○ Comma: in between independent and dependent clauses. Needed when listing three or more items (,)
○ Colon: used to draw attention to what is next. Is in between independent clause and evidence (:)
○ Semicolon: is in between two independent clauses (;)
○ Dashes: used to draw attention to what is next, or an appositive (----)
○ Hyphen: brings words together to create superword (-)
○ Period: ends a sentence (.)
○ End-stopped line: when punctuation occurs at the end of a line/verse
○ Enjambment: when there is no punctuation at the end of the line
○ Caesura: when punctuation mark comes within the line/in the middle of the line
○ Punctuation assists in organizing words into verses.
■ It secures and settles thoughts and ideas
■ Ensures coherence
■ Enhances the presentation of the main theme or meaning
■ Signals when to rest or keep going
○ Punctuation also reveals the tone and mood of the speaker in the poem
■ If there is little to no punctuation, the speaker can be revealed as either free spirited and humorous, or in a tense nature where they are ranting or rambling words in the poem.
■ If there is structured and consistent punctuation, then the speaker can be revealed as organized and serious, causing the reader to have to look for diction that reveals a specific tone.
■ If there are sudden punctuation marks, then the speaker is shown as indecisive and there is a situation in the poem that has an abrupt ending or stop, where a period is suddenly placed.
● When two (sometimes opposite) words are placed near one another, in order to create a comparison or contrasting effect.
○ Example:
■ “pretty ugly”
○ Juxtaposition helps to reveal the importance and specific details and qualities
of each contrasting idea.
○ Used when good and evil characters are placed next to one another
■ Example: Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter
● A statement that contradicts itself
● A statement that must be both true and false at the same time; self-contradictory
○ Examples:
■ “Your enemy’s friend is your enemy”
■ “Wise fool”
● A literary device where there is a contrast between expectation and reality.
● A contrast between expectations for a situation and what is reality.
● Can also be the underlying or figurative meaning of the poem
● Irony trumps everything by taking reader’s expectations and upending them
● It expands the range of interpretation and can be applied to any symbol
● Irony can be used to determine the authority of beliefs
● It also adds humor to a poem or literary work
○ Sarcasm can also be connected to irony
● A type of metaphor that compares two unlike things.
● Usually are extended metaphors that dominate an entire poem/passage
● A poetic conceit is often unconventional and complex
● Are used to create unique comparisons and to describe unlikely situations
● Example:
○ “Marriage is like getting a root canal.”
○ “Childbirth is like having a nail driven through your hand.”
● One of the most personal, intimate, cultural, societal acts and implications
● Violence can be symbolic, thematic, biblical, Shakespearean, Romantic, allegorical
● It is literal, but can also mean something else
○ Usual range of behavior: shootings, stabbings, drownings
○ Authorial violence: death and suffering authors introduce into their work in the interest of plot development, which they are responsible for