北大医学部复习资料术语literary devices.docx

All American: Glossary of Literary Terms A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z A allegory (AL-eh-GOR-ee): a narrative that serves as an extended metaphor. Allegories are written in the form of fables, parables, poems, stories, and almost any other style or genre. The main purpose of an allegory is to tell a story that has characters, a setting, as well as other types of symbols, that have both literal and figurative meanings. The difference between an allegory and a symbol is that an allegory is a complete narrative that conveys abstract ideas to get a point across, while a symbol is a representation of an idea or concept that can have a different meaning throughout a literary work (A Handbook to Literature). One well-known example of an allegory is Dante’s The Divine Comedy. In Inferno, Dante is on a pilgrimage to try to understand his own life, but his character also represents every man who is in search of his purpose in the world (Merriam Webster Encyclopedia of Literature). Although Virgil literally guides Dante on his journey through the mystical inferno, he can also be seen as the reason and human wisdom that Dante has been looking for in his life. See A Handbook to Literature, Merriam Webster’s Encyclopedia of Literature. Machella Caldwell, Student, University of North Carolina at Pembroke alliteration (a-LIT-uh-RAY-shuhn): a pattern of sound that includes the repetition of consonant sounds. The repetition can be located at the beginning of successive words or inside the words. Poets often use alliteration to audibly represent the action that is taking place. For instance, in the Inferno, Dante states: I saw it there, but I saw nothing in it, except the rising of the boiling bubbles (261). The repetition of the b sounds represents the sounds of bubbling, or the bursting action of the boiling pitch. In addition, in Sir Phillip Sidneys Astrophel and Stella, the poet states: Biting my truant