Literary Devices in Our Town – Flashcards
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Allegory
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Story in which characters/events are symbols that stand for situations. Ex: Our Town: Life's cycle; Life is just one long day. Play begins at crack of dawn (1st Act: Daily Life), Develops around Mid-Day (2nd Act: Love and Marriage), and ends in the evening (3rd Act: Death).
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Dialect
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A different form of writing used to represent a form of speech. Ex: He was eatin the carke in the mornin
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Drama
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The genre of literature that is meant to be acted out. Ex: Our Town
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Irony
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The contrast of what appears to be with what it really is. Ex: Our Town: Emily says "they don't understand" when she doesn't understand.
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Metaphor
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comparison of two or more things not using like or as
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Simile
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comparison of two or more things using like or as
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Narrator
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The one recounting the story. Ex: The stage manager acts as one in "Our Town".
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Scene
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Unit of action in a play
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Symbol
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a thing that represents or stands for something else. Ex: Each act stands for a part of a day in Our Town.
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Theme
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subject or topic. Ex: Our Town's is life's cycle.
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Foreshadowing
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a clue of what is to come. Ex. When the stage manager talks about Dr. Gibbs death it is foreshadowing the themes of death in the play.
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Hyperbole
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An extreme exaggeration. Ex. I could eat a cow!
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Personification
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the attribution of a personal nature to something non-human. Ex. She is a wonderful darling, isn't she? (In reference to a ship)
