Introduction to Poetry
Literary Terms and Techniques
Poetically Speaking…
“Poetry is the art of substantiating
shadows.”~Edmund Burke
We use poetry to take things that are
abstract and make them tangible with
words.
Poetry uses descriptive language along
with figures of speech to create mental
pictures. It’s like art for the mind.
Basic Literary Terminology
for Poetry
Figures of Speech
Figures of speech are expressions
such as metaphors, similes, and
personifications that make
comparisons or associations meant to
be taken imaginatively rather than
literally.
Simile
A figure of speech that uses like, as, or as
if to compare two essentially different
objects, actions, or attributes that share
some aspect of similarity. In contrast to a
metaphor, in which a comparison is implied,
a simile expresses a comparison directly.
Example: Her words were like gunfire,
exploding with every blow.
Metaphor
A figure of speech, an implied analogy
in which one thing is imaginatively
compared to or identified with
another, dissimilar thing.
 Example: grass- the beautiful uncut
hair of graves (Walt Whitman)
Oxymoron
 A figure of speech in which two
contradictory words or phrases are
combined in a single expression, giving
the effect of a condensed paradox.
 Examples: wise fool; living death; silent
screams; heavy lightness
Personification
A figure of speech in which human
characteristics and sensibilities are
attributed to animals, plants,
inanimate objects, natural forces, or
abstract ideas.
Example of Personification
The moon was but a chin of gold,
A night or two ago,
And now she turns her perfect face
Upon the world below…
By Emily Dickinson
A Starter Template for
“Energy Wheel” Poem
(Emotion) is (Color) like ____________ and
also like__________ it (Verb) through my
(place)
It reminds me of the time_____________
It makes me feel_______ like_________
It makes me want to___________
Synesthesia
 This is the “mixing” of the senses in
poetry
Sometimes, it is when the senses are
crossed.
Abstract nouns or ideas that have to
texture or smell can gain it through
the use of synesthesia in poetry
A few tips for using
Synesthesia
Try to create ideas using the senses
that are impossible or fantasy.
There is no right answers, but the
reader should be able to experience a
connection.
You are expected to use fresh ideas
that are different and unexpected.
Use care in choosing the right words
to create your “sense-mixing”.
“Synesthesia or What Blue
Sounds Like”
See Read magazine, April 1, 2011,
issue, page 20-21
Try out the activity on pg 21.
Prepare to share.
“Like What” poem sample
Fairness is gray
It is neither black nor white
It is warm like a sunny spring day
Cool like room temperature water
Sounds like an umpire calling a foul ball
Tastes like justice
Smells like victory
Looks like two friends sharing recognition
It feels smooth like a well-earned certificate
It moves like a calm ocean wave…
-Collaborative Class Poem, April 2009
Poem Templates
“Like what” poem
(Synesthesisa)
(Emotion or Abstract idea) is (color)
like________
(hot) like…
(cold) like…
sounds like…
tastes like…
smells like…
looks like…
(texture) like…
moves like…
Self-Portrait Poem
My_________is like__________
My __________are like_________
My _________ are_________
My_________ is___________
My heart holds_______that is______ as
________
I live in_________
and eat___________
The Sounds of Poetry
More Literary Terms and
Techniques
Assonance
a close repetition of middle vowel
sounds, like the “o” sound in words
like roses and golden or the “e” sound
in sleep and green. Use in poetry for
unity or rhythmic effect.
Consonance
The close repetition of identical
consonant sounds before and after
differing vowel sounds. Uses the
same final consonant sound, like
up/drip, pain/bone, leave/love, or
short/shirt.
Alliteration
The repetition of consonant sounds at
the beginning of words or within
words such as “after life’s fitful
fever”. Used to create unity,
emphasis, and musical effect.
Commonly used in nonsense verse,
jingles, and tongue twisters.
Example of Alliteration
Betty Botter bought some butter
But, said she, “the butter’s bitter.”
Onomatopoeia
Words whose sound imitates the
sound of the thing being named such
as boom, whoosh, pop, hum, buzz,
clang, hiss, crack, and twitter.
Example of Onomatopeoia
The murmuring haunt of flies on summer
eves.
And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of
each purple curtain.
The moan of doves in immemorial elms.
And murmuring of innumerable bees.
“Tis the night of doom” said the ding-dong
doom-bells.