LITERATURE STRATEGIES

DICTION

A writer’s or speaker’s choice of words and

way of arranging the words in a sentence so

the words convey and emphasize the

meaning or theme of a text through

distinctions in sound, look, rhythm, syllable,

letters, and definition  

SYNTAX

The arrangement of words and phrases to

create well-formed sentences in a language.

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

The use of words to express meaning beyond the literal meaning of the words themselves

Some types of figurative languageonomatopoeia idiomalliteration hyperbolesimile personificationmetaphor

ONOMATOPOEIA

A figure of speech where the formation or use of words such as buzz, murmur or boo imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.

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ALLITERATION

A figure of speech where consonant sounds are repeated at the beginning of a consecutive series of words (usually three or more words written closely together). Examples of Alliteration:

   Sally Sells Seashells By The Sea Shore   Rolling, Racing, Roaring, Rapids            

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SIMILE

Examples of similes: She is as pretty as a picture.He is as busy as a bee.They are like two peas in a pod.

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A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two things using the words like or as in the comparison.

METAPHORA figure of speech that makes a comparison between two

things that have something in common. This comparison is

stronger and more direct than a simile since metaphors do not

use the words like or as to compare the two things.

Examples of metaphors:

She is a graceful swan.

He is a couch potato.

The clouds were cotton candy balls in the sky.

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PERSONIFICATION

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Personification is a figure of speech in which human characteristics are given to nonhuman creatures or objects.

PERSONIFICATION

The leaves danced in the wind

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Examples of personification:

The heat ripped the breath fromher lungs.

IDIOM

An idiom is a figure of speech in which an

expression has a different meaning overall

than the meaning of the individual words. For

example: “it is raining cats and dogs” is an

idiom which means it is raining very hard.

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IDIOMSMore examples of idioms:Do you have ants in your pants?We were chewing the fat.It’s raining cats and dogs. I wish he would kick the bucket. Two heads are better than one.

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HYPERBOLE

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• a hyperbole is a figure

of speech in which the

truth is exaggerated for

emphasis or humorous

effect

HYPERBOLE

We have a ton of work!

I ate a thousand pounds of pasta.

I told you a million times.

I have a headache the size of Texas!

“DON’T USE THAT TONE WITH ME! ”

The attitude a writer takes toward his or her

subject, characters, and readers. Through

tone, a writer can amuse, anger, or shock the

reader. Tone is created through the choice of

words and details

TONE EXAMPLE

  The girls were playing in the pond, splashing each other and trying to catch fish with their hands. They were having fun, but kept looking over their shoulders at the looming forest. The long grass of the field kept moving and they sort of felt like they were being watched… About a half hour passed and still the girls kept checking the field for movements. It seemed like a pair of dark eyes was on them. They even considered going back inside, but that would mean homework time. So they continued splashing, but with caution now. Their eyes hardly left the field.

The tone of this passage is ominous, suggesting a little bit of fear or foreboding. Words like "caution, dark, and looming“ lead readers to the tone.

CHANGES IN ATMOSPHERE AFFECT MOOD

Mary Poppins Theatrical Trailer: http://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuWf9fP-A-U

Scary Mary Poppins Recut Trailer: http://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T5_0AGdFic

MOOD

MOOD is the overall feelings or emotions that are created IN THE READER.

The “power of the pen” can move mountains.

Authors “move” their readers’ moods through their choice of words and level of detail.

MOOD EXAMPLE

After New Year's the time came to put all the decorations away and settle in for the long, cold winter. The house seemed to sigh as we boxed up its finery. The tree was dry and brittle, and now waited forlornly by the side of the road to be picked up.

Mood: Dreary, depressed. How do we know? "cold, sigh, brittle, forlornly"

IMAGERY

The author’s attempt to create a mental picture (or

reference point) in the mind of the reader. Remember,

though the most immediate forms of imagery are

visual, strong and effective imagery can be used to

invoke an emotional, sensational (taste, touch, smell

etc) or even physical response.

IMAGERY

It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow

grabs know in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube-shaped hall like

a tunnel; a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with paneled walls, and

floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs

for hats and coats-the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on,

going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill-The Hill, as all the

people for many miles round called it-and many little round doors opened out of

it, first on one side and then on another.

SYMBOLISM

When an object is meant to be representative of something or an idea greater than the object itself.

**Try to figure out what the red words symbolize!!!

The Sick Rose

By William Blake

O Rose, thou art sick!

The invisible worm

That flies in the night,

In the howling storm,

Has found out thy bed Of crimson joy,

And his dark secret love Does thy life destroy.

ROSE

a symbol of perfection and the flower of Venus (the

Roman goddess of love). It also stands for joy and

peace. The rose is always seen as feminine . A red

rose can represent life, spring, passion and blood. A

white rose can represent purity.

Click here

WORM

a symbol of death. It is connected with lowness,

vileness and contempt. It is also a masculine force,. In

this poem, worm is specifically the canker worm which

eats the roots of the rose.

Click Here

STORM

a symbol of chaos, confusion, fear, wildness,

destruction and change. The storm can also be seen

as blowing away the old and frail and giving the new

room to expand. If the storm is seen to have creative

effects, there must first be great wildness and

destruction. Click Here

NIGHT

a symbol of darkness, of things

secret and hidden. It is also a

symbol of evil. Satan is referred to

as the Prince of Darkness.Click Here

BED

a symbol of sleep and the vulnerability and

innocence of sleep. In this poem it is , of

course, a garden bed

Click Here

EXTENTION ACTIVITIES

http://www.gamequarium.org/dir/Gamequarium/La

nguage_Arts/Figurative_Language

/

ALLUSION

AN ALLUSION IS AN INDIRECT REFERENCE

WITHIN A TEXT TO ANOTHER LITERARY WORK OR

TO A FAMOUS PERSON, PLACE, OR EVENT.

Example of Allusion

Her smile could rival that of the Mona Lisa. In this

sentence the girl’s smile is being compared to the

smile of the figure in da’Vinci’s famous painting, The

Mona Lisa