Poetic Devices | Figure of Speech | Literary Devices | Class 10, 11 and 12 |

Poetic Devices Class 12, Figure of Speech Class 12, Literary Devices Class 12, Poetic Devices Class 10, Poetic Devices Class 11, Poetic Devices Class 12

Poetic Devices Class 12, Poetic Devices Class 11, Poetic Devices Class 10

What are poetic devices?

Answer: Poetic device is one of the forms of literary devices used in the poetry. It is used to build the mood or feeling of the reader and to add life to the poetry.

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Simile

1. Simile: Compares one thing to another (of a different kind, and yet alike in some significant way)

For e.g.

• Wan, pale as a late winter’s moon. (My Mother at Sixty-Six)
• Her face ashen like that of a corpse. (My Mother at Sixty-Six)
• This world is like a rattrap. (The Rattrap)
• He fought like a king

Metaphor

2. Metaphor: A word or phrase for one thing that is used in place of another thing in order to show or suggest that they are similar. ‘Like’ or ‘As’ is not used in metaphor.

For e.g.

• Life is a big roller-coaster ride.
• Garbage to them is gold (Lost Spring).
• He is the big fish who must be trapped.

Alliteration

3. Alliteration: The repetition of consonant sounds, especially at the beginning of the words.

For e.g.

• Don’t drink and drive.
• The sea washed their terribly transient toes. (Photograph)
• He saw a spider and snake on the shelf.
• Some Say the world will end in fire. (Fire and Ice)

Repetition

4. Repetition: The repeated use word or word pattern.

For e.g.

• All she did was smile, smile and smile. (My Mother at Sixty-Six)
• Break O Break open till they break the town. (An Elementary School Classroom in Slum)
• I felt happy to see happy people make others happy.

Personification

5. Personification: The practice of representing an inanimate object or an abstract idea as a person, and endowing it with human traits.

For e.g.

• The sun stretched its golden arms and greeted everyone with his kind smile
• The trees were fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
• I heard my heart cry at night.

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Pun

6. Pun: The pun can use multiple meanings of the same word (homonyms) or different meanings of similar sounding words.

For e.g.

• I am a mender of bad soles.
• Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by.
• People should stop moving their arms.

Antithesis

7. Antithesis: The juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas to give a feeling of balance.

For e.g.

• There was both Peace and War.
• Good and Evil are the part of life.
• Spicy food is heaven on the tongue but hell in the tummy

Onomatopoeia

8. Onomatopoeia: The formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named.

For e.g.

• The dog barked all the night
• They all clapped at the magnificent performance of the kids.
• What a thunderclap those words to me. (The Last Lesson)

Assonance

9. Assonance: The use of words that have the same or very similar vowel sounds near one another.

For e.g.

• The fat cat had a smack. Alas! It was a tough nut to crack.
• Well, it rises high into the bright blue sky.
• Hear the mellow wedding bells

Oxymoron

10. Oxymoron: The conjoining of two contradictory words.

For e.g.

• I observed deafening silence there.
• It was an intelligent donkey.
• Have you ever seen a wise owl?

Related

NCERT Solutions of Class 8 English	NCERT Solutions of Class 9 English
NCERT Solutions of Class 10 English	NCERT Solutions of Class 11 English
NCERT Solutions of Class 12 English	NCERT Solutions of Class 11 Economics
NCERT Solutions of Class 12 Economics	NCERT Solutions of Class 12 Physics
NCERT Solutions of Class 12 Chemistry	NCERT Solutions of Class 12 Biology
NCERT Solutions of Class 12 Political Science	NCERT Solutions of Class 12 Business Studies
Writing Section Class 12 English	Writing Section Class 11 English
Writing Section Class 10 English	Writing Section Class 9 English
Writing Section Class 8 English	Grammar & MCQ of Grammar

Synecdoche

11. Synecdoche: It is a figure of speech wherein a part is made to represent the whole.

For e.g.

• They came on their wheels.
• Five brains are enough to deal with this problem
• The ship was lost with all hands.

Epithet

12. Epithet: It is an adjective or a phrase given to one for one’s quality.

For e.g. 

• He was called Evans the break (Evans Tries an O-Level)
• He called the white-haired Director.
• They were hard-earning people.

Apostrophe

13. Apostrophe: It is used to address a dead/absent person or thing.

For e.g.

• Oh God ! Where are you staying?
• Well Mr. Terror, what do you think you can do to me? (Deep Water)
• Death, be not proud !

Metonymy

14. Metonymy : Substitution of one term for another.

For e.g.

• I am reading Chetan Bhagat nowadays. (Here books of Chetan Bhagat have been substituted with Chetan Bhagat)
• They were listening to Lata Mangeshkar.

Imagery

15. Imagery: It creates a mental picture which is claimed an experienced by the poet/author.

For e.g.

• Merry Children were spilling out of their homes. (My Mother at Sixty-Six)
• Trees were sprinting at a great speed.

Hyperbole/Overstatement

16. Hyperbole/Overstatement : Exaggeration of the fact by poet/author

For e.g.

• He scored a goal and the entire world rose to greet him.
• She winked and everyone, around her, fell down.

Related

Tenses	Modals
Determiners	Reported Speech
Fixed Preposition	Subject Verb Agreement
Adjectives	Conditionals
Verbs	Phrasal Verbs
Idioms and Phrases	Proverbs
Homophones	Common Errors in English
MCQ of Grammar	One Word Substitution
Misspelled Words in English	Advanced Phrases

Euphemism

17. Euphemism: To use inoffensive expression instead of offensive one.

For e.g. 

• My father died at the age of 64. (Offensive)
• My father passed away at the age of 64. (Inoffensive)

Zeugma

18. Zeugma: Use of a word (Verb) in a sentence to modify other words.

For e.g.

• She broke my phone and my heart.
• He took his hat and his leave from there.

Consonance

19. Consonance: Repetition of consonant sound at the end of words.

For e.g.

• Slip slop and creek crock.
• Tip top of shop

Paradox

20. Paradox: A statement that seems absurd but has a deeper meaning.

For e.g.

• Child is the father of a man.
• Coward dies many times before their death but valiant dies only once.

Allusion

21. Allusion: A passing reference to historical even or a play.

For e.g.

• He picked the bow like Lord Rama and broke it into two pieces.
• Don’t behave like a Scrooge (Character from Christmas Carol)

Refrain

22. Refrain: It is a phrase or a line repeated at intervals in a poem, especially at the end of a every stanza.

For e.g.

• Men may go, men may come but I go on forever. (The Brook)
• Miles to go before I sleep. (Stopping by woods on a snowy evening)

Anaphora

23. Anaphora : It is the repetition of words at the beginning of successive clause.

For e.g.

And a little yellow dog and a little red wagon,
And a realio, trulio, little pet dragon. (The Tale of Custard the Dragon)

Transferred Epithet

24. Transferred Epithet : It is a figure of speech wherein adjective is transferred to other noun than it actually describes.

For e.g.

• When aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie. (Here the adjective ‘Terrified’ has been used for hands in place of Aunt Jennifer} (Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers)
• A sweet, unnoted young boy sitting at the back of dim class. (Here the adjective ‘Dim’ has been used for class instead of the room.)  (An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum)
• Fisherman in the cold sea would not harm whales. (Here the word ‘Cold’ has been used for sea instead of cold-hearted man.)  (Keeping Quiet)

Contrast

25. Contrast: It is a literary device through which the poet/writer/author differentiates between two persons/places/things or subjects.

For e.g.

• Seemapuri is on the periphery of Delhi yet miles away from it. (Lost Spring by Anees Jung)
• Young Trees sprinting and my children spilling out of their homes. (My Mother at Sixty-Six)

 Symbolism

26. Symbolism : It is a poetic device using an action that means something more than its literal meaning

For e.g.

• Squirrel’s Game symbolises the fun and freedom outdoors. (An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum by Stephen Spender).
• Civilized Domes symbolises the cities which show progress and great architecture. (An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum by Stephen Spender)
• Clean Clothes symbolise peace and tranquility. (Keeping Quiet by Pablo Neruda)

Irony

27. Irony: It is a literary device which helps up figure out the difference between reality and appearance.

For e.g.

• His name suggests that he is lord of the universe but he is a ragpicker. (Lost Spring)
• The operation is successful and he is dead. (The Tiger King)

Allegory

28. Allegory: It is a narrative/story found in verse that has a purpose of elaborating an idea.

Parallelism

29. Parallelism: It is a literary device which shows the phrases having the same grammatical structure.

For e.g.

• That’s one step for man, one giant leap for mankind.
• Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.

Enjambment

30. Enjambment: It is a literary device wherein thoughts and ideas are carried over to the next line without any pause.

For e.g.

• Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
  That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
  And then is heard no more: it is a tale
  Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
  Signifying nothing. (Macbeth)

Analogy

31. Analogy: It is a poetic/literary device that is often used to make connections between familiar and unfamiliar things.

For e.g.

• And felt that old familiar ache (My Mother at Sixty-Six)

Satire

32. Satire: It is a poetic/literary device that is often used to ridicule a folly or vice artfully.

For e.g.

• The child would become champion of champions, warrior of warriors but he’ll have to die one day. (The Tiger King)

 

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions related to Poetic Devices)

Question 1: What are poetic devices?

Answer: Poetic device are the forms of literary devices used in the poetry. They are used to build the mood or feeling of the reader and add life to the poetry.

Question 2 : How many poetic devices are there in literature?

Answer: There are innumerable poetic devices in literature.

Question 3: Which is the best book to read poetic devices or literary devices or Figures of speech?

Answer: A Glossary of Literary Terms by M.H. Abrams

Question 4: What are the commonly used literary devices or poetic devices or figures of speech?

Answer: Simile, Metaphor, Personification, Alliteration, Pun, Antithesis, Transferred Epithet, Oxymoron etc.

 

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