Literary Devices

Literary Devices By Megan Cai

Mixed Metaphor • A succession of incongruous or ludicrous comparisons; metaphors jumbled together illogically • Function: Usually for comic effect to expose clichés and parody metaphors • Examples: • “Wake up and smell the coffee.” + “Read the writing on the wall.” = “Wake up and smell the coffee on the wall.” • "All at once he was alone in this noisy hive with no place to roost.” (Tom Wolfe, The Bonfire of the Vanities)

Epithet • A term used to characterize a person or thing or a descriptive substitute for the name of a person • Function: glorify people; evoke associations and feelings toward a subject; imagery • Examples: • “The Great Emancipator” Abraham Lincoln • “Catherine the Great” • “whale-road” (Beowulf) • “wine-dark sea” (Homer) • “star-crossed lovers” (Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare)

Innuendo • A subtle or indirect observation about a person or thing, usually of a derogatory nature; an insinuation • Function: make an inappropriate remark indirectly; euphemism • Example: • “Lady, shall I lie in your lap?” (Hamlet, Shakespeare)

References • http://grammar.about.com/od/qaaboutrhetoric/f/QAmixmetaphor.htm • http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/mixed-metaphors.aspx • http://grammar.about.com/od/mo/g/mixmetterm.htm • http://grammar.about.com/od/il/g/innuendo.htm • http://grammar.about.com/od/e/g/epitheterm.htm

Literary Devices