techniques

• Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds to convey a particular mood, atmosphere or emotion, or to emphasise a point. The repetition of the consonants normally appears at the beginning of words.
• Assonance is similar to alliteration in that it refers to the repetition of the same sounds. However, assonance refers to vowel sounds to convey a particular mood, atmosphere or emotion, or to emphasise a point.
• colloquial language is language that is characteristically informal. It is found a lot in speech (particularly everyday conversation) but it does also appear in writing. 
• Connotation refers to words that have underlying meanings or emotional overtones – these can be referred to as connotative words. Connotative words can have negative or positive connotations depending on the context surrounding them. Colours are one example of connotative words but there are others.
• Denotation is similar to connotation but instead of referring to the underlying meanings and emotional overtones of words, denotation refers to the literal meaning of a word; in other words, the dictionary definition of a word. 
• Hyperbole - An over exaggerated statement used to add extra effect/emphasis to a point.
• Irony - A statement that signifies the opposite of something or an event that has happened that was unlikely to. Irony is used to create tension, drama and sometimes even humour and sarcasm.
• Metaphor - A figure of speech, often a person or object, that contains an implied comparison to something else to add emphasis and effect. 
• Onomatopoeia - A word or phrase that mimics the sound it is describing. 
• Oxymoron - When contradictory words appear close together to create a desired effect. It is often used to add emphasis, indicate sarcasm or to demonstrate a contradictory truth.
• Paradox - A statement which may seem to contradict itself but actually holds some truth. Writer’s may use this technique to make a controversial comment.
• Personification - This is a type of metaphor that involves giving human qualities to a non-human object. 
• Rhetorical Question - This is a question which is not meant to be answered; this can be both written and spoken and may be used to get the reader thinking about a particular point or to signify irony. 
• Rhyme - Rhyme is the repetition of words that sound the same. This appears a lot in poetry and songs but you can also find it in other texts to help convey a particular mood, atmosphere or emotion, or to emphasise a point.
• Sarcasm is used frequently in spoken language and is often a form of irony. It can be used for a humorous effect but can also ridicule and be hurtful.
• Satire is the use of humour, irony, exaggeration or ridicule towards someone or something which can criticise their flaws or ideas. If a particular text or play includes a lot of satire, we would call it ‘satirical’, or say it has ‘satirical elements’.
• Sibilance is similar to alliteration in that it involves the repetition of consonant sounds. However, sibilance relates specifically to the repetition of consonants that produce hissing and breathy sounds. 
• Simile is a figure of speech where two things are compared using 'like' or 'as'. The simile will usually have one thing being compared with another, such as 'she was like a ray of sunshine', or 'he was as brave as a lion'.
• Symbolism is when an object represents something else. Symbolic objects can represent anything from abstract concepts (such as love) to more concrete ones (such as a flag).
• Tone is how the writer makes us feel through their choice of vocabulary, sentence structure and punctuation. Tone can change throughout a piece of writing depending on what the author wants to achieve at different points.
• A trope is a literary device that uses words in a non-literal way. There are many types of tropes including metaphors, personification, hyperbole, oxymorons and paradoxes.
• Anaphora is a rhetorical technique where a word or phrase is repeated at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences. An example might include “I came, I saw, I conquered” by Julius Caesar.
• Allusion is a reference made to a well known story, event, place, work of art etc. This could be historical, mythological, religious or cultural. Allusions are often used to add depth to a poem or novel.
• Verse is any piece of writing that uses poetic devices such as rhyme, rhythm and metre. Verse does not necessarily need to follow a set pattern; it just needs to contain some kind of poetic element.
• Ballad: A narrative poem composed of quatrains (iambic tetrameter alternating with iambic trimeter)  rhyming x-a-x-a. Ballads may use refrains.  Examples: "Jackaroe," "The Long Black Veil"
• Blank verse: unrhymed iambic pentameter. Example: Shakespeare's plays
• Caesura: A short but definite pause used for effect within a line of poetry.
• Couplet: two successive rhyming lines. Couplets end the pattern of a Shakespearean sonnet.
• Dramatic monologue: A type of poem, derived from the theater, in which a speaker addresses an internal listener or the reader. 
• Enjambment (or enjambement): A line having no end punctuation but running over to the next line.
• Foot (prosody): A measured combination of heavy and light stresses. The numbers of feet are given below. monometer (1 foot) dimeter (2 feet) trimeter (3 feet) tetrameter (4 feet) pentameter (5 feet) hexameter (6 feet) heptameter or septenary (7 feet)
• Iambic pentameter: Iamb (iambic): an unstressed stressed foot.The most natural and common kind of meter in English; it elevates speech to poetry.
• Meter: The number of feet within a line of traditional verse. Example: iambic pentameter.
• Sonnet: A closed form consisting of fourteen lines of rhyming iambic pentameter.
• blank verse is a verse without rhyme, especially that which uses iambic pentameters.
• free verse is poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular rhythm.
• ballard - A poem or song narrating a story in short stanzas