Figurative language in poetry

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 4,5

Welcome to English class

Please, in to this LessonUp.

Figurative language in poetry

learning objectives:

- I know different figurative language devices

- I can identify figurative language in a poem

- I know the difference between literal and figurative language.

Literal language

Means exactly what it says.

No deeper or hidden meaning.

Straightforward and direct.
No additional layers of meaning.
Used in factual statements or when clarity is needed.

The book is on the table.

Figurative language

Uses creative expressions to imply a deeper meaning.

Example: "The book opened a new world for me." 

(metaphor for gaining new understanding).

Grass is green.

1. literal
2. figurative

When we met him last week on our way to the line. 'The line' is ......

1. literal
2. figurative

Different types of figurative language

alliteration                                     assonance

simile                                               metaphor

onomatopoeia                             personification

imagery                                           symbolism

oxymoron                                       hyperbole

There are many more. You need to understand the yellow ones.

Alliteration

Alliteration: when two or more words begin with the same sound.

She sells seashells by the seashore.

The trees swayed shyly in the summer breeze.

Sally's seven sisters silently sewed.

Alliteration

"And the May month flaps its glad green leaves like wings"

(May 1915)

"You love us when we're heroes, home on leave,"

(The Glory of Women)

Assonance

Repetition of similar sounding vowel sounds, close after another.

"Bent double, like old beggars under sacks," (Dulce et ..)

"That there's some corner of a foreign field" (The Soldier)

Metaphor

figure of speech that makes a comparison between two non-similar things. 

without the express use of “like” or “as.” 

Metaphor is a means of asserting that two things are identical in comparison rather than just similar.

Metaphor

Laughter is the best medicine.

She is just a late bloomer.

Is there a black sheep in your family?

His heart of stone surprised me.

I smell success in this building.

He’s buried in a sea of paperwork.

There is a weight on my shoulder.

Time is money.

Simile

Two essentially dissimilar objects or concepts are expressly compared with one another through the use of “like” or “as.”

A proper simile creates an explicit comparison between two things that are different enough from each other such that their comparability appears unlikely.

Simile

Nutty as a fruitcake

Slept like a log

Sly as a fox

Fits like a glove

Cool as a cucumber

Blind as a bat

Light as a feather

Like watching paint dry

What is the difference between a metaphor and a simile?

    Metaphor:     Implies a comparison by stating that one thing is another.
    Simile:             Explicitly states a comparison using "like" or "as."

Comparison Table
Aspect                  Metaphor                                         Simile
Connection        States one thing is another.    Compares using "like" or "as."
Subtlety               More implicit and symbolic.    More explicit and clear.
Examples           "The world is a stage."                "The world is like a stage."

Personification

an idea or thing is given human attributes and/or feelings or is spoken of as if it were human.

My alarm yelled at me this morning.

I like onions, but they don’t like me.

The sign on the door insulted my intelligence.

My phone is not cooperating with me today.

My computer works very hard.

Personification

From The Soldier:

A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware

England is given the attributes of a mother.

From Dulce et decorum est:

"Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,"
Attributes innocence to "tongues," suggesting that the soldiers' speech or voices are undeserving of the afflictions of war.

Onomatopoeia

a word that sounds like what it refers to or describes. 

The buzzing bee flew away.

The sack fell into the river with a splash.

The books fell on the table with a loud thump.

He looked at the roaring

The rustling leaves kept me awake.

Imagery

Although the aforementioned literary devices are classified as Imagery in the reader, this is not entirely correct.

Imagery is not always figurative.

Imagery refers to the use of vivid and descriptive language to create mental pictures or appeal to the five senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell). It is about painting a sensory experience for the reader.

Imagery

Key Features:
    Focuses on sensory detail.

    Can be literal or figurative

"The aroma of freshly baked bread wafted through the warm kitchen, mingling with the soft crackle of the fireplace."
This appeals to the senses of smell, touch, and hearing, creating a vivid scene. But it's not figurative!!

"Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge."

1. hearing
2. taste
3. touch
4. smell

"Under a green sea, ..."

1. hyperbole
2. personification
3. simile
4. metaphor

“Because I could not stop for Death, / He kindly stopped for me; / The carriage held but just
ourselves / And Immortality.” (Emily Dickinson)

1. onomatopoeia
2. alliteration
3. simile
4. personification

“Who has seen the wind? / Neither you nor I: / But when the trees bow down their heads, /
The wind is passing by.” (Christina Rosetti)

1. simile
2. personification
3. onomatopoeia
4. alliteration

Your poem

Check your poem again.

Does it contain any of the mentioned types of figurative language?

Which ones?

Let your classmates know at the end of this lesson (or, if time's limited, via e-mail)!

How useful was this lesson for you?

0100