What are literary devices?

The term literary devices refers to any techniques that a writer uses to create a
particular effect in their writing. They can be used to convey certain messages,
influence the mood or atmosphere of a text, or elicit a specific emotional response
from an audience.

Literary devices are collectively also known by lots of other terms — literary terms,
language devices, language techniques — but really they all mean more or less the
same thing: as the exam board AQA puts it, they are the methods a writer uses
to create meaning.

Literary devices glossary

Literary device Definition
a work in which the characters and events represent particular qualities or
allegory
that relate to morals, religion or politics
words that begin with the same sound (often the repetition of letters) place
alliteration
close together
an unexplained or implicit reference to someone or something outside of th
allusion
text
analogy where two unrelated objects are compared for their shared qualities
anaphora the repetition of the same phrase at the beginning of a sentence or clause
a short and interesting story, or an amusing event, often proposed to supp
anecdote
demonstrate a point
antagonist a character who opposes the main character
where an animal or non-human object is given human form, behaviour or
anthropomorphism
personality
antithesis a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else
aphorism a short statement that is intended to express a general truth
apostrophe addressing a person who is not present, or a thing that is personified
a typical example of something, or the original model of something from w
archetype
others are copied
the repetition of similar sounds that are close together, created by the sam
assonance
vowels, or the same consonants and different vowels
where conjunctions are left out between words or parts of a sentence, ofte
asyndeton
creating a list-like style
a type of poem that tells a narrative which was traditionally set to music an
ballad
usually written in quatrains
a narrative or novel about events and experiences in the life of the main
bildungsroman
character as they mature and become an adult
blank verse a type of poetry that does not rhyme, usually with ten syllables in each line
caesura a pause within a line of poetry
a highly exaggerated representation of a character in a text, often for comi
caricature
effect
catharsis the release of strong or repressed emotions, usually by an audience
the act of creating and describing characters in literature, including their tra
characterisation
and psychological make-up
when words, grammatical constructions or concepts are repeated in revers
chiasmus
order
something or someone that is not at all original, surprising or interesting
cliché
because it has very often been seen before
climax the highest point of tension or drama in a piece of writing
colloquialism the use of informal words or phrases in writing or speech
a feeling or idea that is implied by a word that is separate from its dictionar
connotation
meaning
consonance the same consonant sound repeated within a group of words
couplet a pair of consecutive lines of poetry that create a complete thought or idea
denotation the literal meaning or dictionary definition of a word
denouement the resolution of conflict in a narrative plot structure
an unnatural or very unlikely end to a story or event, that solves or remove
deus ex machina
problems easily
dialogue the exchange of spoken words between characters in a piece of writing
direct
when an author explicitly tells a reader directly what a character is like
characterisation
when the audience or reader knows something the characters in the story
dramatic irony
not
a poem written as if someone is speaking to an unseen listener about imp
dramatic monologue
thoughts
an cruel or unfair society, especially an imaginary society in the future, in w
dystopian
there is a lot of hardship or suffering
a serious, melancholic poem, often written to mourn the loss of someone w
elegy
has died
end rhyme when the last syllables or words in two or more lines rhyme with each othe
end-stopped line a line of poetry ending in a grammatical break, for example with a full stop
enjambment the continuing of a sentence from one line of a poem into the next line
a poem, quotation, or sentence, usually placed at the beginning of a piece
epigraph
writing
an argument that appeals to an audience’s morality by highlighting the
ethos
speaker’s credibility or trustworthiness
euphemism a word or phrase used to avoid saying an unpleasant or offensive word
the description or explanation of background information within a work of
exposition
literature
extended metaphor a metaphor that is further developed throughout all or part of a piece of wr
 the part of the plot that occurs after the climax has been reached and the m
falling action
conflict has happened
fiction literature in the form of prose that describes imaginary events and people
the use of non-literal phrases or words to elicit an emotional response from
figurative language
reader or audience
when a story is narrated by one character from their own perspective, usu
first person
using the pronouns “I”, “me” and “my”
a device that moves the reader from the present moment in a chronologica
flashback
piece of writing to a scene in the past
a device used by a writer to provide hints or clues to the reader or audienc
foreshadowing
about what will happen later on in the text
form the type or genre of a text that a writer has chosen to use
a poem which uses a strict metre, rhyme and form, especially in fixed form
formal verse
such as sonnets, villanelles, etc.
free verse a poem that does not use a strict metre or rhyme scheme
genre a specific literary style that involves a particular set of characteristics
a specific type of Japanese poem which has 17 syllables divided into three
haiku
of five, seven, and five syllables
hamartia the flaw in character which leads to the downfall of the protagonist in a trag
heroic couplet a verse form found in epic poetry, where the lines are in rhyming pairs
hubris excessive pride or self-confidence
hyperbole deliberate exaggeration used for effect
a verse line consisting of ten syllables, organised into five pairs of alternat
iambic pentameter
unstressed and stressed syllables
a short expression or phrase that means something more than just its liter
idiom
meaning
imagery the use of words to describe ideas or situations
indirect revealing details about a character without explicitly or directly stating wha
characterisation are like
in medias res a story which begins in the middle of events, without any introduction
internal rhyme rhyme that occurs between words within a verse line
intertextuality the relationship a text may have with other texts
when there is a noticeable, often humorous, difference between what is wr
irony
and its intended or expected meaning
the placement of two or more things side by side, often in order to bring ou
juxtaposition
their differences
language the words, phrases and literary devices a writer uses for effect
litotes understatement used for rhetorical effect
logos an argument that appeals to someone's sense of reason
the unintentional misuse of a word by confusion with one of similar sound,
malapropism
with humorous results
metaphor a figure of speech that makes a direct comparison by relating one thing to
 another unrelated thing
a figure of speech that refers to something by using a word that describes
metonymy
qualities or is closely associated with it
the regular and rhythmic arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllable
metre
according to a particular pattern
monologue an extended speech uttered by one character, either to others or as if alon
motif a recurring image or idea in a piece of writing
narrative the description of a series of events, usually in a novel
a poem, especially one that is written in praise of a particular person, thing
ode
event
a narrator who is all-knowing about plot, characters as well as characters’
omniscient narrator
motivations and emotions
onomatopoeia words whose pronunciations imitate the sounds they describe
oxymoron a figure of speech that puts together opposite elements
a statement that contradicts itself, or that must be both true and untrue at t
paradox
same time
where similar ideas are arranged in phrases, sentences, and paragraphs t
parallelism
balance one element with another of equal importance and similar wording
a humorous piece of writing, drama, or music which imitates the style of a
parody
known person or represents a familiar situation in an exaggerated way
the use of inanimate objects, most commonly the weather, to reflect huma
pathetic fallacy
feelings and tone
pathos an appeal to an audience’s emotion, often evoking pity, sadness, or tende
persona the narrative voice that a writer adopts for a specific piece of writing
giving human characteristics to an inanimate object, abstract thing or an
personification
animal
perspective the narrator’s point of view in a story
plot the sequence of events that make up a narrative
the overuse of the same connective (for example, using “and” in between
polysyndeton
item in a long list)
where the order of events in a narrative is disrupted so that a future plot po
prolepsis
told earlier in the narrative than it actually occurs
written language in its ordinary form (structured in sentences and paragrap
prose
rather than set out as poetry
protagonist the chief character in a literary work
the humorous use of a word or phrase that has several meanings or that
pun
sounds like another word
quatrain a stanza of four lines
refrain a word, line, or phrase repeated in a poem
the intentional repeating of certain words, phrases or other literary devices
repetition
text
rhetoric speech or writing intended to influence or persuade people
rhetorical question a question that is used for dramatic effect that does not expect an answer
rhyme a word that has the same last sound as another word
a poet's chosen pattern of lines whose last syllables rhyme with other lines
rhyme scheme
poem (for example ABAB, or CDCD)
rhyming couplet a pair of rhyming lines of poetry, typically of the same length, next to each
a strong pattern of sounds or words in verse or prose, determined by the
rhythm
relation of long and short or stressed and unstressed syllables
rising action the section of the narrative that leads towards its climax
the use of humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticise
satire
people’s stupidity or vices
second person using the pronouns “you”, “your” and “yours” to refer to someone
sibilance words which make a “s”, “z” or “sh” sound
a description that uses “like” or “as” to compare two things that are not
simile
obviously similar, but share a common quality
a dramatic speech uttered by one character speaking aloud while alone on
soliloquy
stage (or while under the impression of being alone)
sonnet a fourteen-line poem written in iambic pentameter with a strict rhyme sche
stanza one of the parts into which a poem is divided
stream of a type of narration where a character’s every thought and feeling is expres
consciousness directly to the reader
structure the deliberate organisation of a text by an author
symbol any image or thing that stands for something else
a literary device in which a writer uses one thing to represent something m
symbolism
abstract
synecdoche a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice v
tautology the use of different words to say the same thing twice in the same stateme
a set or group of three lines of verse rhyming together or connected by rhy
tercet
with an adjacent triplet
theme a central idea or topic in a literary or non-fiction text
when the narrator of a story stands outside of the world of the story and re
third person
the events using the pronouns “he”, “she”, “it” and “they”
tone the attitude that a character, narrator or writer takes towards a given subje
trope an idea, phrase or image that is recurrent in a writer's work
a 19-line poetic form consisting of five tercets (made up of three lines) follo
villanelle
by a quatrain (consisting four lines)
volta a change in mood or focus in a poem