Essay Samples on Literary Devices

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"A Thousand Splendid Suns": Analysis of Literary Elements

In the realm of literary analysis, Khaled Hosseini's "A Thousand Splendid Suns" emerges as a profound and evocative masterpiece. Within the pages of this novel, the lives of two Afghan women, Mariam and Laila, unfold amidst the harrowing landscape of a war-ravaged nation. Imbued with...

Literary Analysis Of "The Perks Of Being A Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky

Essay grade Satisfactory

An analysis on the defenses, dream displacements, and death drives of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” The 'Perks of Being a Wallflower' is a coming-of-age story about the story's main protagonist--Charlie. Like typical adolescents, trouble comes along the way, and we get to witness...

The Theme Of Isolation And Literary Devices In A Streetcar Named Desire

The theme of Isolation in a streetcar named desire is explored by how different characters and their reactions to certain events. Williams starts by showing how blanche had a horrible experience moving to New Orleans. Although she was physically still in America, she was a...

Roles Of Analogies: Life Is Like A Box Of Chocolates

“The role of analogy is to aid understanding rather than to provide justification.” To what extent do you agree with this claim? Today, in our modern society, we retain a vast amount of knowledge on a daily basis. We are being constantly dominated with new...

Analysis Of Tim Burton's Style Of Filmmaking

Tim Burton is an American film-maker who creates mysterious and odd storylines to send the message of recognizing differences along with remembering to be kind to everyone, including those who people consider “special” or “unique”. As a child, Burton didn’t have the typical childhood that...

 the Cask Of Amontillado: Mood And Other Literary Devices

To make his story, successful Poe has used a lot of elements. These elements have been used to make the story a masterpiece and to create suspense all along with the story hence making it a success. Among the devices used by Poe are the...

Analysis of the Use of Imagery and Connotations in Poetry

Essay grade Excellent

“Darkened house, drenched and chilled, blinking into the slanting rain../as the sun slips behind scrambled clouds and the pears, mellowed to a golden-green, glow like flames among the boughs”(1). The poem 'Gouge, Adze, Rasp, Hammer' by Chris Forhan is about a narrator reflecting on a...

The Shades Of Grey and Examples Of Antithesis In Literature

In the book, on the Genealogy of Morality, Nietzsche examines human ideas on morality by asking questions. Particularly why acts of helping someone other than oneself is considered good and why egoistical actions are frowned upon, especially considering when such actions are always beneficial to...

Examples Of Antithesis In Different Literary Pieces

 Literature across the ages has the profound ability to transform ones view of the world and the people that inhabit it, fiction in particular enables oneself to step into the world of another and experience their thoughts and personal journey, one that the reader may...

Example Of Antithesis, Ethos And Juxtaposition In My Strip Club

In “My Strip Club,” Denise Duhamel utilizes antithesis, ethos, and juxtaposition to raise questions about the depths of our society’s systematic objectification of women. On the page, Duhamel’s poem is tiny and narrow, perhaps a comment on how society likes its women, but it also...

The Example Of Antithesis In Bellamy's Story

The author, Bellamy, revealed that Julian has insomnia, and in the large wooden mansion of his who was left by three generations of his family (p.16, Bellamy), he could not sleep at all other than being in a chamber. Then, he fell asleep and the...

Analysis of Hosseini's Use of Narrative Techniques in The Kite Runner

Essay grade Good

Narrative techniques are the strategies that writers employ in their work in order to strengthen the depth and emotional response of the reader to the events in the story. The way an author tells a story is as essential as the story itself. In The...

The Imagery Of Light Used In The Poem Dream-land

Imagine a world in which we had no pictures and nothing to look at. Now, imagine a world without music or melody, these two elements are necessary factors in our life and without them, we ourselves won’t be human. In the poem “Dream-Land,” the author...

Poetic Faith In Shakespeare's The Tempest

The phenomenon of creating magical creatures and implementing supernatural elements is not a new one in literature. However, the presence of magical issues in the text does not always mean a fairy tale pointing to the power of poetic faith that, following Coleridge, points to...

The Significance Of Jane Eyre

Religion is one of the most polarizing subjects to talk about in literature, if not of all time. When these themes are brought up in books and stories, religion tends to be a focal point in the story. In some instances, the theme of religion...

Comparing Hemingway's Types Of Heroes

Ernest Hemingway was born on July 21, 1899, in the United States of America (Ernest Hemingway, November 1, 2019). Hemingway had an eventful life where he lived through many exciting and unordinary events. For example, he survived four car accidents and two plane crashes (Five...

"Where I Lived And What I Lived For": Rhetorical Analysis

Essay grade Excellent

The essay seeks to explore Henry David Thoreau’s essay “Where I Lived and What I Lived For,” and make a rhetorical analysis of the literary devices he uses to communicate his views about a simplistic life. The essay will discuss how Thoreau effectively uses antithesis,...

The Use Of Literary Devices In William Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing"

Essay grade Satisfactory

Sujit Iyer Ms. Williams 10th World Lit 28 August 2019 Literary Analysis on ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ In the play, Much Ado About Nothing, language has a lasting impact on the course of the plot and adds a special element to each character. William Shakespeare...

James Joyce’s Depiction of the Theme of Death in "The Dead"

Essay grade Good

James Joyce published a series of short stories named “Dubliners” in 1914. In this collection of short stories, the final and longest story of the collection is named “The Dead”. James Joyce's “The Dead” demonstrates the life of the Irish middle class in Dublin around...

Subversion and Literary Devices Used in Carol Ann Duffy's Poem The World’s Wife

Growing up in the 21st century, children are exposed to thousands of children stories written by numerous well-known authors including Dr. Seuss, Roald Dahl, J. K. Rowling, and A. A. Milne. Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy uses ‘The World’s Wife’ as a platform to adapt...

Analysis of the Tone Shift and Literary Devices in Shakespeare's Sonnet 30

In William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 30, he describes what it’s like looking back on life. In the sonnet, Shakespeare focuses on how people may waste their time, purposefully experience pain, the things they’ve lost, the asking to let them go through pain. He also at the...

The Two Sides of War in Dulce Et Decorum Est and Exposure

Using poetic structure, language and style, Wilfred Owen portrays the theme of suffering in his poems ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ and ‘Exposure’. Both agree on displaying the truthful, negative views on war but narrate on different aspects of it. ‘Exposure’ expresses war as a disorganised,...

The Portrayal of Suffering in Dulce Et Decorum Est and Exposure

There is one certainty to war- that soldiers will suffer, but many civilians and volunteers wrongly have positive relations to war. Wilfred Owen’s poems ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ and ‘Exposure’ offers insight into this very topic and ultimately agree that war should be displayed truthfully...

The Examination of Non-Literal Language in Literature

Non-literal (Figurative) language uses words that digress from the traditionally accepted definitions to help relay a more complex meaning. It helps a writer to appear more persuasive, impactful an effective while writing their literal works. They capture the attention of the audience and also entertain...

Analysis of Literary Devices in "What You Pawn, I Will Redeem" and "The Yellow Wallpaper"

Essay grade Excellent

The use of literary devices in storytelling is crucial in conveying a message and keeping the reader engaged. Two excellent examples of such literary works are Sherman Alexie's "What You Pawn, I Redeem" and Charlotte Perkin Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper." In these stories, the authors...

Quentin Tarantino's Signature Strategies in the Scriptwriting

Quentin Tarantino is unquestionably a master of screenplay writing. He is known for revealing a number of stories simultaneously and disclose facts gradually with apprehension to the last moment to make a logical entity. What makes his scripts so memorable? The signature of Tarantino's scriptwriting...

The Use of Literary Devices to Represent the Theme in "A Valediction Forbidding Mourning"

Essay grade Excellent

The poem “A Valediction Forbidding Mourning” by John Donne touches on the topic of the parting lovers that can forever be bonded by the force of love and later brought back together. The thematic message of the poem is that no matter what the distance,...

Literary Devices and Figurative Language in "I Wrote A Good Omelet"

Essay grade Satisfactory

I found this poem off the website. Before choosing this specific poem, I Wrote a Good Omelet, I had read poems from the same poet. Her name is Nikki Giovanni. I was inspired by all of her poems but this one truly stood out to...

Analysis of Figurative Language in W.H. Auden's Funeral Blues

Essay grade Satisfactory

Everyone has feelings. Whether it be sad feelings or happy feelings. We all express those feelings emotionally or physically. But how do poets express these feelings onto paper? Imagery is a literary term that is used for description and language that appeals to our five...

Psychological States In Three Days Road

Within the novel “Three Day Road” written by Joseph Boyden, the author uses literary elements to delve into the mind and personality of the characters development throughout the novel. In itself, this approach also employs a psychological perspective that reflects the characters revelations and how...

Understanding Life and Its Flaws in Dillard's Fiction

The author, Annie Dillard wrote this way to describe how weasels and humans are so different from each other. Dillard assumes as a fact that when it comes to understanding life, people’s flaw is what gets in their way is their unsatisfied need to be...

Story Structure of Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

When we look at the Hobbit, we can see that Tolkien tries to take reader’s especially children’s attention and teach some values to them by using some techniques in language of the novel such as binary opposition, rhyme, rhythm, description of main character. Also Tolkien...

Analysis Of The Lord Of The Rings.

Any stories can influence people emotionally, but previously in a while, a story can call a person to leave for it. The Lord of the Rings is and an attractive story with a powerful use of setting and incredible characters that engages readers and can...

Literary Devices Used in Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods

In the passage from “Last Child in the Woods”, Richard Louv uses devices such as imagery, facts, and rhetorical questions to convey his critical tone, which turns to nostalgia, towards the connection of people to the environment around them. Louv observes that the connection between...

Analysis of the Usage of Symbolism in the Works of William Shakespeare

The works by William Shakespeare are still among the most remarkable literature works, years after the death of this outstanding author. His works continue to present materials for arguments and debates, even in the contemporary world, because of the rich literary devices and figurative expressions...

Review Of The Hunger Games: Characterization And Themes

America is experiencing a huge increase in wealth disparity, with,”the wealthiest 1 percent of families in the United States holding about 40 percent of all wealth and the bottom 90 percent of families holding less than one-quarter of all wealth,.”, an issue that Suzanne Collins...

The Unique Writing Style of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov in The Lady With The Pet Dog

Anton Pavlovich was a inhabitant in Russia playwright and short-story writer who was recognized for his fairy tale and plays. “The lady with the pet dog”, written in the 90s, is a tale that centers on two sweetheart that stay on having an relationship in...

Analysis of Tone and Structure in Elizabeth Bishop's Poem "One Art"

The poem “One Art” written by Elizabeth Bishop surrounds the poem’s entire purpose starting from the first words read which is the title, (One) to remove the pain of loss by first evening out everything that we lose from door keys to “houses” to people,...

Analysis of the Stylistic Devices Robert Frost Uses in His Poetry

Robert Frost was an American Poet who was born in San Francisco, California, on March 26, 1874. At eleven-years-old, his father died, Frost and his family moved to Lawrence, Massachusetts. In high school, Frost developed a love for poetry. In 1894 his poem, “My Butterfly”...

Symbolism and Main Commentary in A White Heron by Sarah Orne Jewett

In this piece developed by Sarah Orne Jewett from “A White Heron,” a young heroine’s adventure is glamorized by exploring her characters essence before, during, and after her symbolic victory of the great, big pine tree. The adventure of Sylvia from the bottom to the...

Exploring the Human Experience in "Looking for Alaska"

Essay grade Good

Looking for Alaska, a novel written by John Green, explores the intricacies of life and how it shapes us through the experiences of its protagonist, Miles "Pudge" Halter. The novel's themes of love, loss, and friendship are conveyed through various literary techniques, including symbolism, foreshadowing,...

The Historical Accuracy and Literary Devices of The Forge

Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson is the second book of the Seeds of America trilogy and it proved to be a fantastic book because of its amazing historical accuracy and use of figurative language. Anderson did a really good job when it comes to the...

Exposition and Other Techniques in Age of Innocence

We believe that the title relates directly to May based on her change of character, resulting from her loss of innocence, and the start of her doubt and questioning to Archer’s and Ellen’s relationship. In addition, in the beginning chapters, Archer delivers the flowers to...

Percy Bysshe Shelley and Mary Shelley: Enchantment of the Reader

In the pieces of literature “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley and “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley, the reader gets a peak of an outside speaker as the poem and story begin. As the reader can tell, there are multiple speakers in both pieces of literature. In...

The Writing Styles of William Shakespeare and Edmund Spenser

From the words of William Shakespeare and Edmund Spenser, it is clear that some similarities are apparent, however, the two poets encompass different writing styles, as well as different topics that relate to each other in their own unique way. William Shakespeare, known as the...

Allegorical Texts in English Literature: The Faerie Queene, Animal Farm and Others

First use of the word 'allegory 'in English was in 1382, the origin of this word is taken from Latin word 'allegoria', the latinisation of the Greek ἀλληγορία (allegoría), 'veiled language, figurative' (Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott). Allegory is considered as a literary device; allegory...

Shakespeare's Use of Literary Devices in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar

Essay grade Good

Literary devices are often used in literature to engage the reader in the text by making it more alluring, while adding more depth and meaning. In the tragedy of Julius Caesar, written by Shakespeare, a conspiracy rises against Caesar, which is lead by Caesar’s good...

The Literary Devices Used by Charles Dickens

Dickens uses allusions to allow the reader to indulge themselves into the story without explaining a lot of the action in a given scene. In the first paragraph of the extract, the narrator uses the words 'shy of' when describing Mrs. Tibbs to add emphasis...

The Literary Elements of Grotesqueness and Morbidity Used in Hamlet and Barbie Doll

A poet conveys diverse information, often tackling sensitive topics affecting the public. To communicate, Poets utilize different strategies, for example, through the application of literary elements such as grotesqueness or morbidity, to influence rhyming and structure. However, in trying to integrate these literary elements, a...

The Disturbing Details in Martell's To His Coy Mistress

“To His Coy Mistress” is a poem by Andrew Martell (1621-1678), who was born at Winstead in Holness, in South Yorkshire, and died in 1678 at his house in Bloomsbury. His father was a clergyman (of Calvinist orientation), who then became lecturer at Holy Trinity...

The Literary Devices Used in To His Coy Mistress

This by far has been one of the best semesters of my whole high school experience and having Dr. Berry as my English teacher has made it even better. To kickstart the year off we first discussed the type of nouns. Nouns- person, place, thing...

The Literary Style and Devices Used in Ulysses

James Joyce's novel “Ulysses“ is by many critic’s thoughts one of the most influential if not the most influential novel of the 20th century. He used a “stream-of-consciousness” style of writing with which he enabled every reader to follow the character’s inner thoughts, Bloom’s actions...

Of Mice and Men: The Character's Self Sabotage

Many people attempt to get what they want by doing anything. They recklessly take action without thinking about the consequences. They try to predict and control their future, thinking that it is best for them. However, it soon backstabs them. You might not know, but...

The Use and Elements of Symbolism in The Yellow Wallpaper

In one of his most significant essays “Supernatural Horror in Literature”, H. P. Lovecraft analyses the history of weird fiction and the horror genre itself. In this essay, he dictates about the literary genre, claiming that “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear,...

Robert Walton as the Unreliable Narrator in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Essay grade Satisfactory

The story of Frankenstein is being told through Robert Walton’s letters to his sister. A person’s perception of a sequence of events is often changed by who they hear an account of the events from. When a story is told, it is often morphed and...

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in The Seafarer

Essay grade Excellent

The seafarer uses many literary devices, such as alliteration, personification, and anaphora to effectively contrast and highlight the differences between the man’s views. It is a poem of constant movement. This is shown in the alliteration of “When wonderful things were worked among them”(84). The...

The Usage of Imagery in the Poem My Papa's Waltz

We enter the poem through the son's comic memory of his drunken father dancing with him, but as we move deeper into the poem it becomes clear that the perspective of the child having grown up remembering this occasion long after his father has died....

Hemingway's Use of Literary Techniques in "The Sun Also Rises"

Essay grade Good

Ernest Hemingway incorporated many elements of fiction and literary techniques to effectively develop meaning in the modernist novel The Sun Also Rises. Symbolism, setting, writing style, tone and his choice of the title are some of the major elements that enhanced the significance of the...

The Character of Mrs. Croft In 'Interpreter of Maladies'

In Interpreter of Maladies, by Jhumpa Lahiri, one of the best stories in the collection is “The Third and Final Continent.” Mrs. Croft is much of what makes the story so compelling, and much of the story is a vehicle for finding out more about...

Theme of Disgust in 'Hamlet' by William Shakespeare

In William Shakespeare’s tragic play Hamlet, the titular character uses various literary devices to reveal and visualize his internal conflicts. This seventeenth-century tragedy depicts Hamlet struggling with the death of his father, King Hamlet, and the marriage between his mother and his uncle, Claudius, which...

Gothic Style of Writing In 'The Fall of The House of Usher'

The story is around the Usher family and it arises by the narrator visiting his childhood friend who needs his help as he is sick. He describes the house as ancient and broken-down and there lived Roderick and Madeline who seems to be mad. Madeline...

The Meaning of 'Ozymandias' Percy Bysshe Shelly's Poem

'Ozymandias' tells a story of a traveler who saw a fallen statue of king Ozymandias. A king who once ruled and was feared by many. This poem, however, has a deeper meaning than just the story of a traveler and what he saw on his...

Ozymandias': Eternal Voyage Through Time

Percy Bysshe Shelley’s sonnet, “Ozymandias” shares the experience of a voyager who had just travelled across an old, cultural and heritage place. The voyager describes to the poet what he saw there by outlining about a forceful ruler who had been endeavoring for power so...

The Character of a Man: Style in Hemingway’s 'The Old Man and the Sea'

Earnest Hemingway is broadly considered as one of the widely renowned stylists in contemporary American literature. Characterized by brief, simple sentences with few adjectives, great use of repetition, and colloquial language, his style additionally avoids emotionalism, and is evolved significantly through brilliant the use of...

The Meaning of Home in Song Of Solomon

Questionable connotation In this passage Milkman is starting to feel the contention at home, he is questioning his understanding of love by the connotation that is used throughout the passage, words such as “loved his mother”, “she had loved him”,“eternal love”, “have to earn or...

Literary and Narrative Devices in Zora Neale Hurston's Work

Zora Neale Hurston and Clifford Geertz were both American anthropologists. Hurston was known for her belief in the documentation of folklore and their potential for conveying deep-seated, whilst Geertz was known for his influence on the practice of symbolic anthropology and an interpretive ethnographical approach....

How Ambiguity Drive the Narrative of "The Turn of the Screw"

Essay grade Good

Ambiguity; the mastery of creating several meanings for a single idea. The implementation of deliberate ambiguity in literature often pushes the narrative and is a tactic used to build up suspense. This thesis is evident to be applicable to We Need To Talk About Kevin...

Literature Analysis of the Young Adult Book 'Hatchet'

There are seven key characteristics of young adult literature. Some of these features include the book being written from the viewpoint of young people. Young people are expected to solve their problems even though they may get some support from adults. These stories are made...

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Violence Being a Fuel for Humanity

Throughout The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz, characters continuously abandon their happiness in order to enlighten the lives of others. Even though love is what fulfills their individual desires, they are unable to withstand the many rejections they encounter, pushing them...

Junot Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Revolves Around Multiple Themes

Junot Diaz’s, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is a book that has received numerous accolades for its style, story, and various themes that it includes or hints at as the story unfolds. Full of effective, even if sometimes confusing and complicated elements, Diaz’s...

Literary Devices and Biblical Themes in Snow White

From an Archetypal perspective, Little Snow-White is a fairytale in which portrays different meanings and hidden messages through patterns, symbols, and characters. Repetition often occurs within this fairytale to draw attention and thought onto a certain aspect to create a main focus (focal point). By...

Analysis of Stylistic Devices Used in Eliot's "Silas Marner"

Essay grade Satisfactory

Introduction One crucial component of any literature text is the associated literary devices used by the author. Stylistic devices, also known as figures of speech, refer to the vital tools of writing that are employed in literary works to create lively and interesting texts. They...

The Rhetorics and Irony in Alighieri's Inferno and More’s Utopia 1

Irony is a conventional rhetorical device used by authors to convey to their readers an incongruity with the aim to relay humor or ridicule, or to depreciate an idea. Thomas More's Utopia and Dante Alighieri's Inferno present perfect examples where irony is used to influence...

The Use of Foreshadowing and Irony in "A Thousand Splendid Suns"

Essay grade Excellent

Middle Eastern women are still the center of discrimination due to excessive male patriotism. In a nation overflowed with violence, terrorism, and war, women emitionally struggle to maintain hope as they are constantly subjected to persecution in their own homes. In the novel, A Thousand...

Analysis of William Faulkner's Prose: Barn Burning and Dry September

Americans have given the world great people among every field of life. If we look at the history of America we see that there are great novel writers, story writers, poets, actors, sportsmen or politicians. One of these great men was William Faulkner. William Cuthbert...

Impact of Setting on the Character Building in Updike's "A&P"

Essay grade Good

The short story ‘A&P’ by John Updike describes a 19-year-old named Sammy who works for a grocery store located in a town north of Boston in the early 1960’s. Sammy is routinely checking out an observant customer when three girls walk into the store, startling...

Symbolism of Segregation in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou’s debut novel I know why the caged bird sings is a 1969 autobiography describing the early years of American writer and poet Maya Angelou. The first in a seven-volume series, it is a coming-of-age story that illustrates how strength of character and a...

Jack London's Use of Literary Elements in "To Build a Fire"

Essay grade Excellent

In “To Build a Fire,” by Jack London, the various literary elements present in the story are a crucial part of the story of a man fighting for his life in the wilderness. Figurative language in To Build a Fire adds to complexity of the...

Figurative Language and Imagery in The Hunger Games

Essay grade Good

What would you do if you were coerced into a game where you had to murder other children, and you had to fight people who had been training their entire life for one opportunity - the opportunity of fame and fortune? The Hunger Games by...

Costume Design in Macbeth

Macbeth is strongly associated, in most imaginations, with the peculiar and picturesque costume of the Highlanders, as that common to all ancient Scotland. Walter Scott relates with great satisfaction how with his own hand, he plucked the huge bunches of black plumes from the bonnet...

Analysis Of Jonathan Swift's A Modest Proposal

Suggesting the nation alleviate its issue of poverty by using the children of the underprivileged Irish population as livestock to feed the rich - making the starving children in Ireland useful members of the commonwealth in a cheap and easy fashion. Crude commentary on England’s...

Analysis Of Literary Devices In The Poem “Tearaway” By Winona Linn

When one is little, one may often feel beaten down by the social or emotional pressures of peer acceptance and believe that owning a certain object will determine one’s fate. Owning this object becomes one’s focus, dream or obsession and is often linked to heart...

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