Onomatopoeia:
A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words

Example:
"Myriads of rivulets hurrying through the lawn,

The moan of doves in immemorial elms,

And murmuring of innumerable bees."

- The Princess, (Part vii) by Alfred Lord Tennyson

Explanation:

This has onomatopoeia in the "moan" of the doves and the "murmuring" of the bees. Tennyson does this to appeal to the readers sense of auditory imagery. This imagery creates an impression and abstraction to the reader, allowing them to further understand and enjoy the novel. Onomatopoeia allows the reader to further understand what they are reading, and keeps them interested and allows their imagination to flow. 

Meiosis:
The ironic minimizing of fact, understatement presents something as less significant than it is. The effect frequently can be humorous and emphatic.

Example:
Fire and Ice
Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great and would suffice.
-Robert Frost

Explanation:

Frost uses meiosis in this poem, which is evident in the last line. He says "and would suffice". He is saying death by ice would be adequate, which is an understatement. It death is horrific and more than just satisfying. The purpose of Frost doing this shows he does not fear death, and even though it is an understatement it heightens the dramatic tension. It also helps set the detached yet depressing tone and mood.

Inverted syntax: 
Reversing the normal word order of a sentence

Examples:
“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall”.
-Robert Frost, The Mending Wall

Explanation:
Frost has this in the beginning of the poem to create a mysterious beginning. The purpose of this mysterious first sentence makes the reader question what is happening. Frost begins the poem with a troubling question of what is destroying the wall every year, which is also the theme and purpose of the poem itself. This inverted syntax helps set the tone and makes the reader interested in the poem, which is any authors purpose for their work.

hyperbole:
Figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement. Not intended literally, hyperbole may be humorous or serious

Example:
"Your beauty, that did haunt me in my sleep
to undertake the death of all the world,
so I might live one hour in your sweet bosom"
-Shakespeare, Richard lll

Explanation:
In this quote Shakespeare over-exaggerates the beauty of a woman. The purpose of this is to exemplify her beauty, and show the main character is distracted by it. This type of exaggeration helps the reader characterize the woman. Also the purpose is to emphasize her, and show what the main character will do because of this.

Figure of speech: 
a device used to produce figurative language {etc: metaphor, simile, apostrophe}


Example:
"Death lies on her like an untimely frost
Upon the sweetest flower of all the field."

-Romeo and Juliet

Explanation:

In this quote from Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses a simile to convey death. This simile contrast frost with a sweet flower. The purpose of this is to compare the death of sweet girl to something cold in bitter. This figure of speech creates imagery and it also helps the reader see the significance of this death. This language also helps with the somber tone and mood of this novel, and makes the writing more professional.

Genre:
The major category into which a literary work fits. The basic divisions are poetry, prose, and drama. However, subdivisions may also be called genres, for example: novels, short stories, essays, autobiographies, etc.

Example:
"When he found i would leave him, he took care to prevent my getting employment in any other printing-house of the town..."
-Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

Explanation:
This shows that the genre of this novel is an autobiography, because Franklin wrote the novel himself, hence the first person point of view. The purpose of this is to take a certain time in one's  life that was interesting or holds great significance and tell it from their own point of view. This is important because the reader wants to hear the facts from the person they are learning/reading about. The purpose of the genre of a book helps the reader know how true the facts are, and what type of book they will be reading. If they want the most facts possible they would read his autobiography, not a child's picture book.

Euphemism:
A more agreeable or less unpleasant substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept.


Example:




Explanation:
In this the Defense refers to murder, as "involuntary assisted suicide". The purpose of this is to make something that is considered bad, sound less awful, euphemisms make things sound better than they really are, which is what the prosecutor is accusing the defense attorney of doing in this comic.

Epigraph:
A quotation or aphorism at the beginning of a literary work that is suggestive of the theme

Example:
"It should not be denied... that being footloose has always exhilarated us. It is associated in our minds with escape from history and oppression and law and irksome obligations, with absolute freedom, and the road has always led west."
-Wallace Stegner, opening quote of chapter three from Into the Wild.


Explanation:
The author of Into the Wild always puts quotes at the beginning of each chapter. These quotes show the theme of the novel, and of the chapter. The purpose of this is to help foreshadow and set the theme of freedom from reality, to the reader in a simple, non-confusing way.

Colloquialism:
The use of slang or in-formalities in speech or writing, including local or regional dialects and usage. 

Example:
"If I must be sold, or all the people on the place, and everything go to rack, why, let me be sold. I s'pose I can b'ar it as well as any on 'em."
-Uncle Tom's Cabin, By Harriet Beecher Stowe

Explanation: 
Uncle Tom's Cabin was classified as anti-slavery literature. The language/colloquialisms in the novel shows the time and place that it was set in. The language reflects how the African Americans spoke during this time, showing they were ignorant and not treated like humans. Which is one of the main purposes of the novel.  The main purpose of these colloquialisms give the reader a glimpse of what people were like, and it made the reader want to do more to change this. 

Classification:
arrangement of materials into groups; The action or process of classifying something according to shared qualities or characteristics.


Example:




Explanation:
This is an example of how Benjamin Franklin classified virtues. The purpose of this shows Franklin's pattern of thinking, and writing. It allows the reader to classify his virtues easily and very precisely. The reason he classified his virtues is because it is simple, and he refers back to it many times in his autobiography, which makes it easier for the reader.

Figurative Language:
Writing or speech not intended to convey literal meaning, usually imaginative and vivid.


Example:
"Jem waved my words away as if fanning gnats."
-To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Explanation:
This is a simile, which is a prime example of figurative language. In this case, Lee uses it to help the reader understand his point, that Jem did not listen to whats Scout tells her. The purpose of using figurative language is to give the reader a vivid image of how much Jem isn't listening. This figurative language is more descriptive and shows how more detail than "Jem wasn't listening". 

Flashback:
Returning to an earlier time in a narrative for the purpose  of making something in the present clearer. 


Example:

Because i could not stop for death
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15395
-Emily Dickinson


Explanation:
Dickinson makes a large flashback in this poem to add to the emphasizes and feelings of sorrow that come with death. She has a flash back of all the stages of life. She does this on purpose to show she is reminiscing all the things that happen during life, and ends with death. The description of life adds to the feelings of sorrow and fear that is associated with death. It also adds to the purpose of accepting death.

Extended Metaphor:
A metaphor developed at length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work.


Example:
Children are flowers.
Always growing
Bright, Cheery
Making people happy
They are all different.
Blooming at their own time when
they are ready to show
Eventually they will die.
They need nurturing to thrive.
Helpless
Waiting for approval.
By: Ali Ballweg


Explanation:
Ballweg makes her entire poem a metaphor to children and flowers. This adds to the significance  and helps the reader understand the comparison made. Also this metaphor adds to the constant cheerful flow of the poem, and doesn't change the rhythm. The purpose of making one extended metaphor of the comparison between children and flowers to show all the similarities between both of them, and not just one example, which can leave the reader hanging and not definite about the comparison.

Verisimilitude:
The quality of realism in a work that persuades the reader that he/she is getting a vision of life as it really is.


Example:
"I held him easy, causing the blood to run where i touched him with the ends of my fingers."
-Frederick Douglass.


Explanation:
This type of in-depth description is used a lot in Douglass' work. The purpose of this is to show the reader the reality of things and how harsh it is by using invective language and imagery. This verisimilitude allows the reader to get a descriptive vision of Douglass' life, and how harsh slavery was; which is the purpose of the novel.

Invective:
An emotionally violent verbal denunciation or attack using strong abusive language


Example:
"He would whip her to make her scream, and whip her to make her hush; and not until overcome be fatigue, would he cease to swing the blood covered cow-skin."
-Frederick Douglass: An American Slave

Explanation:
The purpose of this is to show the cruel conditions that the slaves had to endure. This makes the reader feel bad and feel sympathetic for the slaves, which is what Douglass wants. The strong language like this makes the events more in depth and imaginable to the reader. It also helps set the somber tone and mood.

Either/or Fallacy:
Reducing an argument or an issue or two polar opposites and ignoring possible alternatives.


Example:
"either you're with us, or against us.."
-Beauty and the Beast
(Gaston)


Explanation:
The purpose of this is to show that there is no other choice. It shows authority and power which is what the creator of "The Beauty and the Beast" wanted Gaston to seem like. It adds to the suspense, be the fact that you must pick one or the other. It also serves as the purpose that Gaston is down to business, which helps the viewer understand the personality of the character. 

Didactic:
A term used to describe a work that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of moral or ethical behavior thinking.

Example:
"Thomas Godfrey, a self-taught mathematician  great in his way, and afterward inventor of what is now called Hadley's Quadrant. But he knew little out of his way, and was not a pleasing companion; as, like most great mathematicians i have met with, he expected universal precision...."
-Autobiography of Ben Franklin

Explanation:
This is a passage from a novel that has a didactic tone through the whole novel. The purpose of this is because Franklin wants the reader to believe and learn from his life experiences. He wants to teach the reader not only about his life and who he knew, but how to live life. This tone allows the reader to trust believe what Franklin says and shows Franklin's sophistication.

Denotation:
The strict, literal, dictionary definition of the word.



Example:
....And on a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
We keep the wall between us as we go.
To each the boulders that have fallen to each.
-Mending Wall

Explanation:
The example of denotation in The Mending Wall, is the wall. This is an example of both connotation, and denotation. For the denotation, it is physically describing the barrier, the wall. Robert Frost uses this as a denotation because it is simple, yet very significant. The main purpose of denotation is to show the reader in simple way what is happening without any tricks, thinking, or analysis.

Consonance:
Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity.


Example:
"A Quietness distilled
As Twilight long begun,
Or Nature spending with herself
Sequestered Afternoon."
-Emily Dickinson


Explanation: 
The example of consonance in this poem is the repetition of the letter 'n'. The purpose of this is to get the desired rhythm and feeling that Dickinson wants the reader to have. It creates a good rhythm by not rhyming the words, but instead having a slant rhyme. This gave Dickinson more freedom and flexibility when writing the poem, and it also gives the reader more freedom to interpret the tone and rhythm better. 

Connotation:
The non-literal, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning.



Example:
And on a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
We keep the wall between us as we go.
To each the boulders that have fallen to each.
-Mending Wall


Explanation:
The word "wall" acts as both a boundary (an actual wall) and also an emotional barrier that prevents interaction between  the narrator, and his neighbor. The connotation of the word wall, makes the poem much more interesting. This connotation could also be said to be a metaphor. The purpose of the this connation is that the readers can relate to it, and it also adds a special effect to the poem. It makes it unique, and not boring by just out right discussing the barrier between him and his neighbor. 

Clause:
A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb. An independent, or main clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent, or subordinate clause cannot stand alone as a sentence and must be accompanied by and independent clause.


Example:
"Life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
-Ferris Bueller's Day Off



Explanation: 
In this sentence "Life moves pretty fast" is the independent clause. Ferris Bueller says this to show emphasizes on the importance of life, and how it moves fast. That is really the only purpose of the clause. This is a small clause, one that can seem merely unimportant, but in fact it explains Bueller's view, and can show his personality. 

Chronological Order:
Arrangement by the order in which things occur; usually moves past to present.


Example:
"I was born in Tuckahoe, near Hillsborough, and about twelve miles from Easton, in Talbot county, Maryland. I have no accurate knowledge of my age..."
-Frederick Douglass An American Slave

Explanation:
This is the opening lines of An American Slave. This shows that Douglass is telling his story from beginning to present. The point of that is so the reader can get a clear picture of Douglass' life. he wants the reader to know everything he has been through, from start to finish, especially since he had a rough childhood. Douglass wants the reader to see this, and see how his innocence was taken as a child due to slavery. Also chronological order is easier for the reader and less confusing then starting in the middle of his life.

Caricature:
 A grotesque likeness of striking characteristics in persons or things.


Example:


Explanation:
Charles Dickinson was known for creating caricatures. The purpose of them was to create something that emphasized or exaggerated a certain aspect. In this picture he emphasized his ears, nose, and hair. This is so he can show the reality of things and not hide behind the flaws, like many people tend to do.  Another purpose is it adds to the characterization of him that is seen by the reader, and in this case... the viewer. Caricatures can also be seen in his books, for example Great Expectations.

Bombast: Inflated language; the use of high-sounding language for a trivial subject.

Example:
"Let gallows gape for dog; let man go free, and let not hemp his windpipe suffocate."
-Shakespeare

Explanation:
Shakespeare uses bombast language through out all of his works. In this case, his purpose is to make a mean sentence less mean. the quote means "Only hang dogs, not men." The use of bombast language adds to the purpose of making it more professional and grandiloquent. Also this type of language is what Shakespeare is known for. Lastly, the way Shakespeare wrote the sentence with the bombast language makes the sentence less harsh than it really is in reality.

Begging the question:
Often called circular reasoning, begging the question occurs when the believability of the evidence depends on the believability of the claim. In other words, one assumes a statement to be true when it has not been proven so.

Example:
Rebecca: "Goody Ann! You sent a child to conjure up the dead?"
Mrs. Putman: "Let god blame me, not you, not you, Rebecca I'll not have judging me anymore! Is it natural work to lose 7 children before they live a day?"
-The Crucible

Explanation:
This is an excellent of begging the question. Mrs. Putnam believes that it is unnatural to lose so many children, she believes it must be a curse cast on her from one of the witches in the town. Arthur Miller uses begging the question to add to the suspense of The Crucible. This serves the purpose of showing the betrayal and finger pointing that was created during the Salem Witch Trials. The main purpose of begging the question in The Crucible shows how Little proof was shown or needed, and how the allegation were far fetched and the  believeability of the claim was just assumed to be true, without real proof.