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Also apophthegm. A terse, pithy saying, akin to a proverb, maxim, or aphorism. aposiopesis A rhetorical device in which speech is broken off abruptly and the sentence is left unfinished. apostrophe A figure of speech in which a speaker breaks off from addressing the audience (e.g., in a play) and directs speech to a third party such as an opposing litigant or some other individual, sometimes ...
Oral literature is especially rich in chiastic structure, possibly as an aid to memorization and oral performance. In Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, for instance, Cedric Whitman finds chiastic patterns "of the most amazing virtuosity" that simultaneously perform both aesthetic and mnemonic functions, permitting the oral poet easily to recall the basic structure of the composition during ...
In rhetoric, chiasmus (/ k aɪ ˈ æ z m ə s / ky-AZ-məs) or, less commonly, chiasm (Latin term from Greek χίασμα, "crossing", from the Greek χιάζω, chiázō, "to shape like the letter Χ"), is a "reversal of grammatical structures in successive phrases or clauses – but no repetition of words".
The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory. Penguin Books, 2000. ISBN 0-14-051363-9. Dana Gioia. The Longman Dictionary of Literary Terms: Vocabulary for the Informed Reader. Longman, 2005. ISBN 0-321-33194-X. Sharon Hamilton. Essential Literary Terms: A Brief Norton Guide with Exercises. W. W. Norton, 2006. ISBN 0-393-92837-3.
Classic (or literary fiction): works with artistic/literary merit that are typically character-driven rather than plot-driven, following a character's inner story. They often include political criticism, social commentary, and reflections on humanity. [1] These works are part of an accepted literary canon and widely taught in schools. Coming-of-age
An example of scansion over a quote from Alexander Pope. Scansion (/ ˈ s k æ n. ʃ ə n / SKAN-shən, rhymes with mansion; verb: to scan), or a system of scansion, is the method or practice of determining and (usually) graphically representing the metrical pattern of a line of verse.
Repetition–Repetition often uses word associations to express ideas and emotions indirectly, emphasizing a point, confirming an idea, or describing a notion. Rhyme–Rhyme uses repeating patterns to bring out rhythm or musicality in poems. It is a repetition of similar sounds occurring in lines in a poem which gives the poem a symmetric quality.
A basic distinction is between rhyme schemes that apply to a single stanza, and those that continue their pattern throughout an entire poem (see chain rhyme). There are also more elaborate related forms, like the sestina – which requires repetition of exact words in a complex pattern. Rhyming is not a mandatory feature of poetry; a four-line ...