In rhetoric, a scheme is a type of literary device that relies on the structure of a whole sentence, unlike a "trope", figurative wording that plays with the meanings of words. (Scheme, in poetry end rhetorics)
A single phrase may involve both a trope and a scheme, e.g., may use both alliteration and allegory.
Structures of balance Parallelism – The use of similar structures in two or more clauses Isocolon – Use of parallel structures of the same length in successive clauses Tricolon – Use of three parallel structures of the same length in independent clauses and of increasing power Antithesis – The juxtaposition of opposing or contrasting ideas Climax – The arrangement of words in order of increasing importance
Changes in word order Anastrophe – Inversion of the usual word order Parenthesis – Insertion of a clause or sentence in a place where it interrupts the natural flow of the sentence Apposition – The placing of two elements side by side, in which the second defines the first
Omission Ellipsis – Omission of words Asyndeton – Omission of conjunctions between related clauses Brachylogia – Omission of conjunctions between a series of words
Repetition Alliteration – A series of words that begin with the same letter or sound alike Anaphora – The repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginning of successive clauses Anadiplosis – Repetition of a word at the end of a clause at the beginning of another Antanaclasis – Repetition of a word in two different senses Antimetabole – Repetition of words in successive clauses, in reverse order Assonance – The repetition of vowel sounds, most commonly within a short passage of verse Asyndeton – Lack of conjunctions Chiasmus – Reversal of grammatical structures in successive clauses Climax – Repetition of the scheme anadiplosis at least three times, with the elements arranged in an order of increasing importance Epanalepsis – Repetition of the initial word or words of a clause or sentence at the end of the clause or sentence Epistrophe – The counterpart of anaphora: the repetition occurs at the end of successive clauses. Consonance – The repetition of consonant sounds without the repetition of the vowel sounds Polyptoton – Repetition of words derived from the same root Polysyndeton – Repetition of conjunctions Symploce – Combination of anaphora and epistrophe
See also Trope (linguistics) The Elements of Eloquence Glossary of rhetorical terms
References
External links Schemes from Silva Rhetoricae