Twenty Literary Devices

Group 1 (1-5)

1. Character

This is a person, animal, or an object in fiction or drama. Characters are

described, or characterized, based upon their personalities, actions, appearance, and thoughts.
There is a main character [protagonist] who is the most important character in a story and sets
the plot in motion, and there are minor characters who are not as important to the plot as the main
character. The character who blocks the protagonist or (main character) is called the antagonist.
Sometimes the antagonist is a villain who is a person, but an antagonist can also be a force (like
nature) opposing the main character.

Characters that change throughout the literary text are dynamic or round, while characters
that do not change are referred to as static or flat.

- Characterization is the means by which writers reveal character. A quality that a character
exhibits is called a character trait. This trait can be indicated by the character's statements,
actions, or thoughts. For example, Bella Swan is characterized as an independent,
open-minded, vampire-liking, teenager trying to fit in at Forks High School. Character
motivation is the reason he/she takes a particular action. Motive, or motivation, is what
drives a character to think, behave, and interact with others in a way that is specific to his/her
traits.

- Keep in mind that an author may create a fictitious character by:

• simply describing the character
• the character’s speech or actions.
• giving the reactions and opinions of other characters.
• showing the character's inner thoughts and feelings.

2. Conflict

This is a central problem around which a story revolves. There are 2 types of conflict that can
occur:
 (1) Internal conflict occurs within a person or character (2) External conflict occurs
between a person & another person, a machine, nature, or society.

Conflict is necessary to every story. In short stories, there is usually one major conflict. In
longer stories, there could be several conflicts. Conflict adds excitement and suspense to a
story. The conflict usually becomes clear at the beginning of a story (in the exposition). As the
plot unfolds, the reader starts to wonder what will happen next and how the characters will
handle the conflict. Many readers try to predict the final outcome (some even cheat and read
the last few pages first because they can’t stand the suspense – boooooo!).

1. In early literature, the conflicts were Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature, and Man vs. Self.
2. As fiction evolved and psychological theories, technological advances, and
urbanization occurred, the list expanded to include Man vs. Society, Man vs.
Technology, and Man vs. Alter Ego.
3. In the age of film, these others exist, but as the 20th century unfolded, the list
expanded yet again. Today, we add Man vs. Alien Society, Man vs. Biotechnology,
and Man vs. Cloned Self to the ever-growing list

3. Setting

This is the time and place in which a story takes place. Details of a setting include:

- Time/Historical Period – the general period of the plot and the main location of the
story (ex – the story took place during the 1960's at Woodstock)

- Physical Features & Weather – what the place/location of the setting looks like
physically (ex – mountains, streams and fields of grass)

- Geographic Location – the actual location of the place (ex – the story took place in
China Town of NYC)

- Social Situation - the way in which a society is run or functions can play an important
part in a story’s setting (think The Hunger Games)

4. Plot (or Narrative Arc)

This is the series of events that make up the story or drama/play. The parts of plot are: Exposition,
Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action and Resolution/Denouement.
 - Exposition - Here readers are exposed to information that will later be necessary
for them to have if they are to understand the unfolding story. It is the part of a work
of fiction where readers learn about the characters and the conflicts they will
experience. It is sometimes referred to as the basic situation; it provides needed
background information.

- Rising Action - Usually, there is no clear boundary between exposition and rising action;
rather, there is a gradual merging of the two. In this section of the story, complications
emerge and eventually a dominant conflict becomes clear.

- Climax – or the turning point of the action; this is usually where the main character
makes the single big decision that defines the outcome of their story and who they are
as a person. The climax often contains much of the action in a story, for example, a
defining battle.

- Falling Action - This is the part of the plot that occurs after the climax has been reached;
it is the part where loose ends are tied up and leads to the resolution of the conflict.

- Resolution – This is the solution to the conflict. It is often called the denouement – or
how the story ends.

5. Foreshadowing

This is clues in the text that hint as to things that will happen later in the plot. Foreshadowing is
usually more subtle and works on the symbolic level. For example, if a character must break up
a schoolyard fight among some boys, it might symbolically foreshadow the family squabbles that
will become the central conflict of the story. You usually can find foreshadowing anywhere from
the exposition to the falling action

Group 2 (6-10)

6. Flashback

These are interruptions that writers do to insert past events in order to provide background or
context to the current events of a narrative.

7. Narrative Point of View (POV)

The voice telling the story is the narrator. Point of view refers to the voice in which the story is told.
It is the set of eyes the author uses to let the reader see the action unfold. Of the three, first and
third persons are the most commonly used in writing stories:

- First-Person – One can spot first person point of view by the pronouns “I, we,” & “us”.
With the use of first person, the narrator is an actual character in the story. His or her
knowledge is, therefore, limited to that one person’s perspective.

- Third-Person – When writing in third person, the narrator uses names of characters &
pronouns like “he, him, she, her, they,” & “them.” If the narrator relates thoughts of only one
character in the story, it is third person limited, as in limited to the knowledge of the
thought process for that one character. In third person omniscient point of view, the
narrator knows and relates not only the action of all characters in the story, but of each
character’s thoughts as well, thus the term omniscient or all-knowing.

- Second-Person – A narrator using second person is rather rare. The pronoun “you” is
used in this type of writing. An example follows: “You feel the salt air on your skin. You feel
alone and isolated on the beach; yet, you feel deep inside of yourself that you are not
alone.” This POV is typically used in self-help books or advice columns.

8. Imagery

This is a set of mental pictures or images. It is the use of vivid or figurative language to represent
objects, actions, or ideas. To make an imaginary world seem real, an author often makes use of
words and phrases that appeal to the senses. These words and phrases, called images, help a
reader mentally experience what the characters in the literary selection are actually experiencing.
A well-written description should arouse a particular response or emotion in the reader's
imagination. Sensory imagery is developed using the five senses: sight, sounds, taste, touch and
smell.

For example: The hot July sun beat relentlessly down, casting an orange glare over the farm
buildings, the fields, the pond. Even the usually cool green willows bordering the pond hung wilted
and dry. Our sun-baked backs ached for relief. We quickly pulled off our sweaty clothes and
plunged into the pond, but the tepid water only stifled us and we soon climbed onto the brown,
dusty bank. Our parched throats longed for something cool--a strawberry ice, a tall frosted glass of
lemonade.

9. Mood

Mood happens when authors use descriptive words/adjectives to create a certain feeling or mood
in the reader of the story; it’s what the reader feels towards the subject of a story. Examples of
mood might be: ominous, happy, depressing, exciting, and jubilant among many more. Mood is
the general feeling or atmosphere that a piece of writing creates within the reader. Mood is
produced most effectively through the use of setting, theme, voice and tone.

- Setting often helps create mood in the reader. Often, the descriptive elements that surface early
in a story establish a mood that can foreshadow the events of the story. Thus, a reader might leave
the opening passages — the exposition phase of the tale — expecting suspense or
lightheartedness or dire peril.

10. Tone

Tone encompasses the attitudes toward the subject and toward the audience implied in a literary
work. Tone may be formal, informal, intimate, solemn, somber, playful, serious, ironic, guilty,
condescending, or many other possible attitudes. Each piece of literature has at least one theme,
or central question about a topic, and how the theme is approached within the work is known as
the tone.

- While now used to discuss literature, the term tone was originally applied solely to music.
This appropriated word has come to represent the attitudes and feelings that a speaker (in
poetry), a narrator (in fiction), or an author (in non-literary prose) has towards the subject,
situation, and/or the intended audience.

- It is important to recognize that the speaker, or narrator, of a piece of literature is not to be

confused with the author. Likewise, the attitudes and feelings of the speaker, or narrator,
should not be confused with those of the author. In general, the tone of a piece only refers
to the attitude of the author if the writing is non-literary in nature.

- Tone and mood are not the same, although variations of the two words may on
occasions be interchangeable terms. The tone of a piece of literature is what the speaker
or narrator feels towards the subject, rather than what the reader feels.

- All pieces of literature, even official documents, have some sort of tone. Authors create
the tone of their piece of writing through the use of various other literary elements, such as
diction, (or word choice); syntax, (the grammatical arrangement of words in a text for
effect); imagery, (or vivid appeals to the senses); details, (facts that are included or
omitted); and/or extended metaphor, (language that compares seemingly unrelated
things throughout the composition).

In many cases, the tone of a piece of work may change and shift as the speaker or narrator’s
perspective on a particular subject alters throughout the piece.
Group 3 (11-15)

11. Sarcasm

Generally, the literal meaning is different than what the speaker intends to say through sarcasm.
Sarcasm is a literary and rhetorical device that is meant to mock with often satirical or ironic
remarks with a purpose to amuse and hurt someone or some section of society simultaneously.
For instance: “I didn’t attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it.” (Mark
Twain)

12. Allusion

This is a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary
or political significance. It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers. It is just
a passing comment and the writer expects the reader to possess enough knowledge to spot the
allusion and grasp its importance in a text. Examples include: “Don’t act like a Romeo in front of
her.”– “Romeo” is a reference to Shakespeare’s Romeo, a passionate lover of Juliet, in Romeo
and Juliet. OR, “The rise in poverty will unlock the Pandora’s box of crimes.”– This is an allusion to
one of Greek Mythology’s origin myths, “Pandora’s box”.

13. Irony

This is the difference or gap between what is said and what is actually meant in a text. The
three forms of irony are:

- Verbal irony – This is when a character or narrator says something but means
exactly the opposite. An example might be, "Boy, she is really pretty" said about a
muddy dog with burs in her fur.

- Situational irony – This is the difference between what appears to be and what actually is
true. It is often demonstrated by an actual result being different than what is expected. For
example, a story's main character could find the bad guy & bring him to justice, but walk out
of the police station and be killed by a train. It is kind of like a surprise ending.

- Dramatic irony – This occurs when the reader/observer knows something that the
character in a written text does not know. For instance, a woman might think that her
husband has forgotten her birthday, but the reader/audience knows that he has really
bought her a diamond ring that is hidden in her dessert at dinner.
14. Symbolism

This occurs when something specific is used to represent something abstract. It is when an
object is meant to be representative of something or an idea greater than the object itself.
• Cross - representative of Christ or Christianity
• Bald Eagle - America or patriotism
• Owl - wisdom or knowledge
• Yellow - implies cowardice

15. Theme

This is the underlying focus of a story. Subjects or main ideas of works can often be expressed in
one word, ex., love. But, a theme is underlying; a theme is something the writer wants the reader
discover. Some universal literary themes are:

- Love will endure and triumph over evil. - Heroes must undergo trials and endure
losses before they can claim their rightful kingdom. - Arrogance and pride can bring
destruction - When the rule of law is broken, chaos and anarchy will result.

* Note - There may be more than one theme in a literary work.

Group 4 (16-20)

16. Literal Language

This refers to words that do not deviate from their defined meaning. This is the denotative
meaning of a word - the dictionary definition.

17. Figurative Language

This is the use of words to express meaning beyond the literal meaning of the words themselves.
Some examples of type of figurative language are found below:

• Metaphor - contrasting to seemingly different things to enhance the meaning of a situation or

theme without using like or as (ex: You are the sunshine of my life.)

• Extended Metaphor - refers to a comparison between two unlike things that continues
throughout a series of sentences in a paragraph or lines in a poem.
• Simile - contrasting to seemingly different things to enhance the meaning of a situation or theme
using like or as (ex: What happens to a dream deferred, does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?

• Onomatopeia - the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (ex: boom).

• Hyperbole – an exaggeration (ex: I have a million things to do today.)

• Alliteration - the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of closely connected
words. Example – She sells seashells by the seashore. The alliteration her is the “SH” sound.

• Personification - giving non-human objects human characteristics (ex: America has

thrown her hat into the ring, and will be joining forces with the British.)

18. Author’s Purpose

This is the reason an author decides to write about a specific topic. Then, once a topic is
selected, the author must decide whether his purpose for writing is to inform, persuade, entertain,
or explain his ideas to the reader

19. Author’s Style

This is the literary element that describes the ways that the author uses words — the author's
word choice, sentence structure, figurative language, and sentence arrangement all work
together to establish mood, images, and meaning in the text. Style describes how the author
describes events, objects, and ideas in a unique way.

20. Sequence

Every story is made up of a sequence or an order of events. What is

the purpose of this order?