DIDLS (Diction Imagery Detail Language Syntax)

Personal pronouns

"I," "we," "us" creates a sense of unity and/ or connection

Second person pronouns

"You"- can create distance from subject and audience or connect the experience/context of speech to the audience. Also can place the reader in the situation.

Connotative

Words that carry significant connotation (associations, emotions, suggestive meaning)

Imperative sentence

a command or request

Interrogative sentence

a question

Periodic sentence

a sentence where the main clause is at the end. Often provides emphasis on the last point

Formal

conventional language; appropriate; not conversational

Informal

conversational

Jargon

language of a particular profession or study

Imagery

language that appeals to the senses. It aims to evoke specific feelings and reactions from the reader/ audience, and can come in many forms. Similes, metaphors, hyperbole all create images.

Scholarly

language that can be considered academic

Folksy

language that has the characteristic of a certain culture

Detached

language that indicates separation from the speaker to the subject

Plain

language that is easy to understand; clear, simple

Emotional

language that is full of feeling

Evasive

language that tries to avoid blame and/ or the subject

Colloquial

language used in more familiar settings; ordinary speech

Figurative

not literal; meaning different than the literal definition

Passive voice

object appears a subject

Antithesis

parallel structure with contrasting ideas or images

Juxtaposition

placing two things side by side to highlight the contrast/comparison. Speakers can juxtaposed ideals, actions, objects, etc. for effect

Euphonious

pleasant in sound

Harsh sounding

rough is sound; opposite of euphonious = cacophonous

Syntax

sentence structure, specifically how the words are arranged for a specific purpose.

Declarative sentence

sentence that makes a statement (declaring something)

Active voice

subject comes before verb

Diction

the author's (or speaker's) choice of words for effect. Yes, every author uses words, but it's the specific choice of words that matters here. Look for patterns in the kinds of words authors use. Some types of diction are as follows: personal pronouns, second person pronouns, connotative, euphemistic, colloquial, formal, euphonious, harsh sounding, informal, jargon, suggestive.

Parallel structure

the repetition of a specific pattern in a sentence

Language

this is a big one. It is a bit different than diction. While in diction you look at specific words, this is about larger chunks of the piece. Colloquial, informal, jargon, euphemistic, connotative, formal, cacophonous, euphonious terms still apply here. Some additional words to describe this are as follows: evasive, figurative, sarcastic, detached, emotional, scholarly, folksy, plain, and slang.

Slang

very informal and often connected to a specific situation or group of people (e.g. soldier's slang)

Sarcastic

when a writer mocks a subject by stating the opposite

Repetition

when a writer repeats a word, phrase, sentence, or idea

Polysyndeton

when the author/ speaker uses multiple conjunctions when not grammatically necessary. Often this creates a sense of abundance.

loose/ cumulative sentence

when the main clause is followed by phrases or subordinate clauses

Suggestive

word choice that suggests or implies an idea

Euphemistic

words that make light of harsher realities