Devices + Elements Review

Imagery: visually descriptive or figurative language

Examples: Little Green; Joni Mitchell; “Like the color when the spring is born”

     Somewhere Only We Know; Keane

Hyperbole: exaggerated statements or claims

Examples: Drown in My Own Tears; Ray Charles; “I guess I’m drowning in my own tears”       Just the Way You Are; Bruno Mars

Alliteration: the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of consecutive words

Examples: Helplessly Hoping; CSNY; “Love isn’t lying, it loose in a lady who lingers”

                 Grenade; Bruno Mars

Assonance: the repetition of the sound of a vowel

Examples: Sleeping Through the Static; Jack Johnson; “Because it’s a battle when you dabble in war

                She Way Out; The 1975

Consonance:  repetition of internal consonant sounds

Examples: Sleeping Through the Static; Jack Johnson; “Mind your manners, wave your banners

                3005; Childish Gambino

Allegories: a phrase that can be interpreted in a way other than the literal

Examples: Mr.Tambourine Man; Bob Dylan; “Take me on a trip upon your magic swirlin’ ship”

                 H.E.R; Common

Local Color; focuses on specific features of a character

Examples: Castles Made of Sand; Jimi Hendrix; “You can hear her scream, 'You’re a disgrace'”

                Arabella; Arctic Monkeys

Double Entendre; a word or phrase open to two interpretations

Examples: Mary Jane’s Last Dance; Tom Petty; “Last dance with Mary Jane, one more time to kill the pain"

               Cocoa Butter Kisses; Chance the Rapper

Oxymoron; literary device where two contradictory terms appear in a conjunction

Examples: I Just Want You; Ozzy Osbourne; “There are no unlockable doors”

                This Means War; Rizzle Kicks

Irony; a disordinance beyond a phrases obvious meaning

Examples: Funny The Way It Is; Dave Matthews Band; “One kid walks 10 miles to school, anothers dropping out”

               Fluorescent Adolescent; Arctic Monkeys

Paradox; a statement that has a senseless conclusion despite reasoning

Examples: I Just Want You; Ozzy Osbourne: “There are no identical twins”

               Something I Need; OneRepublic

Tone; speakers attitude toward the subject

Examples: Rock and Roll Band; Boston; nostalgically appreciative

                The Love Club; Lorde; optimistically anticipating

Point of View; determined by speaker of song and whom they are speaking to

Examples: Life’s Been Good; Joe Walsh; “I can’t complain but sometimes I still do” (1st)

Annie; Johnnyswim (multiple)