A trope is a recurring motif in literature, TV, or cinema. 

Purple prose is deliberately ornate writing, defined by a mastery of poetic cadence.

Free verse relies on the cadences of modern speech instead of formal poetic conventions.

Tone and mood are responsible for establishing “the atmosphere” in a piece of writing.

A cliche is a phrase that has often been expressed before and is unoriginal and uninteresting.

Personification attributes human characteristics to non-human entities.

Pathetic fallacy attributes human emotion to nature, inanimate objects, or animals.

A double entendre involves using words with two meanings, one of which is typically sexual.

A pun is a literary device that suggests two or more meanings for a word, typically for humorous effect. 

A motif occurs repeatedly within a particular story and supports the story’s underlying themes.

Antithesis features a close juxtaposition of ideas usually in a parallel construction. 

A paradox seems contradictory at first but makes logical sense upon further consideration.

Satire is a genre of literature that focuses on ridiculing persons, institutions, or ideas.

A parody imitates, comments on, or mocks other works of art, typically with satirical intent. 

Sarcasm involves using words in such a way that they mean the opposite of what is said.

Sailing to Byzantium celebrates spiritual life through the medium of art.

Sibilance refers to the repetition of close "s" sounds in writing.

"Snake" by D. H. Lawerence perfectly matches form with function.

Bright Star by John Keats juxtaposes spiritual asceticism with sensual devotion to one's lover.

“When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer” is a poem by Walt Whitman, where the poet is confronted by and reacts to scientific attitudes regarding the study of the stars.  Before advancements in astronomy and the telescope, which allowed scientists to determine the geography of the stars or planets in relation to the Earth, the stars were treated as mystical and romantic.  With the new scientific knowledge and understanding that emerged in Walt Whitman’s time in the nineteenth cen