Poetic devices Flashcards
(21 cards)
Metaphor
not using like or as (“his moustache was a toothbrush”) or “he had a toothbrush moustache”)
simile
using “like” or “as
Personification
(specific type of metaphor): describing a thing or animal like it’s a person, having
a thing act like a person (Careful! Not a person like a thing.)
> “Dark night strangles the travelling lamp.”
- Explanation: Night is given the human action of strangling, and the travelling lamp is a metaphor for the sun. Shakespeare is using personification to describe how the world feels unnaturally dark and wrong after Duncan’s murder.
Apostrophee
when the thing (or an absent person) is being directly spoken to
(watch for the second person thou/thee)
Is this a dagger which I see before me,
The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee
Pathetic Fallacy
when it is nature having feelings that reflect what is going on
with a character or the plot
Oxymoron
(opposite words) bitersweet
Paradox
(a statement that seems to contradict itself)
hyperbole
exaggeration for effect –
or its opposite, understatement.
Alliteration
Repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words
Consonance
Repetition of consonant sounds anywhere in words
Assonance
repetition of vowel sounds
Hear the mellow wedding bells
Rhyme
(where at the end or middle of the lines?)
- end is end rhyme
- middle is internal rhyme
Rhyming couplet
If in this class you want to do your best
It would be wise to study for the test.
“Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.”
Sounds like a sound? Oh no! _____, that is
Onomatopoeia
Knock, knock! Who’s there?
Is there some kind of “mismatch”? It’s probably
Irony
Dramatic irony:
When Duncan says he trusts Macbeth and feels safe in his castle, but the audience knows Macbeth is planning to kill him.
So Duncan’s words mean one thing, but the reality is very different — that’s irony!
Verbal irony:
the words the listener hears are not as the speaker intends them
Dramatic irony:
a character’s words or actions are inappropriate as we know something they do
Situational irony:
the outcome is the opposite of what is expected
Another example: Macbeth feels invincible because of the witches’ prophecy that “no man born of a woman” can harm him. But then Macduff, who was “from his mother’s womb untimely ripped” (born by C-section), kills Macbeth. The opposite of what Macbeth expected happens.
what is a soliloquiy?
A soliloquy is a speech given by a character alone on stage (or thinking they’re alone), where they speak their inner thoughts and feelings out loud. It’s a way for the audience to understand what the character is thinking privately.
In Macbeth, for example:
“Is this a dagger which I see before me…” (Act 2, Scene 1)
This is a soliloquy because Macbeth is alone, talking to himself, revealing his fears, guilt, and temptation as he prepares to murder King Duncan.
Think of it like a character’s private diary being read out loud on stage.
what does wherefor mean
The word “wherefore” in Shakespearean English means “why”, not “where.”
Example (from Romeo and Juliet):
“Wherefore art thou Romeo?”
This doesn’t mean “Where are you, Romeo?”
It actually means “Why are you Romeo?” (Why do you have to be a Montague, my family’s enemy?)
So whenever you see “wherefore”, think “why” instead of “where”.
pun
In Macbeth (Act 2):
“What is amiss?”
Macbeth: “You are, and do not know it.”
Pun: The word “amiss” can mean:
Something is wrong
Someone is disturbed or emotionally shaken
Macbeth uses it in a sneaky way:
He’s saying, “You are what is wrong,” but it sounds like a normal reply.
So in short:
A pun = wordplay that makes you think or laugh by twisting meanings.
