The Marks and Modes of LiteraturePART 1

Marks of Great Literature

concepts found in all great literature - building blocks; basic

I. theme - recurring or emerging ideas in a work; life truth the author is trying to communicate

I. Imaginative Comparison and Sound & Syntax

A. Imaginative comparison - figurative language - describing "things" in new and different ways

B. Sound - the way words sound; repetition;pleasing-sounding words; harsh, discordant words

C. Syntax - order of words, phrases, sentences, ideas

II. Organization of Sound & Syntax

A. Less obvious than figurative language

B. Syntax - revealed through repetition & parallelism

Ex: "A penny saved is a penny earned. -Ben Franklin

S & V

repetition: penny

parallelism: penny saved penny earned

C. Sound -

euphony - words that are pleasant & musical to the ear

Ex: "Calm as the sea, the waves working less and less." - Surrey

cacophony - words that sound harsh or discordant; require lips, tongue, & teeth to do more work

Ex: "Grate on their scrannel pipes of wretched straw." - "Lycidas" (Milton)

III. Biblical Illustration - Gen 2:23 - write this poem in your notes

This is now bone of my bone,

And flesh of my flesh:

She shall be called woman Because she was taken out

of man.

IV. Allusion, Symbol, Irony -

A. modes of expressing theme, figurative language, & sound & syntax

B. all 3 add layers of meaning beyond the actual written words

NOTE: the extent to which these marks & modes are used determine the poetic level of literature

NOTE: the extent to which these marks & modes are used determine the poetic level of literature

artful literature arranged in rhythmic (sometimes rhyming as well) lines is poetry

literature not rhythmic or rhyming is prose - figurative language, sound, syntax, allusion, symbol, & irony still important in prose