In The Flight to Australia', the following line occurs: 'Tier upon tier it towered, the terrible Apennines'. The figure of speech used in this line is known as

Analyze the question The line "Tier upon tier it towered, the terrible Apennines" is from a poem about a flight. We are asked to identify the figure of speech.

Concept

• Alliteration: repetition of the same initial consonant sound in nearby words (e.g. "Peter Piper picked...").
• Litotes: understatement that affirms by negating the opposite (e.g. "not bad" meaning good).
• Exaggeration (hyperbole): deliberate overstatement for effect.
• Parody: a humorous imitation of another work or style.

Solution Look at the sounds in the line:

• "Tier upon tier it towered, the terrible Apennines"

The /t/ sound is repeated at the start of several words: Tier, tier, towered, terrible. This is a clear case of alliteration.

Checking the others:

• Litotes: there is no negated opposite or understatement. The line is dramatic, not understated.
• Exaggeration: the mountains are described as towering in tiers, which is a vivid description of the range rather than an impossible overstatement.
• Parody: nothing here imitates or mocks another work.

Answer

Exam tip For figure-of-speech questions, read the line aloud and listen for repeated sounds first. If you hear the same starting consonant again and again, think alliteration. Also remember that the sound matters, not the spelling.