What Is Style?

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Elements of Style Literary Devices
Feature Menu
What Is Style? Figures of Speech
Irony Imagery Dialect Practice
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What Is Style?
Style is the way a writer uses language.
In fashion, style comes from the choices people
make when they get dressed.
In writing, style comes from the choices writers
make when they put words on a page.
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What Is Style?
Many writers have a style that is easy to
recognize.
Because of the way these writers use language
the words they choose,
the length and shape of their sentences,
the images they create,
the tone they use
people read their words and know who they are.
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What Is Style?
Can you tell which poem was written by Dr. Seuss?
By E. E. Cummings?
who are you,little i who are you,little I (five
or six years old) peering from some
high windowat the gold of november sunset (and
feeling that if day has to become night this is a
beautiful way)
from Green Eggs and Ham I would not like them
here or there. I would not like
them anywhere. I do not like
green eggs and ham, I do
not like them, Sam-I-am. . . .
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What Is Style?
If youve read anything by Dr. Seuss, you will
know that this poem was written by him.
from Green Eggs and Ham I would not like them
here or there. I would not like
them anywhere. I do not like
green eggs and ham, I do
not like them, Sam-I-am.
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What Is Style?
If youve ever read anything E. E. Cummings, you
will probably recognize
his unique style in this
poem.
who are you,little i who are you,little I (five
or six years old) peering from some
high windowat the gold of november sunset (and
feeling that if day has to become night this is a
beautiful way)
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What Is Style?
How did you know which writer wrote each poem?
You probably recognized the regular rhythm and
rhyme pattern in the poem by Dr. Seussas well as
the silly sounding, made-up word Sam-I-am.
Dr. Seuss has a style that most readers learn to
love early in life.
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What Is Style?
How did you know which writer wrote each poem?
You may have recognized the lowercase letters and
unusual punctuation in the poem by E. E. Cummings
. . .
a poet who isnt afraid to break the rules.
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What Is Style?
Every writer has a style, and many elements come
together to create that style.
Irony
Imagery
In this collection, you will learn about four of
those elements
Figures of Speech
Dialect
End of Section
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Figures of Speech
Figures of speech are expressions that are not
literally true
It was a shot in the dark . . .
but that suggest similarities between usually
unrelated things.
I had forgotten to study for the test, so every
answer was a shot in the dark.
No one is actually shooting into the darkness. . .
but taking a test without studying is like
shooting in the dark
youre not likely to get it right.
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Figures of Speech
There are four main types of figures of speech
personification
similes
metaphors
symbols
Similes compare two unlike things using a word of
comparison such as like, than, as, or resembles.
The cars tire was as flat as a pancake.
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Figures of Speech
Metaphors compare two unlike things directly,
without using a specific word of comparison.
Sunlight poured down onto the fields.
Sometimes metaphors go on for more than a
sentence. These are called extended metaphors.
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Figures of Speech
Personification speaks of a nonhuman or inanimate
thing as if it had human or lifelike qualities.
A falling leaf danced on the breeze.
The oceans whisper grew louder as the tide came
in.
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Figures of Speech
Symbols are people, places, or events that have
meaning in themselves but that also stand for
something beyond themselves.
A dove with an olive branch is a symbol for peace.
A skull and crossbones is a symbol for poison.
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Figures of Speech
We use figures of speech in everyday language
without even realizing it.
Figures of speech that we use everyday are
clichés they are not particularly interesting
anymore.
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Figures of Speech
Writers try to create fresh figures of speech to
help us see things in a new way.
The traffic snaked along for miles, squeezing us
tight in its coils.
The handshake was as cold and clammy as a cave
wall.
The new and original comparisons a writer makes
are part of that writers style.
End of Section
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Irony
When reality contradicts what we expect, its
called irony. There are three kinds of irony.
Verbal Irony We say one thing and mean something else. Thats just great, your friend says in a disgusted tone.
Situational Irony The situation turns out to be just the opposite of what wed expect. The firehouse burns to the ground.
Dramatic Irony We know something that a character doesnt know. We know whats at the end of the dark hallway, but the character doesnt.
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Irony
How a writer uses irony and the type of irony he
or she tends to useboth are aspects of a
writers style.
situational irony
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Irony
How a writer uses irony and the type of irony he
or she tends to useboth are aspects of a
writers style.
dramatic irony
dramatic irony
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Irony
Which of these statements contains more irony?
That morning at breakfast, Tom refused his
mothers offer to cook him a bacon omelet and
thought about his new pet, Curly, instead.
That morning at breakfast, Tom ate a second
helping of bacon while planning Curlys escape.
End of Section
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Imagery
Imagery is language that creates word pictures
and appeals to the senses.
the lazy creak of the tire swing
bright green water parted by the knobby head of a
crocodile
the smooth silky texture of pie on your thumb
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Imagery
Imagery that describes the same subject can vary
significantly in style and tone.
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Imagery
The way a writer presents imagery has a strong
impact on his or her style.
Notice how slowly and gradually author Edgar
Allan Poe creates the image of lantern light
falling upon an old mans glass eye.
When I had waited a long time, very patiently,
without hearing him lie down, I resolved to open
a littlea very, very little crevice in the
lantern. So I opened ityou cannot imagine how
stealthily, stealthilyuntil, at length, a single
dim ray, like the thread of the spider, shot from
out the crevice and full upon the vulture eye.
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Imagery
The way a writer presents imagery has a strong
impact on his or her style.
Now compare Poes use of imagery to this version
of the scene.
I waited for what seemed hours. Then, when I
could stand it no longer, I opened the lanterns
cover just slightly, and a small amount of
lighta very soft glowentered the room. I saw
his eye.
With good reasonPoes version is much more
memorable. People who read Poe will recognize it.
End of Section
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Dialect
Dialect is a way of speaking thats
characteristic of a particular place or group of
people.
Listen to these two examples of dialect.
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Dialect
Some writers use dialect to convey information
about a storys setting or its characters.
Other writers avoid using dialect and rely on
other techniques instead.
The woman who met my father and me for lunch was
the sort my mother would call a gentlewoman.
She spoke with a Southern drawl and seemed
unnervingly pleased to see us.
A writers choice to use dialect can be a very
noticeable part of his or her stylesince dialect
is conveyed using unconventional spelling and
punctuation.
End of Section
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Practice
from My Mother Pieced Quilts they were just
meant as covers in winters as weapons against
pounding january winds but it was just that
every morning I awoke to these october ripened
canvases passed my hand across their cloth
faces and began to wonder how you pieced all
these together these strips of gentle communion
cotton and flannel nightgowns wedding
organdies dime store velvets
1. What metaphor is used in the first stanza?
2. Which line in the second stanza contains
personification?
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Practice
from My Mother Pieced Quilts they were just
meant as covers in winters as weapons against
pounding january winds but it was just that
every morning I awoke to these october ripened
canvases passed my hand across their cloth
faces and began to wonder how you pieced all
these together these strips of gentle communion
cotton and flannel nightgowns wedding
organdies dime store velvets
1. What metaphor is used in the first stanza?
The poet uses metaphor to compare her mothers
quilts to weapons against strong winds.
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Practice
from My Mother Pieced Quilts they were just
meant as covers in winters as weapons against
pounding january winds but it was just that
every morning I woke to these october ripened
canvases passed my hand across their cloth
faces and began to wonder how you pieced all
these together These strips of gentle communion
cotton and flannel nightgowns wedding
organdies dime store velvets
2. Which line in the second stanza contains
personification?
passed my hand across their cloth faces
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Practice
3. To what sense does the imagery in this stanza
appeal?
how you shaped patterns square and oblong and
round positioned balanced then cemented them with
your thread a steel needle a thimble
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Practice
3. To what sense does the imagery in this stanza
appeal?
how you shaped patterns square and oblong and
round positioned balanced then cemented them with
your thread a steel needle a thimble
The sense of sight
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Practice
how the thread darted in and out galloping along
the frayed edges, tucking them in as you did us
at night oh how you stretched and turned and
rearranged your michigan spring faded curtain
pieces my fathers santa fe work shirt the summer
denims, the tweeds of fall
4. What simile appears in this stanza?
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Practice
4. What simile is completed on this page?
how the thread darted in and out galloping along
the frayed edges, tucking them in as you did us
at night oh how you stretched and turned and
rearranged your michigan spring faded curtain
pieces my fathers santa fe work shirt the summer
denims, the tweeds of fall
The thread tucked the edges of the cloth in as
the mother tucked in her children at night.
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Practice
in the evening you sat at your canvas our
cracked linoleum floor the drawing board me
lounging on your arm and you staking out the
plan whether to put the lilac purple of easter
against the red plaid of winter-going- into-spring
whether to mix a yellow with blue and white and
paint the corpus christi noon when my father held
your hand whether to shape a five-point star from
the somber black silk you wore to grandmothers
funeral
5. What do the different kinds of fabric
symbolize?
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Practice
in the evening you sat at your canvas our
cracked linoleum floor the drawing board me
lounging on your arm and you staking out the
plan whether to put the lilac purple of easter
against the red plaid of winter-going- into-spring
whether to mix a yellow with blue and white and
paint the corpus christi noon when my father held
your hand whether to shape a five-point star from
the somber black silk you wore to grandmothers
funeral
5. What do the different kinds of fabric
symbolize?
The fabrics symbolize the events of the familys
life.
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Practice
from Brer Rabbit and Brer Lion retold by Julius
Lester Brer Rabbit was in the woods one
afternoon when a great wind came up. It blew on
the ground and it blew in the tops of the trees.
It blew so hard that Brer Rabbit was afraid a
tree might fall on him, and he started
running. He was trucking through the woods when
he ran smack into Brer Lion. . . . Whats your
hurry, Brer Rabbit? Run, Brer Lion! Theres a
hurricane coming!
6. Which words and phrases on this page are
examples of dialect?
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Practice
from Brer Rabbit and Brer Lion retold by Julius
Lester Brer Rabbit was in the woods one
afternoon when a great wind came up. It blew on
the ground and it blew in the tops of the trees.
It blew so hard that Brer Rabbit was afraid a
tree might fall on him, and he started
running. He was trucking through the woods when
he ran smack into Brer Lion. . . . Whats your
hurry, Brer Rabbit? Run, Brer Lion! Theres a
hurricane coming!
6. Which words and phrases on this page are
examples of dialect?
The boldfaced words are examples of dialect.
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Practice
Brer Lion got scared. Im too heavy to run,
Brer Rabbit. What am I going to do? Lay down,
Brer Lion, lay down! Get close to the
ground! Brer Lion shook his head. The wind
might pick me up and blow me away. Hug a tree,
Brer Lion! Hug a tree! But what if the wind
blows all day and into the night? Let me tie
you to the tree, Brer Lion. Let me tie you to the
tree. Brer Lion liked that idea. Brer Rabbit
tied him to the tree and sat down next to it.
After a while, Brer Lion got tired of hugging the
tree.
7. How does the writer show Brer Rabbits
excitement?
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Practice
7. How does the writer show Brer Rabbits
excitement?
Brer Lion got scared. Im too heavy to run,
Brer Rabbit. What am I going to do? Lay down,
Brer Lion, lay down! Get close to the
ground! Brer Lion shook his head. The wind
might pick me up and blow me away. Hug a tree,
Brer Lion! Hug a tree! But what if the wind
blows all day and into the night? Let me tie
you to the tree, Brer Lion. Let me tie you to the
tree. Brer Lion liked that idea. Brer Rabbit
tied him to the tree and sat down next to it.
After a while, Brer Lion got tired of hugging the
tree.
By having him repeat everything he says
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Practice
After a while, Brer Lion got tired of hugging the
tree. Brer Rabbit? I dont hear no
hurricane. Brer Rabbit listened. Neither do
I. Brer Rabbit? I dont hear no wind. Brer
Rabbit listened. Neither do I. Brer Rabbit?
Aint a leaf moving in the trees. Brer Rabbit
looked up. Sho aint. So untie me. Im
afraid to, Brer Lion. Brer Lion began to roar.
He roared so loud and so long, the foundations of
the Earth started shaking. Least thats what it
seemed like . . .
8. Which words and phrases (besides Brer) on
this page are part of the storys dialect?
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Practice
8. Which words and phrases (besides Brer) on
this page are part of the storys dialect?
After a while, Brer Lion got tired of hugging the
tree. Brer Rabbit? I dont hear no
hurricane. Brer Rabbit listened. Neither do
I. Brer Rabbit? I dont hear no wind. Brer
Rabbit listened. Neither do I. Brer Rabbit?
Aint a leaf moving in the trees. Brer Rabbit
looked up. Sho aint. So untie me. Im
afraid to, Brer Lion. Brer Lion began to roar.
He roared so loud and so long, the foundations of
the Earth started shaking. Least thats what it
seemed like . .
The boldfaced words are examples of dialect.
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Practice
Brer Lion began to roar. He roared so loud
and so long, the foundations of the Earth started
shaking. Least thats what it seemed like, and
the other animals came from all over to see what
was going on. When they got close, Brer Rabbit
jumped up and began strutting around the tied-up
Brer Lion. When the animals saw what Brer Rabbit
had done to Brer Lion, youd better believe it
was the forty-eleventh of Octorerarry before they
messed with him again.
9. What is ironic about the story?
10. What kind of irony is it?
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Practice
9. What is ironic about the story?
Brer Lion began to roar. He roared so loud
and so long, the foundations of the Earth started
shaking. Least thats what it seemed like, and
the other animals came from all over to see what
was going on. When they got close, Brer Rabbit
jumped up and began strutting around the tied-up
Brer Lion. When the animals saw what Brer Rabbit
had done to Brer Lion, youd better believe it
was the forty-eleventh of Octorerarry before they
messed with him again.
It is ironic that the rabbit, a small, weak
animal, captures the lion, a large, strong animal.
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Practice
10. What kind of irony is it?
Brer Lion began to roar. He roared so loud
and so long, the foundations of the Earth started
shaking. Least thats what it seemed like, and
the other animals came from all over to see what
was going on. When they got close, Brer Rabbit
jumped up and began strutting around the tied-up
Brer Lion. When the animals saw what Brer Rabbit
had done to Brer Lion, youd better believe it
was the forty-eleventh of Octorerarry before they
messed with him again.
situational irony
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Practice
On Your Own
Prepare a literary devices wall display for
your classroom. Get seven poster boards, and give
them the following labels

• Symbols
• Images
• Irony
• Dialect

• Similes
• Metaphors
• Personification

Under each term, write its definition. Then,
under each definition, write in examples that you
think are interesting. You can find your examples
in newspapers and magazines, as well as in
stories, poems, and novels. Be sure to cite the
author and title of any direct quote that you use
in your display.
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Elements of Style Literary Devices
The End