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JCE PAPER 3 REVISION

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POETIC FIGURES OF SPEECH

We use fi gures of Speech t o creat e images or mind- pict ures in order t o express
ourselves visually, imaginat ively and power f ully.
Language may be used t o eit her in lit eral or fi gurat ive sense.
Lit eral language is f act ual
Ngwedi’s boyf riend broke his leg. (The accident lit erally/act ually occurred)

Figurat ive language nakes use of comparisons and suggest ive ideas.
Ngwedi’s boyf riend broke her hear t . (This is fi gurat ive language, suggest ing t hat she is
hear t broken.)

FI GURES OF SPEECH ARE COMMONLY CLASSI FI ED AS FOLLOWS:

1. COMPARISONS
These are used t ocompare t wo object s (animat e or inanimat e) in a direct or indirect
ways. Of t en an expressive phrase replaces simple adject ive or adverb.

FI GURE OF SPEECH FUNCTI ON

a. SI MI LE
A simile is a direct comparison t hat always
cont ains t he words as or like.

● To give a vivid sense or image of

Examples what is being described.
i. The room was as quit e as a mouse.

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ii. Her dress f lowed behind her like a river

b. METAPHOR
● To explain relat ionships (e.g. use
somet hing t hat is already
A fi gure of speech in which t wo unrelat ed t hings
underst ood t o explain what is not )
which share t he same qualit ies are compared by
calling one t hing direct ly as anot her.
● To enhance emot ion
Examples
i. His garden was jungle of weeds
● To appeal t o t he senses of t he
reader t o underst and what is
ii. The clouds are balls of cot t on
being said.

c. PERSONI FI CATI ON

A fi gure of speech in which non- human t hings ● To emphasize a t heme

(e.g. a t hing, an animal et c) are given human
qualit ies. ● To underst and and explore
relat ions bet ween t hings by giving
t hem a human perspect ive.
Examples
i. The sun woke up on Tuesday

ii. The goat laughed hear t ily

2. SOUND DEVICES

FI GURE OF SPEECH FUNCTI ON

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a. ALLITERATI ON
The repet it ion of consonant sounds at t he
beginning of words.
● Creat es a musician/rhyt hmical
Examples
ef f ect
i. Foot ball f ever f uels f ans.
ii. Bumble bee is ver y busy.
● Creat es a f low in t he poem

● Creat es mood

b. ASSONANCE
Assonance is t he repet it ion of vowel sounds.
● To give a poem a musical ef f ect
Examples
i. She cried and t ried t o bit e me
● To provide a cer t ain f eeling or
mood.
ii. Clap your hands and st amp your f eet !

c. Onomat opoeia

Onomat opoeia uses words t hat imit at e and

reproduce real- lif e sounds and act ions t hey
● To visualize what is happening
describe.

● To hear t he sounds being described

Examples
i. The sky exploded wit h a crash, bang
and a hissing of fi reworks.
ii. The lion roared. ● Adds humour t o a poem.
iii. The wat er dripped f rom t he t ap.

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d. RHYME
Words wit h corresponding or similar sounds
are placed at t he ends of t he lines in a poem.
Rhyme depends on sound, rat her t han writ t en
word. ● Rhyme is used f or ef f ect

● I t is used t o give a poem a musical

Examples ef f ect
i. You will not laugh
I f you only get half
● Gives t he poem f orm or st ruct ure

● Makes t he poem pleasurable t o

ii. She carries so much weight hear
No wonder she’s always lat e

iii. I am cer t ain t hat t his cur t ain

Was damaged in t he rain again.

3. CONTRADICTIONS
These are fi gures of speech t hat appear t o cont ain conf lict ing or opposing ideas.
Figure of speech f unct ion

a. Oxymoron
Opposing words, phrases or lines are placed
next t o each ot her t o reveal a paradox.
● Used f or dramat ic ef f ect

Examples
● Emphasizes conf lict
i. I t hink t his is a really true lie.

● Gives a light mood/enhances mood

ii. The lit t er was a pret t y ugly sight.

iii. The president is f ond of t elling f alse

f acts.

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b. I rony
● Creat es suspense or t ension/
st imulat es st rong emot ions
Words are used t o give t he opposit e of t he
what is said.
● Emphasize an idea
Examples
i. I t is so nice of you t ot ell my secret s. ● I rony helps t o develop reader ’s
int erest ..
ii. He t hinks better than a donkey.

4. Exaggeration
Figure of speech Funct ion

a. Hyperbole
A st at ement or claim is exaggerat ed but it
in not meant t o be t aken lit erally

● To st ress or emphasize an idea

Examples
i. I ’ve been t o your house a million
● To capt ure t he at t ent ion of t he
times.
list ener or reader.

ii. I t was raining cats and dogs.

iii. She prepared enough f ood tof eed

an army.

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Other impor tant fi gures of speech

REPETITION
Defi nit ion: Words, phrases or lines are repeat ed in a poem, eit her on t he same line,
st anza or t hroughout t he poem.
Examples
i. He went round and round in circles

ii. She spoke of love

Love t hat never ends

iii. I could not believe it

That t he day had fi nally come
And I was f lying away
Away t o a place f ar away!
Funct ion
● To emphasize impor t ant ideas or f eelings

● To give t he poem rhyt hm or a musical ef f ect

SYMBOLISM
Defi nit ion: The use of symbols t o represent an idea. A poet can use a word, place, act ion,
person or object as a symbol.
Examples
● I had waited f or all day long
My hear t was in my throat
But when he fi nally came
He clasped a bunch of red roses
And I heard myself breath!
I n t his example, t he hear t in the throat t ells about how t he speaker f elt . I t represent s
t he f eeling of anger
Red roses is also used as symbol. Upon seeing t he red roses, t he speaker f eels
appeased- “she heard herself breat he.” This happens because of t he red roses which
are t radit ionally associat ed wit h or are known t o represent love.

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Funct ion:
● Convey deeper meaning

● Creat es mood/evokes st rong f eelings

Imagery
Defi nition: A t echnique in which living t hings or inanimat e object s are described in a
way t hat appeals t o t he reader ’s senses.
Poet s creat e imager y by using poet ic fi gures of speech like simile, met aphor
personifi cat ion, onomat opoeia et c.
I mager y appeals t o t he fi ve senses: sight , smell, t ouch, hearing and t ast e.

MOOD
Defi nit ion: t he f eeling or emot ion t hat t he reader experiences as t hey read or hear a
poem.
Examples:
● Happy
● Sad
● Sorrowf ul
● Hopef ul
● Romant ic
● Et c
Mood is creat ed t hrough set t ing, t one dict ion and t heme.
Mood creat ed by set t ing
Set t ing ref ers t ot he physical place where event s of t he poem happen. A poem t hat
happens in a dark place would likely produce f ear while t he one t hat happens on a sunny
day would inspire cheerf ulness. A poem t hat happens around st ill wat ers is about calm
while a raging river expresses a mood of discontent.
Mood creat ed by dict ion
The words t he poet chooses t o use creat e a variet y of f eelings f or t he reader. Dict ion
can be used t o creat e f eelings of cont empt , anger et c.
Mood creat ed by t one
Tone is described as t he poet ’s at t it ude t owards t he subject or t heme of t he poem. The
at t it ude or t one can evoke f eelings f or t he reader, t hus creat ing mood.

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What is poet r y?
Poet r y is lit erat ure in which t he poet relat es an idea, express a f eeling, makes a
descript ion or narrat es a st or y in a brief way by paint ing pict ures wit h words by means
of poet ic devices such as fi gurat ive language, rhyt hm and rhyme.
ANALYSI S OF POETRY
1. THEME OR MAI N I DEA
Ever y poem will have a t heme or a main idea.
● Each poem conveys t he messages or int ent ions of t he poet and t hese may be
explicit (obvious) or implicit (implied)
2. FORM
A poem is writ t en in a par t icular f orm.
● Poems are usually writ t en in lines.
● These lines may be grouped int ost anzas(verses)
● Poems do not necessarily have t o be divided int ost anzas and may be writ t en as
single ent it ies.
3. DI CTI ON (WORD CHOI CE): The poet ’s use of words creat es t he mood/at mosphere and
set s t he poem in it s correct t ime and place (cont ext ).
● Word choice also inf luences t he rhyt hm of t he poem.
● The use of repet it ion is also an ef f ect ive device.

4. TONE:
The t one of t he poem will reveal t he poet ’s subject ive views and at t it udes
● Tone helps t o creat e desired mood or at mosphere. This achieved by word choice
as well as by t he rhyt hm and sounds of t he words.
● The t one may be described as f riendly, sharp, sarcast ic, ironic, angr y, humorous,
or condescending.

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5. I MAGERY:
I mager y, of t en involving t he senses, conjures up words pict ures. I t achieves t his
t hrough a combinat ion of lit eral and fi gurat ive language.
● These af f ect s us emot ionally and int ellect ually.
● Poet r y may use met aphors, similes or personalit ies f or comparison.
● The creat ive use of t he sound devices such as allit erat ion, assonance and
onomat opoeia enhances t he imager y of t he poem.
6. RHYTHM
Poet r y of t en has a rhyt hm or a f low. I n t his way, poet r y is similar t o music.
● The rhyt hm set s t he pace of t he poem and should mat ch t he meaning.
● A slow rhyt hm would reinf orce a sombre (sad) and a quicker- paced rhyt hm
could ref lect a happy mood.
● When reading a poem aloud, f eel t he change of pace and how t his af f ect s t he
mood of t he poem.

CLASSIFICATION OF POEMS
Poems comes in dif f erent f orms or t ypes. The f orm of a poem defi nes t he manner in
which t he poet expresses himself and t he meaning t hat is communicat ed.
The f ollowing are some of t he common t ypes of poems t hat are t here;
● Ballad
● Elegy
● Ode
● Lyric
● Sonnet
● Free verse
● Epic
● Narrat ive
● Praise
● Lament
● Lullaby
Why is knowing poem t ypes impor t ant ?
● Helps you t o appreciat e t he poem bet t er.
● I t is easier t o unpack t he t hought s and int ent ions of t he poet when you know
t he t ype of poem you are reading.

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● Helps underst and t he meaning of t he world in t he poem and why t hey have
been used.

NARRATI VE POETRY
A narrat ive poem t ells a st or y.
● I t usually has a beginning, a middle, a climax and a conclusion.
● Direct and narrat ed speech usually make up t he f orm of t his poem.
Ballad
The f ollowing are some of t he t hings t hat would t ell us a poem is a ballad
● Tells a st or y
● Addresses t hem of t ragedy, hardship, hardship and romance or love
● Mood is sad
● Has rhyme scheme
● Has some phrases or lines being repeat ed
● Has shor t st anzas and appears like a song
Elegy
Defi nit ion: A poem t hat ref lect s on t he deat h of a loved one.
The f ollowing f eat ures ident if y as an elegy;
● Has a rhyme scheme
● Themed around deat h or remembrance of t he deceased.

Epic
The Epic is a long, narrat ive poem t elling a st or y of an event a hist orical fi gure, an
ext raordinar y man or woman who f ought against t he gods or super- humans and
changed t he dest iny of his/her nat ion/people.
Feat ures
● Lengt hy
● I nvolves act ions of an ext ra ordinar y person
● Cont est wit h gods or superhuman f orces
● Act ions of charact er shape dest iny of t he people/nat ion
Lyric
Defi nit ion: a kind of poem in which t he speaker expresses personal f eelings using t he

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fi rst person (I)

The t rait s t hat defi ne a lyric poem include:
● A songlike qualit y
● Expression of emot ional and personal f eelings of t he speaker
● Use of t he fi rst person t o narrat e t he poem
Praise/Ode
A poem t hat pays t ribut e t o someone or somet hing
The f ollowing f eat ures describe a praise poe;
● Uses a lot of imager y
● Names someone or even an object or animal f or praise
● Describes past event s t hat have culminat ed in t he current moment
● May also describe physically at t ribut es of person or object being described
Sonnet
Defi nit ion: a f our t een lines poem about love.
The f ollowing f eat ures charact erize a sonnet ;
● About love
● Made up of 14 lines
● Made up of t he oct ave (fi rst 8 lines) conveys t he problem and t he sest et (last 6
lines) t he solut ion
● Consist s of a quest ions and an answer (fi rst 12 lines present and develop t he
problemand t he last t wo lines provide t he solut ion)
Lament
Lament is a f orm of poet r y used t o express grief . I t encompasses element s of
regret or mourning f or somet hing or someone t hat has been lost .
Lullaby
Defi nit ion: a poem used t o put a child t o sleep. Lullaby means “go t o sleep”.
Feat ures
● Usually st ar t wit h lullaby, hush or sleep . . .
● Soot hing in nat ure

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