Poetic Devices

Rhyme example:

The Life Of A Cupcake

They put me in the oven to bake.
Me a deprived and miserable cake.
Feeling the heat I started to bubble.
Watching the others I knew I was in trouble...

Alliteration example:

Three Grey Geese by Mother Goose

Three grey geese in a green field grazing, Grey were the geese and green was the grazing.

Onomatopoeia example:

Pool Party

Squeal!
Kids are running everywhere.
Running and Splash –
Falling in the pool.
The music plays –
Stomp! Stomp!
The children dance.
Finally, the food is off the grill-
Munch, munch, munch! 

Simile example:

“Friends are like chocolate cake

You can never have too many.

Chocolate cake is like heaven -

Always amazing you with each taste or feeling.

Chocolate cake is like life with so many different pieces.

Chocolate cake is like happiness, you can never get enough of it.”

Metaphor example:

The sun went away
The sky went black
Up came the wind
I fell on my back

It started to rain
I began to sink
Then I lifted my head
And took a drink

I perked myself up
And said "please don't cry"
And wiped off my petals
Until they were dry

The clouds soon parted
And out came the sun
The beauty in me
Has only begun

Hyperbole example:

In a house the size of a postage stamp
lived a man as big as a barge.
His mouth could drink the entire river
You could say it was rather large
For dinner he would eat a trillion beans
And a silo full of grain,
Washed it down with a tanker of milk
As if he were a drain.

Personification example:

I'd love to take a poem to lunch

or treat it to a wholesome brunch

of fresh cut fruit and apple crunch.

I'd spread it neatly on the cloth

beside a bowl of chicken broth

and watch a mug of root beer froth.

symbolism example:

I wander thro' each charter'd street,

Near where the charter'd Thames does flow,

Mind-forg'd manacles represent the oppressiveness of government and religion in William Blake’s “London”:

In every cry of every Man,

In every Infant's cry of fear,

In every voice, in every ban,

The mind-forg'd manacles I hear.

imagery example:

His body was tubular

And tapered

And smoke-blue,

And as he passed the wharf

He turned,

And snapped at a flat-fish

That was dead and floating.

And I saw the flash of a white throat,

And a double row of white teeth,

And eyes of metallic grey,

Hard and narrow and slit.

Then out of the harbour,

With that three-cornered fin

Shearing without a bubble the water

Lithely,

Leisurely,

He swam—That strange fish,

Tubular, tapered, smoke-blue,

Part vulture, part wolf,

Part neither—for his blood was cold.

Free verse example:

I now delight 

In spite 

Of the might 

And the right 

Of classic tradition, 

In writing 

And reciting 

Straight ahead, 

Without let or omission, 

Just any little rhyme

In any little time 

That runs in my head; 

Because, I’ve said, 

My rhymes no longer shall stand arrayed

Like Prussian soldiers on parade

That march, 

Stiff as starch, 

Foot to foot, 

Boot to boot, 

Blade to blade,

Button to button, 

Cheeks and chops and chins like mutton.

No! No! 

My rhymes must go 

Turn ’ee, twist ’ee,

Twinkling, frosty, 

Will-o’-the-wisp-like, misty;

Poetic Devices

Rhymes e.g.

Is this revenge I am seeking,


Or seeking someone to avange me


Stuck in my own paradox I wanna set myself free

I wish I lived in the present

With the gift of my past mistakes


But the future keeps luring in like a pack of snakes

Alliteration e.g

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers?

If Peter Piper Picked a peck of pickled peppers,

Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

Onomatopoeia e.g.

It's sort of whack, whir, wheeze, whine

Sputter, splat, squirt, scrape

Clink, clank, clunk, clatter

Crash, bang, beep, buzz

Ring, rip, roar, retch

Twang, toot, tinkle, thud

Pop, plop, plunk, pow

Snort, snuck, sniff, smack

Screech, splash, squish, squeak

Jingle, rattle, squeal, boing

Honk, hoot, hack, belch."

Simile e.g.

Jokes and laughter, some ones patter.its all part of the banter. Crack a smile its been a while, have a laugh be all out daft. A sore side and tears, drawn from memories of ever lasting silly cheer. Laughter is the cure, its sure to turn that frown upside down. 

Metaphor e.g.

The King of Sanctimonious Perched high upon his throne-ious Clothed in purple pious-ness Admired his own self-righteous-ness The Queen of Sanctimonious Tired of the King's baloney-ous When he counts his hoards of money To him, sweeter than his honey In a court that wasn't courteous The Queen cried, "you're oblivious!" But he wasn't aware, nor did he care He'd become a Royal hypocrite Day after day, he counted each coin The ritual put a flutter in his groin Reveling in his Royal room Soon became his tomb of gloom The Royal epitaph was no baloney-ous When the king was found 'Tis said he drowned In a fermented bottle of loneliness

Hyperbole e.g.

I ate some fried catfish and it tasted so good! Just how good did that fried catfish taste? It tasted so good it made a hound dog slap a bull dog. That had to have been some mighty fine vittles. I ate some fried chicken and it tasted so good! Just how good did that fried chicken taste? It tasted so good it made a wolf howl and a grizzly bear dance. That had to have been some mighty fine vittles. I ate some fried crawfish and it tasted so good! Just how good did that fried crawfish taste? It tasted so good it made an alligator turn a somersault. That had to have been some mighty fine vittles. I ate some fried rat and it tasted so bad! I had to throw it all up in a brown paper bag. 

Symbolism e.g.

The Sorceress 

The fog's requests accosted us above the ocean vastness and scattered stars defined afar the tempest's resurrection; our cargo's diesel engines thrummed as she immersed in darkness maneuvering the fields invited us to wrong direction. Half-visible the skylines danced with mist that spread abundant the Sorceress spelled out upon our travel to Atlantic expanding borderlines beyond, where waves were moving rampant - the sylphlike wafting of the sea, engulfed our first mechanic. Hence, she declared, among the mists, her oracle and candor; presumptuous she coquetted on Hades' shadowed orchard, as chthonic forms misguided us to deluged reefs, asunder, beguiling sailors to conduct in ghostly seas, unconquered. Tangential the cloaks of night became our route's incisors; bewitched by the falling fog and sorcery bespoken we heard the Siren's singing calls, ambiguous advisers as waves embraced our steadfast bow that led to death unbroken: " Redeeming waters deep await, before our early turns to late. your blue, aquatic route shall cure whate'er is sorrowful and pure. and if you manage to disband, shall meet me on your meadowland My voice bespeaks inside your souls, we'll celebrate on Astral Halls; Address me in your hearts and dare, so welcome to my seaward fair. " 

Imagery e.g.

Now sleeps the crimson petal, now the white;

Nor waves the cypress in the palace walk;

Nor winks the gold fin in the porphyry font:

The firefly wakens: waken thou with me.

Now droops the milk-white peacock like a ghost,

And like a ghost she glimmers on to me.

Now lies the Earth all Danaë to the stars,

And all thy heart lies open unto me.

Now slides the silent meteor on, and leaves

A shining furrow, as thy thoughts in me.

Now folds the lily all her sweetness up,And slips into the bosom of the lake

So fold thyself, my dearest, thou, and slip

Into my bosom and be lost in me.

Free verse e.g.

After the Sea-Ship—after the whistling winds;

After the white-gray sails, taut to their spars and ropes,

Below, a myriad, myriad waves, hastening, lifting up their necks,

Tending in ceaseless flow toward the track of the ship:

Waves of the ocean, bubbling and gurgling, blithely prying,

Waves, undulating waves—liquid, uneven, emulous waves,

Toward that whirling current, laughing and buoyant, with curves,

Where the great Vessel, sailing and tacking, displaced the surface;

Allusion e.g.

Never stalk a ghost from down the wind: so spoke the oracle on the hill above the quiet deserted village below the treeline even as the leaves stirred from the ground in prophetic warning. Agape trust and only then when alter ego fails The eagles nest is twigged above the highest branch, the better to peer with raving eyes and knowing every slightest motion. Burning flame of fire in oil translate to me your reason and no exceptions make for blindness or for treason. A rabbit creeps inside a log to hide away the hours An aging hound bays inside a barn close by and no thicket with a thorn. Wormy worm loosens soil within the garden, garden growing; the turnips turn to bulging heaving up the surface soil above the bed, above the worm. A chicken scratches for a morsel searching pecking, pecking searching never tiring of the hunting Protein rich from bugs and other crawling creeping creatures. 

Rhythm e.g.

Why so pale and wan, fond Lover?

Prithee why so pale?

Will, when looking well can’t move her,

Looking ill prevail?

Prithee why so pale?

Poetic Devices

Rhymes

E.g.
The world is so full 
of a number of things, 
I'm sure we should all 
be as happy as kings. 

Alliterations
E.g.

Up the aisle, the moans and screams merged with the sickening smell of woolen black clothes worn in summer weather and green leaves wilting over yellow flowers.

Onomatopoeia
E.g.
Crack! Crack!
The fire crackles under the stars.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
The water sizzles above the fire.
Crunch! Crunch!
The campers crunching on potato chips.
Click! Clack! Click! Clack!
The tent poles clicking and clacking together.
Rustle! Rustle!
As we prepare our sleeping bags to go to sleep.
Chirp! Chirp!
The crickets say, “good-night”.

Simile
E.g.

Friends are like chocolate cake

You can never have too many.

Chocolate cake is like heaven -

Always amazing you with each taste or feeling.

Chocolate cake is like life with so many different pieces.

Chocolate cake is like happiness, you can never get enough of it

Metaphor
E.g.

 In the grey evening

I see a long green serpent

With its tail in the dahlias

It lies in loops across the grass

And drinks softly at the faucet

I can hear it swallow.

Hyperbole
E.g.

I'll love you, dear, I'll love you till China and Africa meet,

And the river jumps over the mountain

And the salmon sing in the street,

I'll love you till the ocean

Is folded and hung up to dry

And the seven stars go squawking

Like geese about the sky.

Personification
E.g
The stars danced playfully in the moonlit sky

Symbolism
E.g
Ah Sunflower, weary of time, Who countest the steps of the sun; Seeking after that sweet golden clime Where the traveler’s journey is done.

Imagery
E.g
Beside the lake, Beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze,
Continuous as the stars that shine
and twinkle on the milky way.

Free Verse
E.g

The fog comeson little cat feet. 

It sits looking over harbor and cityon silent haunchesand then moves on.

Allusion
E.g.
The Cunninghams are country folks, farmers, and the crash hit them hardest.

Rhythm
E.g.

Two households, both alike in Dignity,In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.From forth the fatal loins of these two foesA pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life;

Aidan Lee's Poetic Devices

Rhyme

E.g. Hat, Cat, Brat, Fat, Mat, Sat

Alliteration

E.g. 

1. Mike’s microphone made much music.
2. Nick’s nephew needed new notebooks now not never.
3. Orson’s owl out-performed ostriches.
4. Peter’s piglet pranced priggishly.
5. Quincy’s quilters quit quilting quickly.
6. Ralph’s reindeer rose rapidly and ran round the room.
7. Sara’s seven sisters slept soundly in sand.
8. Tim’s took tons of tools to make toys for tots.
9. Uncle Uris’ united union uses umbrellas.
10. Vivien’s very vixen-like and vexing.
11. Walter walked wearily while wondering where Wally was.
12. Yarvis yanked you at yoga, and Yvonne yelled.
13. Zachary zeroed in on zoo keep

Onomatopoeia

E.g. Screech, Buzz, Clang, Toot, Bang, Rattle, splash, growl, bam, swoosh, bark

Simile

E.g. 

• This dress is perfect because it fits like a glove.
• They wore jeans, which made me stand out like a sore thumb.
• My love for you is a deep as the ocean.
• I am so thirsty, that my throat is as dry as a bone.
• As bold as brass
• As bright as a button
• As shiny as a new pin
• As cold as ice
• As common as dirt
• A light as a feather

Metaphor

E.g. Stench of Failure, Fade off to sleep, 

Hyperbole

E.g.

• You could have knocked me over with a feather.
• Her brain is the size of a pea.
• He is older than the hills.

Personification

E.g. 

1.  tripped because the curb jumped out in front of me.
2. Time creeps up on you.
3. The news took me by surprise.
4. The fire ran wild.
5. The thunder clapped angrily in the distance.
6. The tornado ran through town without a care.
7. The door protested as it opened slowly.
8. The evil tree was lurking in the shadows.

Symbolism


E.g. Time is money, Life is a roller-coaster, He is a rock, Love is a jewel


Imagery

E.g.  

• Her blue eyes were as bright as the Sun, blue as the sky, but soft as silk.
• The music coursed through us, shaking our bodies as if it came from within us.
• The giant tree was ablaze with the orange, red, and yellow leaves that were beginning to make their decent to the ground.

Free Verse

E.g. 

Samson Agonistes by Milton

But patience is more oft the exercise

Of Saints, the trial of their fortitude,

Making them each his own Deliver,

And Victor over all

That tyranny or fortune can inflict.

Allusion

E.g. 

• He was a real Romeo with the ladies
• Chocolate was her Achilles’ heel