Literary Devices (techniques)

They are the tools used by writers to convey or emphasize the meaning.

1- Symbolism

Symbols are concrete objects/images used to stand for abstract objects.

For example,

- Heart: love
- Spring may symbolize youth, while Autumn may signify being old or
coming of age
- The use of colors reflects certain connotations.
Examples
- Red (blood, love, anger)
- Blue (sadness)

2- Imagery

Imagery is using a descriptive language that appeals to our five senses and
makes us visualize a scene.

Types of Imagery:
1- visual (sight)
- The sunset was amazing; the clouds were edged with pink and
gold.(optimistic mood)
- It was a dark and dim forest. (sad mood)
2-aural (sound):
- The soft hiss of skis
- sometimes related to onomatopoeia ( a word that sounds like what it is
describing) such as buzz, click, splash
2- Olfactory (smell):
- I love the smell of winter’s breeze in the morning.
- Your fragrance smells like roses.
4-tactile (touch)
- I touched the tree bark; it was rough against my skin.
- I felt the hot sand under my legs.
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 5-gustatory (taste)
- The familiar tang of his grandmother’s lentil soup reminded him of
his childhood (theme of nostalgia)
6-kinesthetic (movement)
- Tossing their heads in a sprightly dance.
- Heartbeat, pulse, shivering, running.

 Function of imagery in literary texts

- It creates a vivid picture that attracts the reader.
- It helps determine the mood.
- It pictures the setting of the work
- It could help us understand the symbolic significance of the work.

3- Figures of speech:
- A figure of speech is a word or phrase using figurative language—
language that has other meaning than its literal definition.
- Whenever the speaker does not intend the literal interpretation of his
words, he is using a figure of speech.
a) Personification
- a figure of speech by which animals, abstract ideas, or inanimate
things are referred to as if they were human.

For example:
- Science-fiction novels were his constant companions.
- “Death is the mother of Beauty” – from “Sunday Morning” by
Wallace Stevens.
- Money talks.
b) Metaphor and simile
Both make a comparison by directly relating one thing to another
unrelated thing. However, simile always uses as or like.

For example:

- Life is a journey. (metaphor)

- Life is like a journey. (simile)

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 c) Irony
- It is when there are two contradicting meanings of the same situation,
event, image, sentence, phrase, or story.
- In many cases, this refers to the difference between expectations and
reality.
 Verbal irony: when the speaker says something and he means the
opposite.
Examples:
- Describing someone who says foolish things as a “genius”
- Delivering bad news by saying, “the good news is”
 Situational irony: it is when the readers expect something to
happen, and what actually happens is the complete opposite.
- The purpose of ironic situations is to allow the readers to make a
distinction between appearances and realities, and eventually associate
them to the theme of a story.
Examples:
- A fire station that burns down.
- A t-shirt with a “Buy American” logo that is made in China.
- “Water, water everywhere, nor any a drop to drink.” This line is from
Samuel Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, describing a
situation where a sailor dies of thirst, while he is surrounded by water.
 Dramatic irony: This is when the audience knows more
information about the situations, the causes of conflicts, and their
resolutions before the leading characters or actors. (common in
plays)