There’s always one book that comes into your mind every time you try to think about all the good books you’ve read. Chances are very high that you remember every detail about the story, whether it was fiction or nonfiction. Now, what makes that book so memorable? It definitely isn’t the story, because there are a lot of good stories from a lot of writers. The main reason you remember that book so much is because you were able to relate and connect with it on a sensory level. This means the book appealed to your five senses. How? Have you ever heard of imagery? Here’s all you need to know about imagery.

The definition of imagery

Imagery is a literary device that uses figurative language or descriptive words to evoke a sensory experience or create a picture in the reader’s mind. Imagery, in other words, triggers the reader to imagine the situation the writer is implying. You now remember how the protagonist in your best story saved someone from a burning house. The writer used very descriptive words and you could see and feel everything in that scene. That’s the power of imagery. As a writer, you can also use imagery to make your work more appealing to your audience. To use imagery, you have to keep the following aspects in mind: Your use of imagery should help to communicate feelings, thoughts, ideas, and actions. Imagery should appeal to the reader’s sense of sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. Using imagery aimlessly in your writing will not bring about the desired effect. It may cause a breakdown in communication between the reader and your work. The overuse of imagery may also result in the same effect.

Examples of sentences in which imagery has been used:

Her words were so hurtful.

Her words felt like a dagger in my heart.

The second sentence appeals to the sense of touch and sight. This effectively creates a picture and the intended feeling to the reader.

The way she took the medicine, I could tell it was bitter.

She puckered her face, squinted her eyes, and pressed her lips together as she took the medicine. I could tell it was bitter.

In the second sentence, the reader can easily tell that the medicine is bitter even without reading the second part of the sentence. The descriptions in the second sentence prompt the reader to picture the reaction someone makes when tasting or taking something sour or bitter.

Examples of imagery in poetry:

“Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more,

Men were deceivers ever,

One foot in sea and one onshore,

To one thing constant never.”

William Shakespeare (Much Ado About Nothing)

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep.”

William Shakespeare (Romeo and Juliet)

Types of Imagery

There are various categories of imagery, depending on the effect a category (of imagery) has on the reader. The examples are:

Tactile imagery (appeals to the reader’s sense of touch)

Olfactory imagery (appeals to the reader’s sense of smell)

Gustatory imagery (appeals to the reader’s sense of taste)

Auditory imagery (appeals to the reader’s sense of hearing)

Visual imagery (appeals to the reader’s sense of sight)

Sources

literarydevices.net/imagery/

https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/imagery
https://literaryterms.net/imagery