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Elements of Style in Literature

The document discusses various elements of style that are studied in literature classes, including big-picture elements like character development, dialogue, and theme, as well as line-by-line elements such as alliteration, metaphor, and rhyme. It provides examples of each element and explains how they are used in literary works.

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20 views

Elements of Style in Literature

The document discusses various elements of style that are studied in literature classes, including big-picture elements like character development, dialogue, and theme, as well as line-by-line elements such as alliteration, metaphor, and rhyme. It provides examples of each element and explains how they are used in literary works.

Uploaded by

tt
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Elements of Style in Literature

Elements of style studied in literary works are what is up for discussion in any
literature or writing class, such as:

Big-Picture Elements

• Character development: How a character changes throughout the


story
• Dialogue: Lines spoken or internal thoughts
• Foreshadowing: Hints dropped about what's going to happen later
• Form: Whether something is poetry, prose, drama, a short story, a sonnet,
etc.
• Imagery: Scenes set or items shown with descriptive words
• Irony: An occurrence that's the opposite of what's expected
• Juxtaposition: Putting two elements together to compare or contrast
them
• Mood: The atmosphere of a work, the attitude of the narrator
• Pacing: How quickly the narration unfolds
• Point of view: The narrator's perspective; first person (I) or third person
(he or she)
• Structure: How a story is told (beginning, action, climax, denouement) or
how a piece is organized (introduction, main body, conclusion vs. reverse-
pyramid journalistic style)
• Symbolism: Using an element of the story to represent something else
• Theme: A message delivered by or shown in a work; its central topic or big
idea
• Tone: The writer's attitude toward the subject or manner with choosing
vocabulary and presenting information, such as informal or formal

Line-by-Line Elements

• Alliteration: Close repetition of consonants, used for effect


• Assonance: Close repetition of vowels, used for effect
• Colloquialisms: Informal words, such as slang and regional terms
• Diction: The correctness of the overall grammar (big picture) or how
characters speak, such as with an accent or with poor grammar
• Jargon: Terms specific to a certain field
• Metaphor: A means to compare two elements (Can also be big-picture if
an entire story or scene is laid out to show a parallel with something else)
• Repetition: Using the same words or phrases in a short amount of time
for emphasis
• Rhyme: When the same sounds appear in two or more words
• Rhythm: having a musicality to the writing such as by using stressed and
unstressed syllables in a line of poetry or sentence variety or repetition in a
paragraph
• Sentence variety: Variation in the structure and length of consecutive
sentences
• Syntax: The arrangement of words in a sentence

Elements of style are the characteristics of the language used in the written work,
and stylistics is their study

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