Alliteration refers to the repetition of initial consonant sounds in two or neighbouring words. It is the repeating of the same consonant sounds at the beginning of words. This means that alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning ...

Foreshadowing is a technique in which a writer gives an advance hint or clue of what is to come later in the story. It often appears at the beginning of the story or chapter and helps the reader develop expectations ...

Flashforward (or prolepsis), is a literary device which reveals the events that will occur in the future. This means that it is an insertion of a later event into the chronological structure of a story. It is also a sudden ...

The flashback (analepsis) occurs when the writer breaks away from the current action of a story to recount events that happened earlier. It is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point. It is ...

An allusion is a figure of speech that is a reference to a well-known person, place, thing, idea or event. Each of these concepts can be of historical, cultural, literary, religious or political significance. The referred thing can be real ...

Allegory is a representation of abstract ideas and principles by using characters, figures and events. It describes situations, events or express abstract ideas in terms of material, objects, persons, and actions. An allegory is a narrative form in which the ...

The term paradox is from Middle French paradoxe. It also comes from the Greek word paradoxon which means “contrary to expectations, existing belief, or perceived opinion”, and directly from Latin paradoxum “paradox, statement seemingly absurd yet really true”. Paradox is therefore, a phrase/statement that appears ...

Oxymoron is derived from the Greek oksús which means “sharp, keen, pointed” and mōros which means “dull, stupid, foolish“. Once those meanings are put together, they can be “sharp-dull”, “keenly stupid”, or “pointedly foolish”. Oxymoron is then a figure of speech in which two words or phrases with opposing ...

Repetition is the repeating of a word, a phrase, sentence or idea within a story. It is used to add more emphasis to an idea and make it clearer and more memorable. Due to this definition, repetition is a common ...

The word onomatopoeia comes from two Greek words: onoma, meaning “name,” and poiein, meaning “to make”, so onomatopoeia means “to make a name/or a sound”.    Onomatopoeia as a literary device includes words that imitate, resemble or suggest the sound of the things they ...

It is a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to refer to the whole thing or the whole thing is used to refer to the part of that thing. This means that the part of ...

It is a figure of speech in which a thing or concept is referred to by the name of something which is closely associated with that thing or concept. It is a figure of language where instead of using the ...

It is a literary device which gives human traits or qualities to animals or things. It is when the non-humans are given human characteristics. By here a thing, an idea or an animal is given human attributes.  The non-human objects ...

Metaphor is a figure of speech which compares two unlike thinks without using ‘as’, ‘like’ or ‘than’. It says that one thing is another. It is a comparison that show how two things, that are not alike, in most ways, ...

It is a comparison between two unlike things by using the words ‘like’, ‘as’ or ‘than’. It is a figure of speech which uses the words ‘like’, ‘as’, ‘than,’ or ‘as if’ to show the resemblance between two things which ...

It is a deliberate exaggeration which is not intended to deceive but rather to create a special effect. It involves the exaggeration of ideas in order to express strong emotions or create a comic effect. Hyperbole is used to create a strong ...

A symbol is a sign, a colour, a figure or object that is used to signify something else. Symbolism therefore is the use of symbols in stories to represent ideas, qualities or concepts. A literary symbol (thing/event/character/quality/relationship…) is something that ...

Satire is the use of humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.         It can also be explained as:   -a ...

The word “irony” comes from a Greek comic character Eiron, a clever underdog who by his wit repeatedly triumphs over the boastful character Alazon. Eiron was weaker and used his wit to overcome a stronger character. This word, therefore, means ...

Key aspects of prose are the basic elements on which the story is built upon. Those key aspects of prose include plot, setting, characters, point of view, subject, themes, messages, audience, atmosphere and purpose.      A. PLOT Plot is ...