WGU - Literature terms
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| Understatement | An ironic figure of speech that deliberately described something in a way that is less than the true case.
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| Tone | The attitude toward a subject conveyed in a literary work.
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| Theme | A central idea or statement that unified & controls an entire literary work. Author's way of communicating & sharing ideas, perceptions & feelings.
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| Synecdoche | The use of a significant part of a thing to stand for the whole of it or vice versa.
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| Symbol | A person, place, or thing in a narrative that suggests meanings beyond its literal sense.
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| Style | All the distinctive ways in which an author, genre, movement, or historical period uses language to create the literary work.
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| Soliloquy | In drama, a speech by a character alone onstage in which he or she utters his or her thoughts aloud.
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| Simile | A comparison of two things using a connective word such as "like" or "as".
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| Setting | The time and place of a literary work.
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| Monologue | An extended speech by a single character.
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| Metonymy | Figure of speech in which the name of a thing is substituted for that of another closely associated with it.
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| Metaphor | A statement that one thing is something else, which (in a literal sense) it is not.
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| Irony | A literary device in which a discrepancy or meaning is masked beneath the surface of the language. Saying one thing & meaning another.
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| Moral | A lesson or principle contained in or taught by a fable, a story, or an event.
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| Motif | An element that recurs significantly throughout a narrative.
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| Motivation | What a character in a story or drama wants.
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| Onomatopoeia | A literary device that attempts to represent a thing or action by the word that imitates the sound associated with it.
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| Persona | Latin for "mask". A fictitious character created by an author to be the speaker of a poem, story, or novel.
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| Personification | A figure of speech in which a thing, an animal, or an abstract term is endowed with human characteristics.
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| Denotation | The literal, dictionary meaning of a word.
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| Connotation | An association of additional meaning that a word, image, or phrase may carry, apart from its dictionary definition.
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| Conflict | The central struggle between 2 or more forces in a story.
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| Characterization | The technique a writer uses to create, reveal, or develop the characters in a narrative.
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| Assonance | The repetition of 2 or more vowel sounds in successive words, which creates a kind of rhyme.
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| Aside | In drama, a few words or short passage spoken in an undertone or to the audience.
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| Apostrophe | A direct address to someone or something. In poetry, often addresses something not ordinary spoken to (O, Mountain!)
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| Allusion | A brief (and sometimes indirect) reference in a text to a person, place, or thing - fictitious or actual.
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| Alliteration | The repetition of 2 or more consonant sounds in successive words in a line of verse or prose (useful for emphasis).
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| Allegory | A narrative in verse or prose in which the literal events (persons, places, & things) consistentlyy point to a parallel sequence of symbolic ideas.
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| Genre | A conventional combination of literary form & subject matter, usually aimed at creating certain effects.
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| Foreshadowing | A technique of arranging events & information in such a way that later events are prepared for beforehand.
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| Flashback | A scene relived in a character's memory.
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| Epiphany | A moment of insight, discovery, or revelation by which a character's life is greatly altered.
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| Diction | Refers to a class of words that an author decides is appropriate to use in a particular work.
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| Dialogue | The direct representation of the conversation between 2 or more characters.
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| Deus ex machina | Refers to the Greek playwrights' frequent use of a god, mechanically lowered to the stage to resolve human conflict with judgments & commands.
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| Hyperbole | An exaggeration, often extravagant; it may be used for serious or for comic effect.
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| Imagery | The collective set of images in a poem or other literary work.
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| In media res | Refers to a narrative device of beginning a story midway in the events it depicts. (A Latin phrase meaning "in the mist of things").
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| Slander | damaging defamation by spoken words, or by looks or gestures
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| Libel | written or published; public defamation of a person or entity; can include published photographs
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| Plagiarism | unauthorized use or for or against one side in a disput; close imitation of language & thoughts of another author as one's own original work without indicating the source via explanation or citation
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| Censorship | deleting parts of publications or correspondence or theatrical performances; suppression of sensitive or offensive material
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| Bias | a personal & often unreasoned judgment; to favor or disfavor one side against another in a dispute, competition, etc.; a prejudice
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| Protagonist | main character of a narrative; central character who engages reader's interest & empathy
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| Antagonist | the character, force, or collection of forces in fiction or drama that opposes the main character & gives rise to the conflict of a story; villain who causes conflict
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| Stock Character | appears repeatedly
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| Round Character | depicted with such psychological depth & detail that he/she seems like a "real" person
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| Flat Character | a simplified character who does not change or alter his/her personality over course of a narrative (also called "static character")
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| Hero | the principal male character or the one whose life is the theme of the story
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| Antihero | principal character who either lacks the conventional qualities of a hero or whose circumstances do not allow for any kind of heroic action
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| Parable | simple story illustrating a moral or religious lesson
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| Short Story | a short piece of prose fiction; having few characters & aiming at unity of effect, tend to be more concise & to the point
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| Tale | something told or related; relation or a recital of happenings; a story or account of true, legendarym, or fictitious events
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| Fable | a fictitious story mean to teach a moral lesson; the characters are usually talking animals
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| Low Comedy | consists of silly, slapstick physicality, crude pitfalls, violence, scatology, & bodily humor
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| High Comedy | elegant comedies characterized by witty banter & sophisticated dialogue
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| Comedy of the Absurd | a modern form of comedy dramatizing the meaninglessness, uncertainty, & pointless absurdity of human existence
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| Comedy of Humors | a Renaissance drama in which numerous characters appear as the embodiment of stereotypical types of people, each character having the physiological & behavior traits associated with a specific humor in the human body
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| Comedy of Manners | where attitudes & customs of a society are critiqued & satirized according to high standards of intellect & morality; dialogue is usually clever & sophisticated
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| Satire | an attack on or criticism of any stupidity or vice in the form of scathing humor; used as a mirror to reflect society
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| Slapstick | humor depends almost entirely on physical location & sight gags
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| Tragicomedy | usually ends with exile, death, or similar resolution
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| Tragedy | a serious play in which the chief figures, by some peculiarity of character, pass through a series of misfortunes leading to a final, devastating catastrophe
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| Commedia Dell' Arte | a genre of Italian farce from 16th century characterized by stock characters, stock situations, & spontaneous dialogue; plot is an intrigue plot
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