Shared Flashcard Set

Details

Lit Terms 1
first 100 words of Ms. Buchanan's Lit term list
112
Literature
12th Grade
08/19/2010

Additional Literature Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Allegory
Definition
using character and/or story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literary meaning
Term
Alliteration
Definition
repetition of initial consonant sounds
Term
Allusion
Definition
direct or indirect reference to something which is commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art
Term
Ambiguity
Definition
allowing multiple meanings to exist
Term
anachronism
Definition
assignment of something to a time when it was not in existence
Term
Anagnorisis
Definition
In Greek drama, a startling discovery; moment of epiphany; time of revelation when a character discovers his true identity
Term
Analogy
Definition
similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them
Term
Anaphora
Definition
repetition of a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of word groups occurring one after the other
Term
Anecdote
Definition
short narrative detailing an interesting episode or event
Term
Antagonist
Definition
rival, opponent, or enemy of the protagonist
Term
Antithesis
Definition
a statement in which two opposing ideas are balanced
Term
Aphorism
Definition
brief statement of known authorship which expresses a general truth or a moral principle
Term
Apostrophe
Definition
figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or a personified abstraction, such as liberty or love (address to someone or something that can't answer)
Term
Archetype
Definition
image, descriptive detail, character type that evokes a universal response
Term
Aside
Definition
dramatic convention by which an actor speaks directly to the audience or to another character but is not supposed to be heard by the other actors on the stage
Term
Assonance
Definition
repetition of vowel sounds but not consonant sounds
Term
Asyndeton
Definition
use of words or phrases in a series without connectives such as "and" or "so"
Term
Atmosphere
Definition
emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work
Term
Aubade
Definition
joyful song about dawn and its beauty; morning serenade
Term
Ballad
Definition
form of narrative poetry with set rhythm, rhyme scheme, and refrain
Term
Literary ballad
Definition
ballad composed by a known author
Term
Folk ballad
Definition
ballad composed by an anonymous author
Term
Blank verse
Definition
poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter
Term
Bathos
Definition
insincere or overly sentimental quality of writing/speech intended to provoke pity
Term
Burlesque
Definition
literary work, film, or stage production that mocks a person, a place, a thing, or an idea by using wit, irony, hyperbole, sarcasm, and/or understatement
Term
Caesura
Definition
pause in verse dictated by a sense of natural speech rather than meter
Term
Canon
Definition
complete works of an author
Term
Canto
Definition
major division of an epic poem
Term
Carpe Diem
Definition
"seize the day"
Term
Catalog
Definition
list of people, things, or attributes
Term
Catharsis
Definition
a purification of emotions
Term
Characterization
Definition
creation of imaginary persons so that they seem lifelike
Term
Direct characterization
Definition
author explicitly presents the character
Term
Indirect characterization
Definition
actions and emotions of character allow reader to make assumptions
Term
Static
Definition
character who does not change much in the course of a story
Term
Dynamic
Definition
character who changes as a result of the story's events
Term
Chiaroscuro
Definition
technique of using light and dark imagery in a literary work
Term
Chiasmus
Definition
pattern in which the second part is balanced against the first but with the parts structurally reversed
Term
Cliche
Definition
expression so often used that its freshness and clarity have worn off
Term
Climax
Definition
highest point of interest or action in a story
Term
Colloquial/colloquialism
Definition
use of slang or informalities in speech or writing - give a work a conversational, familiar tone - include local or regional dialects
Term
Comedy
Definition
humorous play that has a happy ending
Term
Comedy of manners
Definition
comedy that ridicules the manners of a certain segment of society
Term
Conceit
Definition
extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects; displays intellectual cleverness as a result of the unusual comparison being made - may be a brief metaphor or the framework of the entire poem
Term
Conflict
Definition
struggle or clash between opposing characters or opposing forces
Term
Connotation
Definition
emotional implications and associations of words - may be private and personal, group (national, linguistic, racial), or universal
Term
Couplet
Definition
two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme
Term
Denotation
Definition
dictionary definition of a word, devoid of emotion, attitude, or color
Term
Denoument
Definition
outcome or resolution of the plot, occurring after the climax
Term
Denoument
Definition
outcome or resolution of the plot, occurring after the climax
Term
Deus ex machina
Definition
contrived event in a literary work or film; a plot weakness in which a writer makes up an incident
Term
Dialect
Definition
way of speaking that is particular to a certain region or a certain group of people
Term
diction
Definition
writer's word choice
Term
didactic
Definition
works designed to teach or instruct, especially moral or ethical principles
Term
dissonance
Definition
harsh, inharmonious, or discordant sounds
Term
doggerel
Definition
trivial or bad poetry
Term
doppelganger
Definition
in folklore, the spirit double of a living person
Term
double entendre
Definition
statement that is deliberately ambiguous, one of whose meanings is risque or suggestive
Term
drama
Definition
literature written to be performed
Term
dramatic monologue
Definition
poem that reveals "a soul in action" through the speech of one character in a dramatic situation
Term
dramatis personae
Definition
list of the characters in a play
Term
dramatic poetry
Definition
poetry which includes elements of drama
Term
elegiac
Definition
tone of lamentation or commemoration for the dead
Term
elegy
Definition
formal lament, either for a dead person, or as an expression of a tragic sense of life
Term
ellipsis
Definition
omission of word or phrase which is grammatically necessary but can be deduced from the context
Term
enjambment
Definition
continuation of the sense of grammatical construction of a line on the next verse or couplet
Term
epic
Definition
long story told in the elevated language of poetry which relates the great deeds of a larger-than-life hero who embodies the values of a particular society
Term
primary epic
Definition
anonymous authors
Term
secondary epic
Definition
know authors
Term
epic simile
Definition
more involved and ornate simile which extends through several lines of an epic
Term
epic invocation
Definition
epic convention in which speaker appeals to the muses
Term
epigram
Definition
brief, pithy, and often paradoxical saying expressing a universal truth in a few words
Term
epigraph
Definition
quotation at the beginning of a poem, short story, book chapter, or other piece of literature which introduces or refers to the larger themes of the piece
Term
epistolary novel
Definition
novel in which a character or characters tells the story through letters (epistles) sent to a friend, relative, etc.
Term
epithalamion
Definition
lyric poem in honor of a bride, bridegroom, or both
Term
epiphany
Definition
point at which the essential nature of something is suddenly perceived (intuitive gasp of reality)
Term
epitaph
Definition
inscription used to mark burial places
Term
epithet
Definition
adjective used to point out a characteristic of a person or thing
Term
euphemism
Definition
less offensive substitutes for a generally unpleasant word or comment ("earthly remains" rather than corpse)
Term
expletive
Definition
interjection to lend emphasis; sometimes, a profanity
Term
exposition
Definition
in plot, the background information
Term
extended metaphor
Definition
metaphor developed at great length in a literary work
Term
fabliaux
Definition
humorous tale popular in medieval times - often bawdy, dealing familiarly with clergy, ridiculing womanhood, and easily understandable
Term
fable
Definition
brief story that leads to a moral, often using animals as characters
Term
fabulist
Definition
author of fables
Term
farce
Definition
humorous play based on a silly plot, ridiculous situations and comic dialogue
Term
figurative language
Definition
language using one or more figures of speech; not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid
Term
figure of speech
Definition
device used to produce figurative language
Term
flashback
Definition
scene which breaks into a story to show earlier part of the action
Term
Foil
Definition
secondary character who contrasts with a major character
Term
foreshadowing
Definition
hint of things to come
Term
frame story
Definition
story within a story
Term
free verse
Definition
poetry that does not have a regular meter or rhyme scheme
Term
gasconade
Definition
excessive boasting; incessant bragging
Term
genre
Definition
major category into which a literary work fits
Term
prose
Definition
fiction (short stories, novels) and nonfiction (biographies, autobiographies)
Term
poetry
Definition
lyric, dramatic, narrative, epic, etc.
Term
drama
Definition
tragedy, comedy, melodrama, farce, etc.
Term
gothic
Definition
style of writing marked by magic, supernatural, mystery; horrors abound!
Term
hamartia
Definition
serious character flaw of the main character (protagonist) of a Greek tragedy.
Term
hautboys
Definition
stage directions in a play manuscripts indicating that entering characters are playing hautboys (OH bwah), which are Elizabethan oboes
Term
heroic couplet
Definition
rhymed couplets in iambic pentameter
Term
high comedy
Definition
comedy that relies on wit and subtle irony or sarcasm. usually focuses on the everyday life of upper class. generally verbal rather than physical.
Term
homily
Definition
sermon or moralistic lecture
Term
hubris
Definition
excessive pride
Term
hyperbole
Definition
deliberate exaggeration or overstatement
Term
idyll
Definition
short lyric poem usually about shepherds
Term
imagery
Definition
sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions
Term
in medias res
Definition
latin phrase for in the middle of things. it means that a story begins in the middle of the part, usually at an exciting part
Term
internal rhyme
Definition
rhyme which occurs within one line of a poem
Term
invective
Definition
intensely vehement, highly emotional verbal attack
Term
inversion
Definition
reversal of the normal word order of a sentence
Supporting users have an ad free experience!