Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS):
5.10.G
explain the purpose of hyperbole, stereotyping, and anecdote.
5th Grade Reading - Literary and Rhetorical Devices Lesson
Literary & Rhetorical Devices
Literary and rhetoricaldevices* are specific ways that authors use language to achieve certain effects.
In stories and poems, literarydevices include sounddevices (alliteration, onomatopoeia, assonance) and figurativelanguage (simile, metaphor, personification) that create effects and emotional meaning for the reader.
In argumentative and persuasive writing, rhetoricaldevices include the same types of devices, but with the purpose of convincing readers to adopt a viewpoint or attitude.
The purpose of hyperbole is to get noticed. When an author uses hyperbole, he or she wants to emphasize a point. It is not meant to be taken literally.
Example:
Meaning: It seems like a long time until the weekend will be here.
Purpose: To emphasize how much the speaker or writer wants the weekend to come and how far into the future it feels to him or her.
Anecdote
An anecdote is a short, interesting story about an incident from the past.
The purpose of telling an anecdote could be —
to introduce a topic in an interesting or funny way;
to makeapoint relevant to a current topic of discussion;
to connect with readers or listeners who may have had similar experiences.
Look for phrases like, "I remember when..." and "When I was younger..." to introduce an anecdote.
In storytelling and persuasive writing, stereotyping is often used as a shortcut to quickly connect readers or viewers to certain ideas:
EXAMPLE: An advertisement might use a spokesperson, pictures, and words that associate either boys or girls with certain activities and products to try to connect with viewers and/or readers and make them want to buy their products.
EXAMPLE: Writers of stories may use "stock characters"—the wise old man, the evil stepmother, the absent-minded professor—as a shortcut to character development because readers have come to associate these characters with specific personalities and characteristics.
*REMEMBER: It is inappropriate, inaccurate, and hurtful to portray or judge real people based on stereotypes. Nevertheless, it is important to recognize stereotypes.