Literary Devices Quiz

Literary Devices

• Allusion: A reference to a well-known person, place, event, or work of art to enrich meaning for the reader. Example: "Some people are calling me the Tiger Woods of miniature golf."
• Anaphora: The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses, sentences, or lines. Example: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."
• Apostrophe: Addressing an absent person, abstract idea, or inanimate object directly. Example: "Is this a dagger which I see before me?"
• Aside: A short speech from a character directly to the audience. Example: "O, speak again, bright angel..."
• Assonance: Repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words. Example: "Keep your eyes on the prize."
• Caesura: A pause or break within a line of verse. Example: "Blue hampers... || Explosions..."
• Catharsis: The emotional release or purification experienced by a reader/character. Example: "...seal with a righteous kiss A dateless bargain to engrossing death!"
• Characterization (direct/indirect): Describing characters explicitly ("Mr. Bingley was good-looking") or implicitly through actions and dialogue.
• Connotation: The implied or suggested meaning of a word beyond its literal definition. Example: "His eyes were cold and calculating."
• Consonance: Repetition of consonant sounds in nearby words. Example: "Toss the glass, boss."
• Denotation: The literal meaning of a word. Example: "You are a girl."
• Deus ex machina: An unexpected and improbable rescue from a seemingly hopeless situation. Example: A mysterious figure descending from the sky and saving the hero.
• Diction: Word choice and style in writing that impacts tone and mood. Example: "The man spoke in a low voice..."
• Dissonance: Use of jarring sounds or words to create tension. Example: "Out, out, brief candle..."
• Ekphrastic: A literary work that describes and interprets a work of art. Example: "As she stood before the painting..."
• Epic: A long narrative poem about a hero. Example: "Thus, while the mute creation downward bend..."
• Figurative Language: Language used beyond its literal meaning to create imagery. Example: "Time is a thief."
• Foil: A character who contrasts with another (usually the protagonist) to highlight their traits. Example: Character example from "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone."
• Hubris: Excessive pride that leads to a character's downfall. Example: "I count myself the son of Chance..."
• Idiom: A phrase with a non-literal meaning. Example: "It's raining cats and dogs."
• Imagery: Vivid language that creates mental pictures. Example: "..."The lawn started at the beach..."
• Internal Rhyme: Rhyme within a single line of poetry. Example: "The rat sat on the mat."
• Irony: Contrast between expectation and reality. Example: "O happy dagger, this is thy sheath..."
• Metaphor: A comparison of unlike things without using "like" or "as." Example: "All the world's a stage..."
• Meter: Rhythmic structure of lines of poetry. Example: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"
• Metonymy: Substituting one word or phrase for another related to it. Example: "The pen is mightier than the sword."
• Mood: The emotional atmosphere or feeling in a literary work. Example: "It was a low, dull, quick sound..."
• Paradox: A seemingly contradictory statement that reveals truth. Example: "War is peace. Freedom is slavery..."
• Point of View: The perspective from which a story is told. Example: "She watched the sun set..." (Third-person point of view)
• Plot: Sequence of events in a story. Example: "Harry had never even imagined such a strange and splendid place..."
• Refrain: Repeated line or group of lines. Example: "Quoth the Raven, 'Nevermore.'"
• Setting: Time and place of a story. Example: "In his blue gardens..."
• Speaker/Voice: The narrator of a story. Example: "I shall be telling this with a sigh..."
• Structure: Arrangement of elements in a work (plot, chapters, etc.). Example: "The play's the thing wherein I'll catch..."
• Symbolism: Using symbols to represent something else. Example: "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."
• Synecdoche: A part representing a whole or a whole representing a part. Example: "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears."
• Synesthesia: Describing one sense with terms for another. Example: "And the rest is rust and stardust."
• Theme: Central idea or message of a literary work. Example: "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view..."
• Tone: Author's attitude toward the subject and audience. Example: "He whispered softly..."
• Zeugma: Using a verb with two or more objects, but with different meanings. Example: "The fire and his temper burned hot."