English IPoetry Terms

Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.

Example:Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to

dream before.--Edgar Allan Poe, “The Raven”

Example of usage in a poem: William Blake's "The Tiger"

Alliteration

An allusion is an indirect reference to a famous person, place, event, or literary work.

Example:The title of Maya Angelou’s

autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an allusion to the poem “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar.

Allusion

Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds vowel sounds within non-rhyming words.

Example:The tundra left the man hungry for buns.Words shy and dappled, deep-eyed deer in herds.

--from “Pretty Words”

Assonance

Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds within and at the end of words.

Example: Whose nest is in a watered shoot.

--from “A Birthday”

Consonance

Hyperbole is an exaggeration for emphasis or humorous effect.

Example:The hunger of this poem is legendary.

--from “Beware: Do Not Read This Poem”

Hyperbole

Imagery consists of descriptive words and phrases that re-create sensory experiences for the reader. Imagery usually appeals to one or more of the five senses—sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch—to help the reader imagine exactly what is being described.

Imagery

A metaphor is a comparison between two unlike things without using the words like or as.

Example:Poets make pets of pretty, docile words.

--from “Pretty Words”

Example of usage in a poem: Gary R. Hess's "Seasons"

Metaphor

Onomatopoeia is the use of words whose sounds echo their meaning.

Example:Buzz, whisper, gargle, and murmur.

Example of usage in a poem: William Blake's "The Chimney Sweeper"

Onomatopoeia

Personification is a figure of speech in which human qualities are given to an object, animal, or idea.

Example:it [this poem] has taken in many victims.--from “Beware: Do Not Read This Poem”

Example:The grey-eyed morn smiles on the frowning night--William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

Personification

Repetition is a sound, word, phrase, or line that is repeated for emphasis and unity. Repetition often helps to reinforce meaning and create an appealing rhythm.

Example:Back off from this poemIt has drawn in your feetBack off from this poem

--from “Beware: Do Not Read This Poem”

Repetition

Rhyme is the repetition of sounds within different words, either end sound, middle or beginning.Example:

O haven’t they stopped for the doctor’s care,Haven’t they reined their horses, their horses?Why, they are none of them wounded, dear.None of these forces.

--W.H. Auden, “O What Is That Sound”

Example of usage in a poem: Oliver Wendell Holmes- "Old Ironsides"

Rhyme

Rhythm is a pattern of stressed or unstressed syllables in a line of poetry. Poets use rhythm to bring out the musical quality of language, to emphasize ideas, to create moods, to unify works, and to heighten emotional responses.

Example: Iambic pentameter

Example of usage in a poem: Shakespeare's "Sonnet 116"

Rhythm

A simile is a comparison between two unlike things, containing the words like or as.

Example:My heart is like a singing bird.

--from “A Birthday”

Example of usage in a poem: Amy Lowell's "A Decade"

Simile

A stanza is a group of two or more lines that form a unit in a poem. A stanza is comparable to a paragraph in prose. Each stanza may have the same number of lines, or the number of lines may vary.

Example: Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken"

Stanza

Style is the particular way in which a work of literature is written—not what is said but how it is said. Many elements contribute to style, including word choice, sentence structure and length, tone, figurative language, and point of view.

Style

A symbol is a person, a place, an object, or an activity that stands for something beyond itself.

Example:A flag is a colored piece of cloth that stands for a country.

A white dove is a bird that represents peace.

Symbol

A theme is an underlying message about life or human nature that a writer wants the reader to understand. In most cases, themes are not stated directly but must be inferred.

Theme

Tone is the attitude a writer takes toward a subject. Unlike mood, which is intended to shape the reader’s emotional response, tone reflects the feelings of the writer.

A writer communicates tone through choice of words and details. Tone may often be described by a single word, such as serious, humorous, formal, informal, somber, sarcastic, playful, ironic, bitter, or objective.

Tone