Poetry Terms The Big 4 Terms to Know

Poetry Terms The Big 4 & Terms to Know for Poetry

Characterization • Techniques a writer uses to create and develop a character Conflict • a problem or struggle between two opposing forces in a story • Internal & external conflict

Setting • When & where a story takes place Theme • The message of the story

Allusion • A reference to a mythological, literary, or historical person, place, or thing • The title, Of Mice and Men, is an allusion to Robert Burn’s poem “To a Mouse. ” = literary allusion • You're a regular Einstein. = allusion to a historical person • Don't be a Scrooge! = allusion to A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens • Ice cream in my Achilles heel. = allusion to Greek mythology. Achilles was a figure in Greek mythology who was a war hero. He was said to be invulnerable except for at his heel. Today the term “Achilles heel” = weakness

Hyperbole • Exaggerated language • • • That was the hardest test ever! My backpack weighs a ton! I’m so hungry I could eat a horse. I’m trying to solve a million issues. Christmas break is never going to come. He never stops talking.

Imagery • Visually descriptive or figurative language that appeals to one or more of the senses • I could hear the popping and crackling as mom dropped the bacon into the frying pan, and soon the salty, greasy smell came toward me. • Glittering white, the blanket of snow covered everything in sight.

Juxtaposition • two or more ideas, places, characters and their actions are placed side by side in a narrative or a poem for the purpose of developing comparisons and contrasts • All’s fair in love and war. o Love and war are opposites, and yet this saying shows that they have one thing in common which is that anything goes. This juxtaposition demonstrates that there is more alike between the concepts of love and war than one might originally think. • Better late than never. o While being late is a negative thing, the possibility of something never happening or someone never arriving is much worse. This juxtaposition puts things into perspective. • Beggars can’t be choosers. o To beg and to choose are opposite functions, and this saying implies that in fact one cannot be both desperate and have any choice in the decision or result • Making a mountain out of a molehill. o Once again, this is a juxtaposition of magnitude. A molehill is almost invisible compared to a mountain. This saying warns not to magnify a problem that is, in fact, not such a big deal.

Onomatopoeia • the use of words in which the sounds seem to resemble the sounds they describe • • Hiss Buzz Bang Chirp Clap Purr Creak

Oxymoron • a pair of contrary terms are used to create a single expression • Open secret • Tragic comedy • Seriously funny – Yesterday I went to the movies to see a comedy. It was seriously funny. • Awfully pretty • Foolish wisdom • Original copies • Liquid gas

Symbolism • Representing things through symbols • The American flag symbolizes freedom. • The color red can symbolize anger. • Roses are often symbolic or love or romance. In the novel, the author used the color red whenever a character was angry or there was a violent scene, illustrating his use of red as a symbol of anger and violence.