Literary Terms, Literary Devices, Figures of Speech, Poetic Devices – So many concepts, such little time! Well, I won’t blame students for getting confused. I remember, that whenever I would teach figures of speech, my students would slump down and look puzzled at the sight of such fancy words. With so much information to process, I knew they wouldn’t remember a thing by the next class! So what are these four names anyway? Why does everyone use them interchangeably?
Here! I’ve tried making it easier for you!
| Definition | Example | |
| Literary Terms | A concept that belongs to a specialized field of knowledge. (Technical terms in Literature) | Aesthetic Movement – A literary movement in late 19th Century France; – insisted that the end of a work of art is to simply exist in its perfection and glory. |
| Literary Devices | Techniques or tools that a writer uses to create a dramatic effect in his/her work | Foreshadowing – a narrative technique in which a future occurrence is hinted at by indirect cues. – In Indian daily soaps, when the diyaa (earthen lamp) goes off, it means something bad is going to happen! |
| Figures of Speech | A word or phrase that creates a vivid/ auditory effect or means something different than what the literal meaning suggests | Metaphor – an implied/indirect comparison between two things. – “I look at my moon and smile.” The “moon” here is a lover whose beauty is compared to the real moon. |
| Poetic Devices | Tools that a poet uses to enhance the meaning of a poem, or provoke strong emotions in the reader by creating artistic efficacy | Poetic License – The freedom a poet has to alter or neglect the rules of grammar for a poetic effect. – Lewis Caroll’s poem – ‘Jabberwocky’ is considered a “nonsense” poem, and yet it is a poem. |
Still confused? Being a literature student myself, I understand your position. They do sound all too similar. So, in this article, I have broken it down for you. In fact, I have also given a lot of examples to make it easy to understand and remember. Brace yourself, by the way, it’s going to be a long article!
| CONTENTS: – What are Literary Terms? – What are Literary Devices? – What are Figures of Speech? – What are Poetic Devices? – How are Literary Terms, Literary Devices, Figures of Speech, and Poetic Devices Connected? – Why are they used interchangeably? – Examples |
What are Literary Terms?
Ever wondered why your friends (and perhaps you too) find reading literary theories so frustrating? But, reading a novel is always exciting. Yet again, criticism becomes a yawn. ‘Literary terms’ is the reason why!
Literary terms are kind of like the technical dictionary of the literary world. The terms that you don’t understand while studying literature – chances are those are Literary Terms.
So, what are Literary Terms?
Literary Terms is the name given to the Technical Terms from Literature Field. A term is any concept that falls under the specialization of a particular field, is called a technical term. People often refer to it as ‘jargon’ (technical words unique to a specific subject). Similarly, literary terms are the concepts that we come across when we study literature. It is an umbrella term for all the movements, theories, eras, devices, techniques, works, etc. across any literature.
Examples of Literary Terms:
Example #1: – Absurd literature
I find absurdist literature quite relevant to our modern times! Have you too wondered sometimes about the purposelessness of your life? Well, absurd literature is a term applied to all works of literature which essentially expresses the meaningless condition of human life and all its endeavors.
Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot is one of the widely-read texts in this category.
Example #2: – Enjambment
It is a technique used in poetry wherein you break the sentence just to carry it forward to the next line. It is usually an abrupt breaking of a line for dramatic effect.
“I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.”
– Robert Frost, ‘Fire and Ice’
Here, an entire sentence is broken down into parts and carried forward to the next line without any punctuation or conjunction. This creates the effect of an interrupted thought, a thought which does not flow smoothly.
Example #3: – Interior Monologue
A narrative technique to show the thoughts passing through the protagonist’s mind. It is usually more organized than the stream-of-consciousness technique.
Umm… in simple words, it is more like revealing your inner thoughts in the form of a speech without realizing its intensity and aftermath.
Remember Kartik Aryan’s “rant” from Pyar ka Punchnama 1? Something like that, just less angry perhaps!
Robert Browning’s The Last Duchess is a famous literary example.
(For more details, check this out.)-
If you want to study such literary terms in detail, go for –
What are Literary Devices?
We all want to know what the writer was thinking when they wrote this novel. How can someone who is not even alive today (in most cases) know the secrets of my heart so well? Did he/she mean it?
Trying to interpret what the writer meant is not always an easy task. I once saw a meme that said – a literature professor derives more meaning out of a line than the writer ever intended to create. But how does the writer hide so many layers of meaning in his work? The answer is – literary devices.
Literary Devices are the techniques and tools used by a writer to create a dramatic effect on the reader/audience. These devices could be used to either provoke emotion or intensify a mood. At the same time, they also help in mystifying the text or constructing a deeper layer of meaning.
“Rhetoric is the greatest barrier between us and our ancestors.”
C.S. Lewis, Literature in the Sixteenth Century
The intention behind using literary devices is to make the reader “think” and not just “read” through the text. The real task is to identify when and where such devices are employed. Such identification will not only help us to interpret the author’s intention but will also enrich our reading experience.
Examples of Literary Devices:
Example #1: – Irony
The irony is a technique to hide the actual outcome from the reader by leading him/her to expect something else. It is not to deceive the audience but to create a rhetorical or artistic effect. In simpler terms, the reader finds the outcome to be the complete opposite of what was expected; a twist in the plot if I must say.
A common example I come across is when students prioritize Maths and Science to increase their scores and end up losing marks in language!
For a literary reference, Anton Chekov exhibits a comical effect by employing irony in his play – ‘A Marriage Proposal’. You can read the play here.
Example #2: – Epiphany
Literally means a “manifestation” or “showing forth”. Epiphany has now become the standard term for the description of a sudden revelation of an ordinary object, scene, or thought.
In ordinary terms, it is a sudden realization, a sudden awareness of something which was right in front of you the whole time – the “Aha!” moment.
Like in most rom-coms, the hero finally realizes that he has been in love with his frenemy all along! His entire perspective toward love and the person changes in an instant. In literature, check James Joyce’s A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man.
Example #3: – Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing is a technique wherein the writer indirectly hints at a future occurrence through dialogues, gestures, or descriptions of the characters.
A very famous example is the much-spoken phrase – “Winter is coming” in the series Game of Thrones, which foreshadowed the coming of the Night King to the North of the Wall. Shakespeare’s Hamlet includes a lot of foreshadowing throughout the play.
What are Figures of Speech?
Teachers have amazing abilities to twist their words to terrorize the child.
My teacher would always accuse the laziest student in our class – “if you never forgot to eat your food, how could you forget to do your homework?” In what plane does food become equivalent to homework, god knows!
But being a teacher myself now, I play with language in my way. Hyperbole runs through my veins like blood.
(Did you notice what I did there? Winks!)
“I have told you a thousand times not to use an article before a proper noun!”
“You students never listen to me!”
(How about some metaphors?)
“This class is a circus and feels like I am the clown!”
“If it isn’t a fish market already!”
(I better stop because the list is endless.)
What I am trying to tell here is, that figures of speech are common and have sneaked into our daily conversations without our notice.
So, what are figures of speech?
Figures of speech are literary devices that convey a different meaning than what the literal words suggest. They generally fall under the branch of rhetoric, which is the art of using language for persuasion. For their ornamental exhibition of language, figures of speech are widely used not just in poetry but also in prose as well as in our day-to-day conversations.
You will be surprised to realize how often we end up adopting various figures of speech to convey a simple message.
Without figures of speech, our language would be quite dull and mundane. They provide layers of meanings within a word, a source of ancestry and mystery to the text.
And yet the debate against figurative language is still upheld among literary circles.
But the perfect defense states –
“… a figure of speech can often get into a crack too small for a definition.”
Gilbert K. Chesterton
(Source – Gilbert K. Chesterton (2013). “The Essential Gilbert K. Chesterton”, p.20, Simon and Schuster, taken from https://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/figures-of-speech.html)
Examples of Figures of Speech in Poetry:
Example #1: – Simile
A simile is a direct comparison between two or more things with the help of words “like” and “as”. The quality that is similar in both entities is visible in the text.
The famous line from Wordsworth’s ‘Daffodils’ – “I wandered lonely as a cloud” employs a simile.
Example #2: – Asyndeton, Symbolism, Alliteration
In this extract from ‘The Ball Poem’ by John Berryman,
“A dime, another ball, is worthless. Now
He senses first responsibility
In a world of possessions. People will take balls,
Balls will be lost always, little boy,
And no one buys a ball back.”
The first line employs asyndeton, which is the deliberate omission of conjunction.
At the same time, the ball here acts as a symbol for worldly things, indicating symbolism.
The last line uses alliteration, repeating the sound ‘b’ for a rhythmic effect.
Example #3: – Personification
The act of giving an inanimate object a human quality.
Emily Dickinson’s resonating lines –
“Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –” personify death giving it a human quality of stopping.
For some great and fun examples of figures of speech in literature, check out https://www.thoughtco.com/figure-of-speech-term-1690793#:~:text=Some%20common%20figures%20of%20speech,simile%2C%20synecdoche%2C%20and%20understatement.)
What are Poetic Devices?
There was once a time, all poetry swooshed right past me. Today, I see my students feel ‘bored’ reading poetry because they find no exciting climax in it. I spend the first half of my lecture convincing them of poetry’s true essence and beauty.
A poem has to be opened, not read. Unfolded like a bud, pondered over its fragrance and vivid colors. It is like a little kid hiding behind masks of innocence to cover its mischief. How to hide its true essence? Use poetic devices.
But what are poetic devices?
Poetic devices are specialized tools used by poets to make their poems more lyrical and rhythmic, as well as to integrate layers of meaning in a crisply worded text. They can also be used to enrich one’s reading experience by evoking various sensations or creating an ambiance for the reader. They also aid the poet to express his/her feelings in a dramatized manner.
Poetic devices have long been in existence. If you go back to the legendary epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana or Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, it was no easy feat for wanderers to learn such hefty poems and recite them. A metrical rhythm, repetitive use of alliteration, poetic diction, and all such devices helped them memorize those grand epics.
Without the engagement of poetic devices, even a poem will start to resemble prose. Poems aim to prolong the reader’s attention span spent on the poem – make him/her think and wonder, pause and reflect.
I found the perfect picture that depicts what poetic devices do to poetry!
Good morning, Poets. pic.twitter.com/kzV5sWil25
— Prof. Tía Sad Eyez (@dandelionglitch) June 18, 2022
Examples of Poetic Devices:
Example #1: – Imagery
When the poet creates images for the reader solely through his/her words, it is known as imagery. While visual imagery is most commonly employed as a poetic device, other kinds of imagery enhance the reader’s experience by provoking their imagination to simulate a real-life scenario. From auditory (sound) to tactile (feel), and gustatory (taste) to olfactory (smell), imagery appeals to the reader’s senses.
“The winter evening settles down
With smells of steaks in passageways
Six o’clock.
The burnt-out ends of smoky days…
The morning comes to consciousness
Of faint stale smells of beer”
T. S. Eliot, ‘Prelude’
Olfactory imagery is activated in the above lines.
Example #2: – Rhyme
The first identification of a poem in the eyes of a child begins when it sees rhyming words in the poem. Rhyme is the repetition of similar sounds in poems to create a symmetrical rhythm. They usually lie at the end of each line, known as an end rhyme. Maintaining a fixed pattern gives us a rhyme scheme.
“Hickory Dickory Dock; the mouse ran up the clock”
Dock and clock are rhyming words giving a musicality to the line.
Example #3: – Sonnet
It is a form of poetry consisting of fourteen lines written in a strict rhyme scheme, usually following iambic pentameter.
Sonnets were originally invented in Italy and later brought to England, where Shakespeare gave them his twist making what we call today a Shakespearean Sonnet.
One of his most famous sonnets, ‘Sonnet 18’, goes something like this –
“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.”
For some good examples of poetic devices, check out – https://www.bkacontent.com/gs-poetic-devices-defined/
I realize that understanding the terms may not be enough to clear away the confusion among these concepts, so let us view them from an eagle’s point of view to learn about their interrelationship.
How are Literary Terms, Literary Devices, Figures of Speech, and Poetic Devices Connected?
- LITERARY TERMS:
Literary Terms are the words and phrases which people often come across while studying literature. They can range from literary movements to stylistic devices, or from historical eras in literature to narrative techniques. The concept of ‘Literary Terms’ covers all that comes under the field of literature, including the other three terms we did in this article.
- LITERARY DEVICES:
On the other hand, Literary Devices are specialized tools used by the author to create a dramatized effect on the audience. Such tools are integrated into novels, plays, poetry, theories and essays, and so on. Because they belong to the field of literature, they are categorized under literary terms.
- POETIC DEVICES:
The difference between literary devices and poetic devices is that Poetic Devices are specific to poetry. They belong to literary devices but are seldom used in anything other than poetry. Tools such as rhyme, meter, poetic diction, poetic license, etc. fall under the category of Poetic Devices.
- FIGURES OF SPEECH:
Students get acquainted with Figures of Speech during their elementary schooling through the poems of Frost or Wordsworth. However, figures of speech are widely used in prose and criticism. Thus, a figure of speech is both – a poetic as well as a literary device.
This overlapping of terms creates the irksome confusion readers often come across. Not that it makes much of a difference when your aim doesn’t involve mastering linguistics. Nonetheless, accurate information of such kind comes in handy when one deals with thorough inspections of literary texts.
Why are they used interchangeably?
The primary concern is – people don’t realize that they are different. Do you remember your teacher ever teaching their differences?
So let’s ask ourselves, why are they used interchangeably if they have different definitions?
Because literary devices, poetic devices, and figures of speech have the same function of making literary texts rhetoric. They all fall under the blanket of literary terms, so it is easier to confuse one for another. They are more or less used together in a work of literature for the same purpose, thus blurring the boundaries of their meanings.
Examples – Solidify Your Understanding!
Note:
- The following table lists 60 types of literary terms falling under either or all of the sub-categories. Note that poetic devices are by default literary devices because poetry falls under literature. But to avoid confusion, I have not listed some poetic devices as literary devices for their exclusive use in poetry. Also, forms of poetry are considered poetic devices.
- Some literary devices are used in poetry as well, but their use in prose is so extensive that they are seldom seen in poems. There will always be some overlap here and there. Nonetheless, I have tried to keep the table as accurate as possible, though I may have been flawed in some places.
- All common figures of speech have been categorized as “all” because they are used across all works of literature.
| Sr. No. | Example | What it is called? | Category (Note: Each of the following 60 is a literary term because they all fall under literature.) | Why and How? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The representation of time in Back to the Future | Paradox | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 2 | Only if mountains might give me a push Only if sunrise lights could converse hope. | Blank Verse | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term | Used in poetry and drama. |
| 3 | Russian critics focus on the form of the text as the source of meaning. | Formalism | Literary Term | A form of criticism. |
| 4 | Dad says the monster is just a pigment of my imagination. (figment) | Malapropism | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 5 | She has become such a couch potato! | Kenning | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term | Using compound words for descriptions |
| 6 | “If you were a triangle, you would be acute one.” | Pun | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 7 | Profiles made on Online Gaming or Dating Sites | Characterization | Literary Device, Literary Term | Although you may find characters in poetry, it is not a poem’s main function to delve into characterization. |
| 8 | What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. | Connotation | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 9 | “Sorry, we couldn’t help the patient.” | Euphemism | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 10 | The false identity of Ra’s Al Ghul in Batman Begins | Red Herring | Literary Device, Literary Term | Creating false cues to mislead the audience is more of a literary technique than a poetic one. |
| 11 | Edmund Spenser’s The Shepheardes Calender is a —- | Pastoral | Poetic Device, Literary Term | A form of poetry. |
| 12 | Timon and Pumba’s presence in The Lion King | Comic Relief | Literary Device, Literary Term | Used in serious situations to provide relief from pain |
| 13 | Teenage sidekicks in superhero movies | Trope | Figure of speech, Literary Device, Literary Term | A common theme spanning through time and art. |
| 14 | I can’t believe Christmas is – I just haven’t finished my shopping yet! | Anacoluthon | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 15 | When the topper of your class says he has got average grades. | Understatement | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 16 | Pindaric and Horation are types of —- | Ode | Poetic Device, Literary Term | A form of poetry. |
| 17 | Liverpool beat Manchester United in the last match! | Synecdoche | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 18 | The concept of reading texts closing to prove the existence of contradictory meanings and no logically unified base. | Deconstruction | Literary Term | A form of criticism. |
| 19 | When you see a Banana Peel — you know someone will slip on it. | Chekhov’s Gun | Literary Device, Literary Term | To give a purpose to every object/character that is specifically shown in an earlier scene. |
| 20 | abba abba cdcd efef | Rhyme Scheme | Poetic Device, Literary Term | Only poems have end rhymes. |
| 21 | A moment on the lips; a lifetime on the hips. | Antithesis | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 22 | Moms going sentimental over the slightest remark. | Melodrama | Literary Term | A type of drama. |
| 23 | The iconic assemble scene from Avengers: Endgame | Deus Ex Machina | Literary Device, Literary Term | The unbelievable appearance of the savior in a dire circumstance. |
| 24 | Never have I ever… | Inversion | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 25 | John Donne’s The Flea is an example of — | Conceit | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 26 | Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway is famous for? | Stream of Consciousness | Literary Device, Literary Term | A narrative technique. |
| 27 | personal opinion, close proximity | Tautology | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 28 | Harvey Dent’s fall as a tragic hero in The Dark Knight | Hamartia | Literary Device, Literary Term | Hero’s tragic flaw leads to his downfall. |
| 29 | — is a lament for the dead, a work of serious reflection. | Elegy | Poetic Device, Literary Term | A form of poetry. |
| 30 | George Orwell’s Animal Farm is a political — | Allegory | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 31 | The concept of time travel is used in a lot of movies and series. | Motif | Literary Device, Literary Term | A recurring element holding a symbolic meaning. |
| 32 | I need two original copies of this document. | Oxymoron | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 33 | In TBBT, the nerds often use the language of Klingon, which is very coarse. | Cacophony | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 34 | Jack Sparrow’s role in The Pirates of the Caribbean | Anti-hero | Literary Device, Literary Term | A badass character, yet a hero. |
| 35 | The plot twist in The Sixth Sense | Peripeteia | Literary Device, Literary Term | The reversal of circumstance was a turning point. |
| 36 | “There are three things that will endure: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” | Climax | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 37 | Shoya Ishida’s character development throughout the anime A Silent Voice | Bildungsroman | Literary Term | A form of a novel, as well as any work which shows character development. |
| 38 | She sings a symphony, the songs of the soul. | Euphony | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 39 | A type of drama that avoids illusion and talks directly to the audience’s reasoning. | Epic Theatre | Literary Term | A form of theatre introduced by Bertolt Brecht. |
| 40 | He lifted his daughter with his joyful hands. | Transferred Epithet | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 41 | I find it justified if we were on a break! (Friends) | Allusion | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 42 | A type of structure using two lines, iambic pentameter, made famous by Chaucer. | Heroic Couplet | Poetic Device, Literary Term | A form of stanza used in poetry. |
| 43 | The use of language in written and spoken context among a culture. | Parole | Literary Term | The practical usage of language. |
| 44 | The — poem, in ancient Greece, was specifically meant to be accompanied by music from a lyre. | Lyric | Poetic Device, Literary Term | A form of poetry. |
| 45 | Are you crazy?! | Interrogation | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 46 | When you relate to the content written by an anonymous writer. | Intentional Fallacy | Literary Term | A doctrine that states the intentions of an author shouldn’t be a part of the meaning-making process. |
| 47 | “Tumse hi, tumse hi” (These lines from Jab We Met) | Refrain | Poetic Device, Literary Term | The repetition of a phrase or a line at regular intervals. |
| 48 | Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator | Satire | Literary Device, Literary Term | A type of work that mocks society or its institutions or people. |
| 49 | O God, please help me. | Apostrophe | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 50 | Movie: 2012 | Dystopia | Literary Term | The complete opposite of an ideal world is complete chaos. |
| 51 | Dante composed his Divine Comedy in — | Terza Rima | Poetic Device, Literary Term | Tercets with an interlocking rhyme scheme. |
| 52 | Let us make our habits and not habits make us. | Chiasmus | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 53 | The genre of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein | Gothic | Literary Term | Involves supernatural or horrifying elements. |
| 54 | Hamlet’s famous soliloquies, one of them being – “To be, or not be…” | Soliloquy | Literary Device, Literary Term | A monologue addressed to oneself. |
| 55 | Shakespeare wrote most of his works in iambic pentameter. | Metre | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term | Syllabic patterns create a rhythm. |
| 56 | In the last scene of The Pursuit of Happyness | Catharsis | Literary Device, Literary Term | Purgation of emotions. |
| 57 | Avoiding news and current affairs because you are a strong empath | Ivory Tower | Literary Term | A label is given to an ignorant of the happenings around. |
| 58 | Tick Tick Boom! | Onomatopoeia | Poetic Device, Literary Device, Literary Term, Figure of Speech | Used across all kinds of works in literature. |
| 59 | Man’s alienation after WWI is characterized by — | Modernism | Literary Term | An era in literary history with its peculiar features. Also, a mode of criticism. |
| 60 | An old pond!/ A frog jumps in -/ the sound of water. | Haiku | Poetic Device, Literary Term | A form of poetry. |
Final Overview
In all, literary terms are concepts or terminologies found in any literature. Literary as well as poetic devices are tools used to make the text more approachable or enriching for the reader. And figures of speech are one of these devices which hold multiple or diverted meanings from what has been written. Altogether, they bring us closer to understanding literature.
