Language Devices for All Exam Boards
This page provides a detailed list of 25 language devices crucial for literary analysis and creative writing. Each device is explained with a definition and examples to illustrate its use in literature.
- Pathetic Fallacy: The text defines pathetic fallacy as the use of weather or atmosphere to describe mood.
Example: Rainy weather symbolizing sadness or a dark night representing supernatural elements.
- Personification: This device involves giving human qualities to non-human objects or ideas.
Example: "The tree is waving to John as he drives away."
- Simile: Defined as a comparison using 'like' or 'as'.
Example: "His facial vision looked like a falcon's eye."
- Metaphor: A direct comparison between two unlike things without using 'like' or 'as'.
Example: "He is an orc."
- Extended Metaphor: The text explains how to develop a simple metaphor into an extended one by elaborating on the comparison.
Example: "Life is a rollercoaster" extended to describe the ups and downs of life in detail.
- Oxymoron: Defined as two opposite words placed side by side.
Example: "The small giant."
- Juxtaposition: Explained as an elaboration on an oxymoron.
Example: A description of a small giant struggling to reach a high shelf.
- Symbolism: Objects representing deeper meanings.
Example: The moon and star symbolizing Islam, or a dagger symbolizing death in Macbeth.
- Semantic Field: Words linked to a specific idea or theme.
Example: PPE, 2m distance, and hand sanitizer linked to COVID-19.
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Irony: Unexpected events that surprise characters.
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Rhetorical Question: A question not requiring an answer.
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Hyperbole: Exaggeration for effect.
Example: "I am going to eat the whole restaurant."
- Assonance: Repetition of vowel sounds.
Example: "I am too cool for school."
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Alliteration: Words in a row beginning with the same letter.
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Sibilance: Words in a row with the 's' sound.
Example: "The snake was slowly hissing."
- Euphemism: Indirect expressions for sensitive topics.
Example: "He is not with us anymore" to refer to death.
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Emotive Language: Words that evoke emotional responses in readers.
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Onomatopoeia: Words that phonetically imitate sounds.
Example: "Boom, bang, skirr, pop."
- Rule of Three / Power of Three / Triplets: Three words or phrases in a row describing something.
Example: "The table is black, hard, and wide."
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Facts/Stats: Use of evidence to support claims.
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Plosive: Repetition of harsh sounds like 'P', 'D', 'B'.
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Zoomorphism: Giving animal features to a person.
Example: "John barked at me" instead of "John shouted at me."
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Opinion: (Not elaborated in the text)
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Repetition: Repeated use of words for effect, considered both a language device and a structural element.
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Parts of Speech: The text briefly mentions nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.
Highlight: This comprehensive list covers a wide range of literary devices, from basic figurative language to more complex rhetorical and structural techniques, providing students with a solid foundation for literary analysis and creative writing.
Vocabulary: Extended metaphor is a metaphor that is sustained throughout a piece of text, providing a more complex and detailed comparison than a simple metaphor.
Definition: Semantic field refers to a set of words related to a specific subject or theme, helping to create cohesion and reinforce key ideas in a text.
