10 Common Literary Devices (With Examples)

Alliteration. This is one of the easiest go-to devices to use. Alliteration involves the quick repetition
of the first letters, and therefore the first sounds, of words.

The white witch wanted to write a new spell.

New aunt Anita aimed to avoid annoying her tired sister.

Personification. Giving inanimate objects and other phenomena human traits.

The leaves danced in the wind, twirling round and round before bowing out and resting on the cold
ground.

Simile. Comparing two unrelated things to creating new understanding and meaning. They are
marked by the use of “like,” “as,”or “such as.”

She ran like the wind.

His eyes were as blue as the sky.

Foreshadowing. Words, phrases, or events that hint or suggest to the reader what’s going to happen
in the story.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, finding the presents in the oak tree foreshadows the truth about Boo
Radley.

Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” foreshadows the narrator’s actions from the start of the
story: I can’t say how the idea first entered my brain, but once it was there, it haunted me day and
night. There wasn’t any reason for it. I liked the old man.

Satire. Using humor, wit, or sarcasm to expose human vice or folly.

In television, the creators of South Park have built their success on satire.

My favorite example is Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal.”

Symbolism. Using objects or action to mean something more than what appears on the surface.

The dawn of a new day often is used to symbolize a new beginning.

The albatross in in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” symbolizes a
burden: Ah ! well a-day ! what evil looks / Had I from old and young ! / Instead of the cross, the
Albatross / About my neck was hung

In daily life, people often associate colors with ideas. Black with death. Red with love. White with
purity or peace.

Onomatopoeia. Words whose sound mimics natural sounds or sounds of an object. These words
help bring the reader into the scene by working on the senses.

Bang! Flutter. Buzzzzz! Hum.

The birds tweet in chipper chatter outside the window.

A loud bang jarred me from sleep.

Metaphor. A device that asserts that one object is another, bringing new meaning to the original
subject for a fresh understanding.

A common metaphor: it’s raining cats and dogs.

From Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”: But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? / It is
the east, and Juliet is the sun.

Advertising is the rattling of a stick inside a swill bucket. – George Orwell

Hyperbole. Exaggerating a statement or idea to emphasize a point or emotion.

If I take another step, my feet will fall off.

She’s so thin she could thread a needle.

If his teeth were any whiter, I’d be blind.

Oxymoron. A device that puts two contradictory ideas together to create complex meaning. (See
top photo)

Their relationship was an open secret.

The sight of the living dead shuffling below sent a blazing chill down her spine.

Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:54]

Allegory

Do you like hidden meanings in stories? If so, then an allegory is your type of literary device because
it uses symbols to reveal a hidden meaning that conveys the overall moral of the story. Many literary
works contain allegories.

The Hunger Games is an allegory for reality TV and how it numbs us to horrors and suffering.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe has a basic religious allegory of good vs. evil or God vs.
Satan.It’s hard to explain that comforting pain to those who don’t understand.

Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:47]

10 Common Literary Devices (With Examples)

Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:54]

Allegory

Do you like hidden meanings in stories? If so, then an allegory is your type of literary device because
it uses symbols to reveal a hidden meaning that conveys the overall moral of the story. Many literary
works contain allegories.

The Hunger Games is an allegory for reality TV and how it numbs us to horrors and suffering.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe has a basic religious allegory of good vs. evil or God vs. Satan.
Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:54]

Allusion

An allusion is a passing reference in literature. It simply involves making a passing reference to a

person or another event in a story or other work. It’s a fun type of literary device that keeps writing
from getting bland or boring.

He was her Romeo. (a reference to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet)

It was like I walked into the Garden of Eden. (biblical allusion)

Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:55]

Flashback

You have flashbacks in life. For example, the smell of baking cookies takes you back to a time you
spent with your grandmother. Flashbacks in literature are the same. These are story elements giving
you insight into a previous moment or experience.

Standing on the edge of the cliff, she was suddenly transported back to the time when she was two.
She remembered the feeling of her heart pounding as she looked down at the ground, seconds
before falling.

The loud clang of the thunder sent him spiraling back into the war. He could remember every
moment as the bombs raged around him. His captain screamed in his ear trying to get his attention.

Foreshadowing

Authors are sneaky. Sometimes, they give you just a hint that something exciting or foreboding is
going to happen. This foreshadowing of the events to come has us tapping our feet in anticipation.
Almost every scary story or crime novel includes examples of foreshadowing.

The still evening sent a chill down her back. The air was just too calm.

Looking away from her sick child, she tried to tell herself everything would be okay, but she couldn’t
shake the feeling that danced in her stomach.

Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:56]

Hyperbole

Hyperbole is an extreme exaggeration used by writers to add emphasis to a phrase. While it is a fun
literary device in literature, it’s used in real life too. Discover examples of hyperbole and how to use
it.
I told you to do the dishes a million times.

My teacher is older than dirt.

Irony

Irony is about how your perception is different from how something really is. Irony has disappointed
many readers when they thought something would happen, but it didn’t. There are several types of
irony. It comes in different forms like dramatic, verbal or situational irony.

My old English mastiff dog is named “Tiny”. (situational irony)

My son is as innocent as the devil. (verbal irony)

Imagery

Imagery is the reason people enjoy reading fiction. Within the pages of the book, you get
transported to a new land or dystopian society. The sensory words the author uses to create that
image in your mind are examples of imagery.

The rich, warm smell of baking chocolate chip cookies reminded him of the soft smiling face of his
grandmother.

The blanket felt like the fur of a thousand kittens.

Juxtaposition

Juxtaposition adds a unique twist to literature because it places two opposites next to each other.
Examples of juxtaposition could be positive and negative, like light or dark or yin and yang

Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill. (big vs. little)

The young child looked up into the wrinkled face of her grandmother smiling. (young vs. old)

Mercy Almeida, [13.07.21 12:57]

Metaphor

A metaphor is a figure of speech that creates a direct comparison. For example, saying, "the toddler
was a devil" is an example of a metaphor. The toddler is not literally a devil; the metaphor is used to
say that the child was behaving badly in a figurative way.

The kindergarten classroom was a zoo.

The computers are dinosaurs.

Mood

Every literary work incorporates examples of mood to some degree. Mood sets the overall tone for a
literary work. The words the writer uses to create the mood can make the book happy or the song
melancholy.

In the Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, the poem sets a gloomy mood.

The song Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys has a happy mood.