Literary Devices List 2

1. Literary Devices List 2

2. Theme The Search for Meaning

3. What is a Theme? Theme: Life lesson, meaning, moral, or message about life or human nature that is communicated by a literary work. In other words… Theme is what the story teaches readers.

4. Themes A theme is not a word, it is a sentence. You don’t have to agree with the theme to identify it. Examples Money can’t buy happiness. Don’t judge people based on the surface. It is better to die free than live under tyranny.

5. IdentifyingThemes Themesare not explicit (clearly stated). Themesare implied. Themes are bigger than the story. Big World of the Theme. Applies to the “Real” World. Small World of the Story

6. Themes are about the big picture. Not“love” Not “revenge”Think BIGGER. Find “Real” World advice. “Love can sometimes be hard” “Revenge creates more problems than solutions. Big World of the Theme. Applies to the “Real” World. Small World of the Story

7. Theme vs. Subject • Subject: what a work is about. It can usually be expressed in one word. For example, “Love” is a subject of Romeo and Juliet • Theme: What does the work say about the subject? It should be a complete sentence or statement. For example, “In Romeo and Juliet, we learn that teen romance can be a stronger force than family ties.”

8. Theme must go beyond the book • • To be a true theme, the truth or comment must apply to people or to life in general, not just the characters in the book. • For example, “In Beauty and the Beast, Belle learns that true beauty comes from within,” only applies to the story. • Instead, express the theme like this: “In Beauty and the Beast, we learn through Belle and the beast that true beauty comes from within.”

9. Multiple themes are possible! • Many books have more than one theme, so do not think that there is one “right” theme to any book you read. In fact, most great literature has multiple themes.

10. Themes must be supported! • Just because works can have multiple themes, it does not mean that the theme can be anything that you want. • In order for a theme to be justified, there must be specific, concrete evidence from the text. For example, if your potential theme statement is that “Poverty creates tough, self-reliant people,” then the book should contain examples of poor characters who develop toughness and self- reliance.

11. Finding the theme • Asking questions • What is the subject? • What does the book say, or teach us, about the subject? • How does the work communicate the theme? In other words, what specific details, characters, actions, incidents, etc, suggest the truth of the theme statement?

12. Sample Theme Statements • Persistence pays off • Honesty is better than cheating • It’s more important to be nice than to be popular • Be careful what you wish for • Love is the most important force

13. Review • Theme is what we can learn from a story. • Themes must be inferred (figured out by the reader after thinking what the moral is). • Themes are about the BIG world.

14. On a piece of paper, • Write the theme of the following: • 1. The last story we read • 2. The last movie you saw • 3. Your favorite song • 4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omk6TAxJYOg

15. AESOP’S FABLE THEME WORKSHEET http://www.slideshare.net/elkissn/finding-the-theme-of-a-text

16. Narrator • The narrator is the person or character who tells a story. • The writer’s choice of narrator determines the story’s point of view, which directs the type and amount of information revealed. • Who would be the narrator of the story of your life? • Who would be the narrator of WWII? • Who would be the narrator of the history of mankind?

17. NarrativePerspective Author’s Point of View

18. Dialogue and Narration • Dialogue = when characters speak. • Narration = when the narrator speaks. • “Quotation marks” separate narration from dialogue. Example “Help” my cousin Jack said. 1 2

19. Identifying Narrative Perspective It's about the narrator(who tells the story) We're not looking atdialogue. We don't care what characters say. Only the narrator's voice matters.

20. PronounCase We are trying to figure out the narrator's view point on the story. Perspectives and Signal Words

21. Secret “I am in the room” I = 1stPerson “You come in the room.” You = 2ndPerson “Then he or she came in the room.” He or She = 3rdPerson

22. First-Person Narrator is a part of the story (character). Often uses I or we. Example Iwent home. Tim came over. I couldn't play.

23. Second-Person Usually for instructions Uses “You”; from “your” perspective. Examples First, gather your materials. Add 1 cup sugar to flour.

24. Third-Person • Narrator usually isn’t involved. • Tells other's stories. • Lots of “He,” “She,” & character names. Three Types of Third-Person Narration Does the narrator tell… Thoughts and Feelings of Characters?

25. Third-Person Omniscient Narrator is allknowing. Narrator tells thoughts and feelings of more than one character. Omni = All Scient = Knowing Example Tim was mad at Shay. He blamed her. Shay knew Tim would be mad, but she wanted to live her life.

26. Third-Person Limited Narrator is limited to one character. Tells thoughts & feelings ofonecharacter Example Tim was mad at Shay. He blamed her. Shay just left without saying anything. She left a note and then left him.

27. Third-Person Objective Narrator does not reveal any character’s thoughts or feelings. Only character’s dialogue and actions are narrated. Example Tim slammed the door. He walked upstairs & read a note from Shay. He kicked her trash can & started crying.

28. Tips on Identifying • Check 1st or 2nd-person before worrying about objective, limited, or omniscient. • Ask, “Who’s story is the narrator telling: his, mine, or someone else’s?” • Focus on narration not dialogue.

29. Which Point of View? • “Popular Mechanics” • “The Cask of Amontillado” • Who is the narrator? • “Green Eggs and Ham” • Mr. Sabolcik’s Dairy: • Cookbook (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

30. Diction • Diction: The author’s choice of words and how it impacts what is being said. • Vocabulary (slang vs. formal) • Colloquialisms (y’all, y’inz) There are two important ways we can identify and understand an author’s use of diction. Denotation and Connotation (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

31. Denotation • The dictionary definition of the word. • Has the same meaning no matter the context. • For example: • The dictionary defines “Snake” as “A long limbless reptile (suborder Ophidia or Serpentes) that has no eyelids, and jaws that are capable of considerable extension.” • Therefore, the denotation of the word snake is above. (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

32. Connotation • The set of ideas associated with it in addition to its explicit meaning (its denotation). • The context determines what it means. • A word has a different meaning to different people. • Also, the emotions attached to a word. (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

33. Connotation vs. Denotation Almost every word has two kinds of meanings… Denotation: the straightforward dictionary definition Connotation: the ideas and feelings associated with the word

34. There are three types of connotations: a. POSITIVE – a good thing b. NEGATIVE – a bad thing c. NEUTRAL- not good or bad; indifferent; used when you or the author don’t want to show strong emotions either way

35. For Example

36. Practice For the following pairs of terms, write a short explanation of why you might like to be described by one term, but not the other. Also, identify whether the word you picked has a positive, negative or neutral connotation. • firm or stubborn • flexible or wishy-washy • original or weird • scholar or bookworm • arrogant or proud

37. Connotation • For each set, choose the word with the positive connotation. • drug addict . . . druggie, drug fiend, substance abuser • handicapped . . . crippled, disabled, differently abled • house . . . . . . home, abode, domicile, residence • thin . . . . . . thin, slender, slim, skinny, lean, beanpole • attractive . . . pretty, beautiful, handsome, fair • reporter . . . . journalist, broadcaster, newshound • unattractive . . plain, dull, ugly (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

38. Connotation • On a scrap piece of paper, write a sentence of what the following words mean: • SHARK • HOUSE • IMPRESSION • STALE • ATTRACTIVE • BRIGHT (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

39. My sentences • SHARK • Someone who is really good at playing cards. • HOUSE • Whenever you put a bunch of cards on top of each other. • IMPRESSION • When you stick your hand in the mud and there is a print after you take it out. • BRAINS • The guy or girl that organizes the theft. (The “brains” of the operation) • ATTRACTION • Whenever two atoms want to come together and share electrons. • BRIGHT • All of my students! They’re very bright and get all As. (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

40. More Practice • chef vs. cook • plagiarizer vs. cheater • thrifty vs. tightwad • stay-at-home mom vs homemaker vs housewife • ambitious vs. greedy • substance abuser vs druggie • journalist vs reporter • eccentric vs weirdo (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

41. Importance • A recipe is denotative; an advertisement connotative (uses happy or sad words) • The connotation of words can help us figure out the subtext of what an author or character is trying to say. • “Reading between the lines.” • Word choice is really important! (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

42. CONNOTATION VS DENOTATION WORKSHEET (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

43. Allusion • A reference to a well-known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art. • Example: I was surprised his nose was not growing like Pinocchio’s. • This is an allusion to what? (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

44. What are the allusions in the following sentences? • “When she lost her job, she acted like a Scrooge, and refused to buy anything that wasn’t necessary.” • A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens • “He was a real Romeo with the ladies.” • Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare • “Chocolate was her Achilles’ heel.” • The Illiadby Homer. And Greek mythology. • “He was a Good Samaritan yesterday when he helped the lady start her car.” • The Biblical story of the Good Samaritan. (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

45. More Examples! • “The side lines is lined with casualtiesWho sip the life casually, then gradually become worseDon’t bite the apple, Eve” -Jay-Z • “Tonedeff’s slays giants, as if my legal name’s David.” –Tonedeff (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

46. (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

47. What do we have to do with allusions? • 1. Be able to identify them when we see them. • 2. Be able to connect them to whatever they came from. • 3. Understand the function they serve. • Help us understand characters more. • How educated someone is, or what culture they are from. • Draw parallels to ideas in other works of literature. • Many allusions to novels with death may foreshadow death in the story we are reading. (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

48. ALLUSION WORKSHEET (c) 2012 Mr. Sabolcik, West Forsyth H.S.

49. On a scrap piece of paper, write the following: • Mood is ______________. • Tone is _______________. By yourself, try to fill in the blanks with the knowledge you already have.

50. Write this in your notes! Mood is… … the emotions and feelings a reader has when reading a work of literature. Highlight all the words you know.