The Liar Literary Elements

The Liar Literary Elements

Genre

Poem

Setting and Context

Written in the concept of self-deception

Narrator and Point of View

First-person narrative

Tone and Mood

The tone is incredulous, and the mood is fearful.

Protagonist and Antagonist

The speaker/Amiri is the protagonist.

Major Conflict

There is a conflict between an individual self-understanding and societal perception and understanding.

Climax

The climax comes when the speaker questions the contemptuous substance in his life.

Foreshadowing

His identity crisis foreshadows the speaker's fear and confusion.

Understatement

Societal impact in one’s life is understated. For instance, the speaker’s confusion and identity crisis are linked to his societal perception.

Allusions

The poem alludes to self-deception and identity crisis.

Imagery

The images for black power and equality depict the sense of sight to readers.

Paradox

The main paradox is that when the speaker thinks deeply about his ego, he takes his life for granted.

Parallelism

There is parallelism between societal perception and an individual’s self-understanding.

Metonymy and Synecdoche

N/A

Personification

N/A

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