Poetic Techniques

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What are poetic techniques?

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Tools used to enhance writing and deepen meaning. Help create emotion, meaning, and vibes.

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What is a metaphor?

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A comparison between two unlike things without 'like' or 'as.' Example: 'Each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.' Embers are compared to ghosts through their shadows.

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What is a simile?

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A comparison using 'like' or 'as.' Example: 'As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.'

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What is imagery?

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Language that appeals to the five senses. Example: 'Deep into that darkness peering…' Creates visual and emotional imagery.

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What is personification?

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Giving human qualities to non-human things. Example: 'The silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain…' Curtains are given human emotions.

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What is symbolism?

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When something represents a deeper meaning. Examples in 'The Raven': The Raven = death, grief, madness, memory.

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What are tone and mood in poetry?

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Tone: The author’s attitude (e.g., melancholy, despairing, haunted). Mood: The feeling for the reader (e.g., eerie, mysterious, foreboding). Examples: 'And my soul from out that shadow…' → tone. 'Once upon a midnight dreary…' → mood.

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What are sound devices in poetry?

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Purpose: Create musicality and emotion. Examples: Rhyme ('midnight dreary… weak and weary'), Repetition ('Nevermore'), Rhythm (beat or flow of the poem).

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What is alliteration?

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Repetition of initial consonant sounds. Examples: 'Nearly napping,' 'Silken, sad, uncertain.'

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What is structure in poetry?

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How the poem is organized.