Sensory Images

• Sensory Images (VGTAO):

  • Visual imagery
  • Gustatory imagery
  • Tactile imagery
  • Auditory imagery
  • Olfactory imagery
• Sensory - The use of your senses
• Imagery - a literary device that refers to the use of figurative language to evoke a sensory experience or create a picture with words for a reader
• Sensory Images - Descriptive sensory language and mental pictures which are created by words that describe something that we see, touch, smell, taste, and hear
• Sensory Imagery - Appeals to the senses of sight, taste, smell, touch, and sound to create a vivid and evocative picture in the mind of the reader
• Sensory imagery is the hallmark of successful writers and poets for centuries.
• Smell and Taste - The most common combination of Sensory Imagery
• Visual Imagery

  • Engages the Sense of Sight
  • What you can see and includes visual descriptions
  • Physical attributes including color, size, shape, lightness and darkness, shadows, and shade
• Gustatory Imagery

  • Engages the sense of taste
  • This can include the five basic flavors as well as textures and sensations tied to the act of eating
• Five Basic Tastes (SSBSU):

  • Sweet
  • Salty
  • Bitter
  • Sour
  • Umami
• Visual Imagery Examples (GDBFG):

  • Gloomy
  • Dazzling
  • Bright
  • Foggy
  • Gigantic
• Gustatory Imagery Examples (CBNFF, FFHMS, DSN):

  • Citrus
  • Bubbly
  • Nutty
  • Fruity
  • Foamy
  • Frothy
  • Flakey
  • Herbed
  • Muddy
  • Succulent
  • Delectable
  • Sapid
  • Necterean
• Tactile Imagery

  • Engages the sense of touch
  • This is what you can feel and includes textures and the many sensations a human being experiencies when touching something.
  • Differences in temperature is also a kind of this
• A reader feels what your characters feel, how they touch, how something touches them through your writing. When you put in the imagery for touch and tangibility
• Tactile Imagery Examples (CCSPE, CBBHS, SSALC):

  • Corrosive
  • Coarse
  • Sharp
  • Pointed
  • Edged
  • Curved
  • Barbed
  • Bald
  • Hairy
  • Sticky
  • Silky
  • Smooth
  • Abrasive
  • Lukewarm
  • Crocheted
• Auditory Imagery

  • Engages the sense of hearing.
  • This is the way things sound
  • Literary devices such as onomatopoeia and alliteration help create sounds in writing
• The background and setting will play a great role in determining how a person/character sound.
• Auditory Imagery Examples (RMRPC, BFGCW)

  • The rustle of the papers
  • Murmurs in the silence
  • Rattling breath
  • Pitter-patter of the rain
  • Clasp of hands
  • Buzz of the bees
  • Flapping of wings
  • Gurgling baby
  • Cracking of neck
  • Whispers of the air
• Olfactory Imagery

  • Engages the sense of smell
  • One of the most common triggers of memory and emotion, but can be difficult to write about
• Scent - One of the most direct triggers of memory and emotion
• Olfactory is same with Gustatory but different in Context
• Olfactory Imagery Examples (AAPTA, MWBAA, RMORT):

  • Ascetic
  • Acrid
  • Pungent
  • Tart
  • Antiseptic
  • Musty
  • Wax
  • Balmy
  • Airy
  • Aromatic
  • Redolent
  • Musky
  • Oceanic
  • Rich
  • Tangy