Poetry

Figures of Speech

It is a way of using words imaginatively to make writing more descriptive and colourful. Some of the most commonly used figures of speech are listed below

Simile : It is a comparison that states that something is like something else. It uses words such as  'like' or 'as' to make the comparison.
 Eg: He fought like a lion in the battle.
        Oh,My love's like a red red rose.
        That's newly sprung in June.

Metaphor : It is also a comparison. It is an implied simile. it states that something is something else.
Eg: He was a lion in the battle
       The news was a dagger to his heart.

Personification : In personification inanimate objects and abstract notions are spoken of as having life and intelligence. Human values are attributed to inanimate objects.
Eg: Death lays his icy hands on kings.
       Pride goeth forth on horseback, grand and gay 
       But cometh back on foot and begs its way. 

Oxymoron : It is a special form of antithesis, whereby two contradictory qualities are predicted at once of the same thing. it consists of two words which are opposites but which are often placed next to each other.
Eg: His honour rooted in dishonour stood
       So innocent arch, so cunningly simple. 
       bittersweet, working vacation, pleasing pains, open secret, 

Metonymy : It means 'change of name'. Literally an object is designated by the name of something which is generally associated with it.
Eg : From cradle to the grave. ( means birth and death)
        The pen is mightier than the sword. 
                                            ( means letters or words)
        The Bench ( for judges), Laurel ( for victory) 
        The crown ( for the King)


Synechdoche : A word or phrase is used to represent a whole or a whole is used to represent a part of something.
Eg: Give us today our daily bread. ( food)
       All hands to the pump. ( full crew)

Irony : it is a mode of speech in which the real meaning is exactly the opposite of that which is literally conveyed ( surface level meaning) 
Eg : "Here under the leave of Brutus and the rest
        (for Brutus is an honourable man:
         So are they all, all honourable men)
        Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral
        He was my friend, faithful and just to me,
        But Brutus says he was ambitious
       And Brutus is an honourable man"

Apostrophe : It is a direct address to the dead, to the absent or to the personified idea or object. It is a special form of personification
 Eg : "Oh death, where is thy sting?
           Oh grave, where is thy victory?"

        " Oh Liberty, what crimes have been committted in thy 
                                                                                    name?
       " And this, O Fate, is I think the most vicious circle that thou
         ever sentest, .."

Onomatopoeia : In onomatopoeia the sound of word suggests or echo the sense
 Eg : hiss, splash, buzz, murmur  etc

  

Poetic Features

Alliteration : Repetition of consonantal sounds at the beginning of words in the same line or adjacent lines of a poem.
Eg: The fair breeze below, the white foam flew.
       The furrow followed free.
       Myrtle mixed in my path like mad.
       I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore.

Assonance : It brings together words which contain the same vowel sound. If alliteration occurs at the beginning of words and rhyme at the end, assonance very often takes the middle territory. It occurs when the vowel sound within a word matches the same sound in a nearby word but when the surrounding consonant sounds are different.
Eg : tune - food ( assonant)

        "Hear the mellow wedding bells"
        "Try to light the fire" 
   

Consonance : Repetition of the same consonantal sound two or more times in short successions
Eg: Pitter patter
       "All mammals named Sam are clamy"

Alliteration is a special case of consonance where the repeated consonant sound is at the stressed syllable as in 
'Few flocked to the flight'
'Around the rock the ragged rascal ran'

Rhyme : If two lines of a poem end with the same sound it is called rhyme. To be more precise when two lines of a poem end with words that have same vowel sound and end with the same consonant sound they are said to be rhyming.

Eg: Keep- beep , sing-ring, bell-fell, pill-kill  etc

Internal Rhyme : Rhyme within a line and not merely at the end of lines.
Eg : It cracked and growled and roared and howled

Rhyme Scheme : If the rhyming lines in a poem are arranged in a regular pattern, it is said to have a regular rhyme scheme

Rhythm: It is created by the regular repetition of sounds. It is achieved by the systematic arrangement of the syllables. The stressed an unstressed syllables come at regular intervals. Thus it adds a rhythm to the poem.

Imageries : Suggestion of vivid mental pictures by the skillful selection and use of words.
Eg : "All in a hot and copper sky
        The bloody sun at noon"

Tone : Poems may have different tones like serious, solemn, dramatic, sarcastic, ironic, sympathetic, soothing, mellifluous, biting, contemptuous, sardonic  etc

Mood : Moods may also vary like jovial, pleasant, optimistic, dull, depressed, gloomy, melancholic, sad, somber, contemplative, introspective, pensive, reflective, mellow, relaxed, funny, festive, romantic etc

Diction : means the type of words used in the poem.