English terminology

Rhetorical devices

Sonic devices

Alliteration is the repetition of the sound of an initial consonant or consonant cluster in subsequent syllables.

Assonance is the repetition of similar vowel sounds across neighbouring words.

Onomatopoeia is the use of words that attempt to emulate a sound.

Word repetitions

Anaphora is a repetition of the same word(s) at the beginning of successive sentences, phrases or clauses.

Anadiplosis involves repeating the last word(s) of one sentence, phrase or clause at or near the beginning of the next.

Epizeuxis is simply a repetition of the same word without interruption.

Word relation

Antithesis combines two opposite ideas in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect. Contrast is emphasised by parallel but similar structures of the opposing phrases or clauses to draw the listeners' or readers' attention.

Asyndeton is the removal of conjunctions like "or", "and", or "but", where it might have been expected because the sentence flows better, or more poetically, without them.

Auxesis is arranging words in a list from least to most significant

Oxymoron is a 2-word paradox often achieved through the deliberate use of antonyms.

Euphemism is a substitution of an agreeable or at least non-offensive expression for one whose plainer meaning might be harsh or unpleasant.

Malapropism is misusing words, especially by confusing words that are similar in sound, often for a comical effect.

Portmanteau is a combination of two or more words to create a new word

Discourse level

Hyperbole is a deliberate exaggeration.

Litotes is a deliberate downplaying.

Narration and Style

Metaphor connects two different things. It is frequently invoked by the to be a verb.

Personification represents animals, inanimate objects and ideas as having human attributes.

Simile compares two things that resemble each other in at least one way using like or as to explain the comparison—for example, the as... as construction as compared to metaphor which is direct equivalence.

Metonymy is a figure of speech where a thing or concept is referred to indirectly by the name of an attribute or adjunct for that of the thing meant.

Pun is a use of a word which has two meanings at the same time, resulting in humour.

Allegory is a form of extended metaphor in which objects, persons and actions in a narrative are equated with meanings that lie outside the narrative itself. Thus, an allegory is a story with two meanings, a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning.

Allusion is a brief reference to a person, event or place, actual or fictitious, or to a work of art.

Archetype is an object or situation as it was originally made, its first version, often a cliché. The Odyssey is full of archetypes; Odysseus is the archetypal hero, Hydra and the Cyclops are archetypal monsters, etc.

Juxtaposition or contrast is two ideas, themes or characters compared to each other to highlight differences.

Foreshadowing is hints or clues to indicate what is to come in the story.

Irony is an implied discrepancy between what is said and what is meant. There are three types of irony:

1. Verbal irony is when an author says one thing and means something else.

2. Dramatic irony is when an audience perceives something that a character does not know.

3. Situational irony is a discrepancy between the expected result and the actual result.

Parody is an imitation of a work, person, subject or another target that exaggerates certain qualities for comical effect.

Satire is an object or action used to mean something other/more than its literal meaning.

Tone is a writer's attitude towards a subject or character: serious, humorous, sarcastic, ironic, satirical, tongue-in-cheek, solemn, or objective. Similar to mood.

Comic strip terminology

Definitions of features

Panel refers to the framed image. It offers the reader a perspective or point of view on the subjects, also known as the camera angle. Sometimes panels do not have borders, creating a unique effect where the subject stands outside the storyline.

A splash is a kind of panel that spans the width of the page. It is known as a ‘bleed’ if it runs off the page entirely.

Narrators can speak directly to the reader through a voice-over. Usually, this is done with a hard line separating the narrator’s speech at the top or bottom of a panel from the image within the panel.

Speech bubbles are frames around the characters’ language, a kind of ‘direct speech’ where the characters speak for themselves. If these appear as clouds, they represent the character’s thoughts. If they appear in jagged lines, the character is shouting.

Emanata refers to the teardrops, sweat drops, question marks, or motion lines that artists draw beside characters’ faces to portray emotion. Gutter refers to the space between panels. Readers tend to ‘fill in the blanks’ and imagine what happens between panels, a process known as ‘closure’.

More aspects to consider

Style - The artist’s drawing style can be discussed using several terms. Scott McCloud, in Understanding Comics, shows that there are four ‘scales’ of style: complex to simple, realistic to iconic, objective to subjective, and specific to universal.

Colour – An author's colours will also affect the reader’s experience.

Narration – Keep in mind that comic books allow the writer to show and tell simultaneously, meaning there can be a combination of direct and indirect narration.

Time – Graphic novels and comic books do not have to tell a story linearly. Besides using transitions between panels, artists can explore multiple moments in one panel, like a collage.

Graphic weight – This term discusses the amount of contrast in an image. Are blacks offset with whites? Are there many shades of grey in between? Concerning colour images, one can look for the degree to which colours are vivid or opaque.

Foreground – Where is the reader's subject or point of focus? If the subject seems closer to the reader, in the front of the scene depicted, it stands in the ‘foreground’.

Midground – If the subject stands in the middle of the depicted scene, then there it is in the middle. Placing a subject off-centre can also be used to create visual tension.

Background – The objects in the background (not usually the subject) help add contextual information for the reader.

Camera angle – If the panel were a photograph, where would the camera stand about its subject? How far away from the subject is the camera? Is it a long shot, medium shot or close-up? At what angle is the camera pitched? Is it a bird’s eye view, a high angle, eye-level, or a low angle? All of this will affect the reader’s understanding of the subject.

Transitions - There are six types of transitions that artists use in comic books, all of which affect the reader differently. Transitions refer to the process of closure (where the reader mentally ‘fills in the gaps’) in the gutter between panels.