wraps up crime in New York.

Did you hear about the cross-

Glossary of Techniques eyed teacher who couldn’t control his pupils?). ER – often
Poetic Techniques humorous, it makes the responder stop and think about the
 Figures of Speech/Figurative Language: a comparison of two meanings of the topic and feel intelligent for working
the shared quality/meaning of two things. The three main them both out.
figurative language techniques are metaphor, simile and
personification, but symbolism, motif, hyperbole, euphemism,
and pun are figurative language techniques also.
 Simile: a comparison using the words ‘like’ or ‘as’. (She
rode the wave like a dolphin. He was as graceful as a cat.)
Effect on Responder (ER) – Reveals or represents a clear
and familiar image of the qualities shared by the two things
being compared. “Tim’s as thin as a wafer” is a simile i.e.
‘X’ is a simile. Or the simile ‘X’ reveals . . . Sound Techniques
 Metaphor: a direct comparison of two things to highlight  Alliteration: the repetition of the same consonant sound at
qualities shared by both. It says that the thing is the other the beginning of two or more words that are close together.
thing being compared to it. (Sam is a fish in the water). ER (Stocky stars starve. Peter Pan.) ER – highlights and unifies
= (or is similar to) simile. The metaphor ‘X’ reveals; ‘X’ is the meanings of the words, and makes them easy to
metaphoric or the metaphoric ‘X’ reveals . . . remember. The alliteration of the “x” sound enables
 Personification: to give a human characteristic to an responders to . . .
inanimate (dead) or non-human object or idea. (The wave  Assonance: the repetition of the same vowel sound in two
roared ferociously.) Personify is the verb of this noun. ER or more words that are close together. (The insane reign of
= simile. ‘X’ is an example of personification. the pale Queen of the USA). ER = alliteration.
 Motif: is a recurring symbolic idea throughout a text. ER =  Sibilance: The repetition of the ‘s’ sound in words close
simile. The use of a ‘X’ motif reveals . . . together. (Sea snakes keep pace with silly sea lions). ER =
 Extended Metaphor: is a metaphor that continues and Alliteration
develops for a major section of a text. ER = simile. ‘X’ is an  Onomatopoeia: is the use of words that sound like the
extended metaphor. action they represent. (squeak, quack, rumble, ooze, smooth,
 Hyperbole: dramatic exaggeration that is not meant to be coarse). ER = metaphor.
taken literally. (Her eyes shone from a thousand miles. Its
breath could knock you over!) ER – exaggerates meaning
to make qualities stand out and be remembered. ‘X’ is an Techniques of Contrast
example of hyperbole.  Juxtaposition: placing of two images close to each other so
 Euphemism: a polite/less direct way of saying something. that their differences become obvious. Usually intended to
(Her clothes have seen better days.) ER – stands out to make some kind of comment. (A city next to a rainforest. A
responders because it plays down the harshness of the red rose next to a gun.) ER – reveals to responders a point of
situation, usually humorously. ‘X’ is an example of view through the differences of the two images.
euphemism.  Irony: the literal or real meaning is the opposite of the
 Pun: a play on words, usually containing a word with a meaning that the audience understand. (WWI was called the
double meaning. (The teacher was a class act. Spiderman war to end all wars). ER – makes responders think about the
meaning and is often humorous, making the responder feel  Subjective Language: Biased language that expresses an
intelligent as they make sense of the opposition. opinion.
 Dramatic Irony: the audience knows something that the  Colloquial Language: informal, everyday language
characters do not. ER – makes responders feel that they are (“gonna”). Localised forms are known as slang (“see ya
god-like and know more than the characters, i.e. they are in on later”). ER – responders relate to it easily.
a secret, and we all love secrets.  Dialogue: Is conversation between more than one character.
 Paradox: a statement that seems to contradict itself but ER - It reveals character thoughts and feelings, and reveals
which contains a truth. (If my father were alive he’d turn in his their characterisation.
grave.) ER = irony.  Monologue: Is spoken by one character to the audience with
 Oxymoron: two words that don’t go together. (Intimate no other characters on stage. ER - reveals their inner
strangers, a still wind, cruel kindness, calculated spontaneity!) motivations through dramatic irony, and enables responders
ER = irony. to relate to character. Also creates suspense by
foreshadowing the character’s plans and motivations.
Language Types
 Tone: the speaker/writer’s attitude towards the subject. Other Techniques
Tone often refers to the emotions associated with the text.  Reflective thoughts: Character reflects on and gives
Can be angry, apprehensive, dark, sympathetic, encouraging, opinion about past events and characters. ER – similar to
neutral, jolly, hostile, serious… Always place an emotion ‘Monologue’.
adjective in front of tone when explaining it. When analysing  Intertextuality: Making reference to other works or
general techniques like this one and the following five composers in order to reflect similar aspects shared by both
language types it is important that you pull out the specific texts.
words that give the effect and put them in inverted commas  Jargon: technical terms belonging to a particular field or
again and then explain how they affect responders. E.G “As the category. (Field - cricket: stump, wicket, bowling, bat, over,
sinister clouds gathered their force” uses a scary tone through six). ER – informs/educates responders and gives the text
the adjective “sinister” to reveal the fear the protagonist is authority or authentication.
feeling.  Structure: the way the text is arranged in order to release
 Emotive Language: causes emotional responses in information to responders. (Chronology, letters, newspaper
responders. E.G. The kitten helplessly clawed against the side articles are some structural variation techniques). Often
of the pool. ER – Emotive language stimulates the emotions of involves the technique of suspense.
responders.  Suspense: makes the responder question what will happen
 Persuasive Language: persuades responders to agree with next. ER – keeps the responder interested and guessing, keen
the composer’s point of view. Uses adjectives, adverbs and to continue with the text.
any language technique to help make its point and show/prove  Rhetorical Question: persuasive device/question that
its bias (opinion). doesn’t require an answer. (Isn’t this a gorgeous world we live
 Objective Language: Neutral language should not evoke in?) ER – involves the responder by directly asking them to
any emotion. ER - By its factual or scientific nature, and lack think about the topic.
of persuasive techniques, such as the use of biased adjectives  Anecdote: a small story used to entertain or make a point,
or adverbs, it seems less deceptive and therefore more usually in the first person (using the pronoun “I”). ER –
truthful.
responders relate to the point made and can understand the The slow nature of the protagonist’s journey is vividly reflected through
point better. personification in the line “The car crawled down the road.”
 Cliché: a popular phrase used so often it has lost meaning.
(Hard as nails.)
 Proverb: a well-known moral saying. Also known as an
aphorism. (Life is not a rehearsal! No pain no gain!) ER –
well known and easy to relate to.
 Idiom: common everyday expressions, specific to different
cultures. (She’s a stubby short of a six pack. Not on your
Nellie.) ER – cliché + idiom = proverb.

Further Language Techniques: analogy,

allusion, listing, repetition, rhyme, intertextuality, song,
characterisation and character development, sensory imagery
[visual, aural, olfactory (smell), tactile (touch) and palatable
(taste)], self-reflexivity.

Don’t forget that there are a range of dramatic, filmic and

visual techniques also.

4LA’s – The Four Levels of Analysis

(1) Close reference or quote from the text. i.e. pull out the words and write
them in “inverted commas”.
(2) Name the technique that it reflects.
(3) Effect on responder. i.e. how it get its meaning across to responders
(4) Quality. i.e. What does it mean and how does it relate to the
concept/value being discussed?

Example to show concept of a journey

(1) “The car crawled down the road.”
(2) Personification.
(3) Creates a vivid image in responder’s minds.
(4) The quality/meaning of the journey going slowly.

Now that we know what we need to write lets combine it all into a sentence:

“The car crawled down the road” is an example of personification that

creates a vivid image in responder’s minds of the car’s journey going slowly.

Or