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Prose uses stylistic techniques such as simile, metaphor, motifs, and irony to add depth and character to the story. Simile and metaphor are the most common techniques, while motifs are recurring themes and irony occurs when the reader expects one situation but another occurs.
Writing prose involves more than just recording events as they happen or telling a simple story. Stylistic techniques are sometimes used in prose to add depth and character to the story. Perhaps the two most common techniques are the use of simile and metaphor, although there are other techniques as well. Motifs are important in both fiction and non-fiction, as is the use of irony. Fiction tends to adhere to a plot structure which helps guide the story in a logical way, although techniques such as frame stories and flashbacks can be used to alter the plot structure.
Similarities are comparisons between unrelated ideas, people, or objects. The comparison will include the words “like” or “like” to draw attention to the comparison. This is one of the most used stylistic techniques in prose because it is logical, easy to recognize and often liberating for the writer: he can use figurative language without having to hide its meaning or mask the technique. A simile might read something like this:
“The truck came hurtling down the street like a fastball heading for the catcher’s mitt.”
The use of metaphors is also one of the most common stylistic techniques in prose, and is similar to a simile in that it compares two people, places, things, ideas, actions, and so on. Metaphors don’t use the words “like” or “like” in them, however, and they can be a little harder to spot. An example of a metaphor might read something like this:
“Bill’s apartment was cavernous.”
The comparison is made between the apartment and a cave, but it is made more subtly than a simile would have structured it.
Motifs are recurring themes in a story or text. This is one of the more difficult stylistic prose techniques to recognize, as the reader must be astute enough to catch the recurring theme or event. A character in a story might, for example, have a habit of touching his nose whenever he lies. This is considered a motif that is indicative of a repetition in history. The astute reader will begin to understand that the character is lying because he touched his nose.
Irony occurs when the reader expects one situation or event, but another occurs. There are three general types of irony: verbal, situational, and dramatic. Using these techniques well can be tricky, and an ironic situation may not present itself until the end of a story, making it exceptionally difficult to spot until after the story is over.
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