heat for Dally's emotions after Johnny's death.
Simile: Comparing two unlike things using "like" or "as", e.g., Ponyboy standing "like a bump on a log" when surrounded by the Socs.

Explore the use of figurative language and literary devices in The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Learn how authors create engaging stories by evoking emotional and sensual responses in readers.