Author’s Choices:

Literary DevicesMrs. West

• The choices that authors make when developing their writing can have BIG effects on their readers.• Some authors decide to use

literary devices to make their writing more interesting and bring their work to life.

Literary Devices• Literary devices are specific parts of

literature that help authors make their writing more interesting for their readers.• One type of literary device that authors

use frequently when writing fiction is called Figurative Language.

Figurative Language• Figurative language is the non-literal use of

language.• For example, if you say:– “My head is killing me!”, you are using non-literal

language.– What you are saying is non-literal, or NOT LITERAL,

because you don’t actually mean that your head is killing you.

• If you say:– “May I borrow a pencil?”, you are using literal language.– What you are saying is literal because you really mean

exactly what you’re saying.

Your Turn!• Fill in two examples on your graphic

organizers:–One example of non-literal language

that you use.–One example of literal language that

you use.

Figurative Language is a Tool

• There are many different types of figurative language that an author has in their “toolbox”.• You can compare an author’s use

of figurative language to the different types of tools that an artist uses for making works of art.

How?– If an artist wants to apply paint smoothly,

they might use a paint brush.– If an artist wants to blot paint on randomly,

they might use a sponge.– If an author wants to tell a story’s true

meaning and not be creative, they may use literal language.– If an author wants to convey hidden

meaning in a creative way, they may use non-literal, or figurative language!

Types of Figurative Language• Here are some of the most

common types of figurative language:–Figures of Speech–Simile–Metaphor

Figures of Speech• Figures of speech are sayings that are not

literally true.• Here are some examples:– “Charlie’s bragging gets under my skin.”– “Gilda’s money is burning a hole in her

pocket.”• Listeners know that when they hear a figure of

speech the words don’t carry their ordinary meaning.

• Why are the examples above non literally true?

Figures of Speech• The meaning of these expressions depend on

comparisons:– “Charlie’s bragging gets under my skin.”• Bragging is compared to something that would cause

pain or negative feeling if it really happened.

– “Gilda’s money is burning a hole in her pocket.”• Money is compared to something so hot that it can not

be held and must be gotten rid of.

• How do these comparisons relate to the underlying meaning of these statements?

Similes• A simile is a comparison of two unalike things

using the words like, as, than, or resembles.• Below are two examples of famous similes

that authors have used. • See if you can find the two things being

compared:– “I wandered lonely as a cloud…” – William

Wordsworth– “My love is like a red, red rose…” – Robert

Burns

Metaphors• Metaphors also compare two unalike things, but

they do so without using the words like, as, than, or resembles.

• For example, in “The Highwayman,” the author compares the moon to a ghost using metaphor.

• Which of the following statements is the metaphor the author used? How do you know?–“The moon was like a ghostly galleon.”–“The moon was a ghostly galleon.”

Let’s practice…• Fill in the chart on your graphic

organizer by completing examples of comparisons from “The Highwayman.”• Identify each example of figurative

language as either a simile or a metaphor.• Then, analyze how figurative language

helps reveal the theme in an author’s writing.