KEY TERM!
LITERARY, POETIC & DRAMATIC DEVICES
The word 'device' is often used in literature and drama studies and it seems an odd word to use. A 'device' just means a way of using language to create a particular kind of effect on a reader - one that will help the reader understand the messages or purposes of the writing.

Literary devices include choices available to a writer as the creation of realistic and believable characters through the use of characterisation, the use of dialogue to mimic real speech, the creation of setting that evokes a believable sense of place and sets a certain mood; other literary devices include the use of figurative language (e.g. the use of metaphor, simile and personification) to achieve a heightened level of description by creating a vivid image or feeling in the mind of the reader or audience.

Poetic devices include the use of metaphors to create imagery, the use of rhyme (perhaps to suggest harmony), the use of alliteration, and so on.

Dramatic devices include the use of asides, soliloquies, costume, dramatic irony, props and so on.