In the City: New Zealand Short Stories

In the City: New Zealand Short Stories Literary Features Learn the names and explanations of some figures of speech, sound devices and vocabulary and grammatical devices used in short stories. You could photocopy these onto cards and make up a matching game to learn them.

Name Explanation Example Simile Describing something by Tim eats like a horse comparing it to something else which has the same qualities by using ‘as’ or ‘like’ Metaphor Describing something by His words stabbed at my comparing it to something heart else which has the same qualities but without using the words ‘as’ or ‘like’ Personification A type of metaphor where A car screamed at her human characteristics are heels given to an inanimate object Colloquial language Casual or informal Young fulla, screwball language Repetition Repetition of the same Let’s go to the pub. Let’s word or phrase go to a party. Let’s just go somewhere. Choice of vocabulary Sometimes the author may A man in a fish shop use simple (childlike) swung his cleaver and cut vocabulary or highly off the huge, gaping head descriptive vocabulary. of the scaly, grey fish. Adjectives, adverbs and verbs help to describe something or someone vividly Idioms Phrases or sayings that are Early bird catches the commonly used in a worm(=If you get up early language to express certain you will be able to achieve ideas more) Minor sentences An incomplete sentence Even an old man like him, which cannot stand on it’s but not what you would own (may be missing a call properly old. subject or a verb) Simple sentences A sentence with one clause He turned. – usually just one subject and one verb Onomatopoeia A word which suggests its Splash, rattle, crash, boom meaning by the sound it makes Alliteration Repetition of initial A lovely lady looked consonant sounds lovingly at me Assonance Repetition of vowel My father’s car is a jaguar sounds in a group of words Swearing Rough language, usually Damn bitch used in anger Direct speech What the characters - Pera, no, mum pleaded. actually say – usually - He needs a lesson, Uncle within speech marks, but Pera answered. sometimes there are none

Unconventional Sometimes unconventional These were probably left punctuation or unusual punctuation is out for a purpose. used to create a certain effect In the quotation above there are no speech marks or exclamation marks.