Published: July 8, 2024 | Last Updated: July 4, 2026
If you also get confused by all the categories of literary terms, you’re not alone. Some of the confusion stems from the fact that some terms may fall into several categories.
In this article, I hope to clear up some of that confusion and explain the difference between a figure of speech, a literary device, and a rhetorical device.
Rhetorical devices, literary devices, and figures of speech are related but distinct concepts, each with a specific focus and usage.
In Table 1, you can see a breakdown to differentiate them:
| Term | Definition | Scope | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Literary Device | A broad term that covers various techniques used by writers to create meaning, tell stories, and evoke emotions. | Includes narrative techniques, structural elements, and stylistic devices. | Plot, character development, foreshadowing, symbolism, irony, and imagery. |
| Rhetorical Device | A technique specifically used in writing or speaking to persuade, influence, or please an audience. | A subset of literary devices focused on persuasion and effective communication. | Anaphora, antithesis, rhetorical questions, ethos, pathos, and logos. |
| Figure of Speech | A specific type of literary device that involves the use of language in a non-literal or imaginative way. | A subset of literary devices focused on stylistic and expressive language use. | Metaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, and alliteration. |
Relationship and Comparison
Literary Devices are the broadest category, including all techniques used to enhance writing and a wide range of techniques used to create engaging and meaningful texts.
Rhetorical devices are a subset of literary devices aimed at persuasion and effective communication. They are specifically geared towards persuasion and effective communication within literary devices.
Figures of Speech are a subset of literary devices (and sometimes rhetorical devices) that involve creative and non-literal language use. Depending on their usage, they are stylistic tools that fall under both literary and rhetorical devices.
So, while these terms overlap and are interrelated, they each serve distinct functions within writing and speaking.
Literary vs Rhetorical vs Figurative Device FAQ
What is the difference between a literary device and a rhetorical device?
Literary devices shape storytelling and meaning (foreshadowing, symbolism, metaphor), while rhetorical devices are techniques of persuasion in speech and argument (ethos, anaphora, rhetorical questions). Many overlap.
What is a figurative device?
A type of literary device that uses non-literal language — metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole — to create imagery or deeper meaning.
Is a metaphor a literary or rhetorical device?
Both. It is a figurative literary device, and it is also used rhetorically to persuade; the categories overlap depending on purpose.
Why do the categories overlap?
Because the same tool can serve different ends: repetition can build poetic rhythm (literary) or hammer home an argument (rhetorical).
Do you need to know the categories to use them?
No — the labels help analysis, but in practice writers choose devices for their effect, not their category.
Read Next: The screenwriter’s toolkit of Literary Devices and Elements
