![]() ![]() Personification is a commonly used device in literary works, but we’re introduced to the concept from an early age in children’s television and books, which often use animals or even inanimate objects as characters who can speak and act in human ways. An example is “the cruel wind” and “The trees seemed to wave us goodbye”. Another word for this is “anthropomorphism”, and human traits used can include emotions, speech and physical actions. Personification is when human qualities are attributed to inanimate objects, animals or even abstract ideas, such as deities. This summarises the theme of the sonnet, which is that the writer is unable to rest for thinking of the object of his desire. “Lo, thus, by day my limbs, by night my mind,įor thee, and for myself, no quiet find.” Rhyming couplets are used at the end of sonnets here’s an example from Shakespeare’s Sonnet 27: Poets often choose the rhyming words very carefully, so that even these two words encapsulate an idea. Typically, a rhyming couplet summarises a particular thought, but entire works can be written in rhyming couplets, such as Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. Rhyming couplet The Ellesmere manuscript of the Canterbury Tales.Ī rhyming couplet is two lines of poetry with the words at the end of each rhyming. There are also instances of its use in the Bible, and even as far back as Homer’s epic The Iliad, in which Achilles is described by Zeus as “neither unthinking, nor unseeing”. While understatement might at first seem a peculiarly British trait, the use of litotes is common in a number of European languages, and was a strong feature of Old English poems and Icelandic sagas. Another example might be “He’s not unintelligent”, as a means of saying that someone is intelligent (or even a genius). For example, rather than stating overt enthusiasm for something, one might say that it was “not bad”. Litotes is understatement used for rhetorical effect, and usually makes use of double negatives for emphasis. The emphasis on the first two syllables has been swapped around from what we would expect, so that the word “Now” is stressed this heightens the sense of immediacy and reinforces the idea that it’s something happening in the present moment. Another famous Shakespearean line does this: “Now is the winter of our discontent”. Sometimes, poets and playwrights will disrupt this rhythm if they want to emphasise a particular word, swapping or dropping emphasis of certain syllables unexpectedly, a device that can feel jarring to the reader. An example of this is the line, “If music be the food of love, play on” from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. It uses ten syllables with emphasis on every other syllable, giving it a distinctive, lilting rhythm, sounding like this: “de-DUM-de-DUM-de-DUM-de-DUM-de-DUM”. ![]() ![]() Made famous by Elizabethan playwrights, notably Shakespeare himself, iambic pentameter is a particular metre (rhythm) used in the writing of verse. Iambic Pentameter ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ by Lawrence Alma-Tadema, showing Cleopatra in her barge as Shakespeare described it. We’ve compiled this introductory list to help you learn some of the most common terms, so remember to look out for them next time you reach for a volume of Shakespeare, Bronte or Keats! 1. And as if that wasn’t reason enough, having some literary terms at your disposal is a sure-fire way to impress your English teachers. What’s more, by getting to know some of the more sophisticated ways in which the English language can be used, you’ll further develop your own language skills and learn to think more deeply about how subtly words can be used. Having some understanding of some of the different literary devices an author, poet or playwright has used will help you gain a deeper appreciation of a work of literature, empowering you with the knowledge you need to be able to interpret the writer’s thoughts and ideas. One of the enjoyable challenges you’ll face as you become increasingly familiar with English is reading some of the great works of literature written in this fascinating language.
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