Stephen King “C.V.” Literary Devices Essay Example

Stephen King, a talented author known for his various novels such as It, The Shining, and Pet Sematary, is no stranger to literary devices. In his memoir On Writing, he includes a short section labeled “C.V.” which reads as a sort of autobiography, recalling memories from his past that influenced the successful man he is today. He uses many literary devices in this section such as hyperbole, simile, and third person limited point of view.

One of the first examples of literary devices used begins on page 23 and includes imagery and hyperbole. King uses vivid imagery to describe the doctor with the needle later struck into his ears, the table he laid down on, and the pain that ensued from the medicine due to an infection. This literary device is used so well that the reader is almost able to feel the pain as well as King. King then uses hyperbole in the form of the exaggerated reaction; “I screamed so long and so loud that I can still hear it. In fact, I think that in some deep valley of my head that last scream is still echoing” (King, 25). Of course, there is no scream echoing in a deep valley of his head, but the dramatization helps the reader feel King’s pain.

The next example of a literary device used is simile. Similar to hyperbole, this turns a simple expression into a vivid image in one’s mind. Later, in his On Writing section of the memoir, King elaborates on how simile and a similar device called metaphor can enhance writing or make it sound ridiculous depending on how far-fetched it is. An example of simile is how “while ‘freshening,’ the print would melt into a vague purple membrane which hung in the jelly like a manatee’s shadow” (43). Just like with the hyperbole, the reader is aware that the membrane is not a manatee’s shadow, but it helps paint a picture in the reader’s head.

The last example of literary devices used in “C.V.” uses a special kind of third person limited point of view. This means the narrator is not a character in the story and has limited access to the feelings and thoughts of all the characters. However, King uses a special kind of third person limited by viewing the scene through a camera lens, a metaphor for the drunken eyes of King. “The camera watches as we go up to the girls’ floor. The camera watches as I am propelled up and down the hall, a kind of rolling exhibit” (88). King uses this sudden change of perspective from the rest of “C.V.” to show that he is so drunk that his memories are hardly seen as his own. 

King, a talented novelist by far, has had his fair share of literary device usage. This is not only used in his novels but also his “C.V.” section about his life. He turns simple phrases into vivid images by exaggerating reality and twisting the truth. This helps to show what is there without stating it in a boring state.