Help
Options
Didn't know it?
click below
click below
Knew it?
click below
click below
Don't Know
Remaining cards (0)
Know
retry
shuffle
restart
0:00
Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Normal Size Small Size show me how
AP LIT TERMS
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| abstract | unable to be touched; not concrete |
| abstraction | a concept or value that can not be seen |
| ad hominem | Latin for “to the man”; attacking the arguer and not the argument; mud-slinging |
| alliteration | sound device; repetition of initial (beginning) consonant sounds |
| allusion | figure of speech which makes brief reference to an historical or literary figure, event, or object |
| ambiguity | the expression of a idea in language which gives more than one meaning and leave uncertainty as to the meaning |
| anachronism | something out of its place in time or history: Julius Caesar riding a motorcycle |
| analogy | the comparison of two things, which are alike in several respects, for the purpose of explaining or clarifying some unfamiliar or difficult idea or object by showing how the idea or object is similar to some familiar one. |
| anapest | meter having two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable |
| anaphora | the repetition of a word or expression at the beginning of successive phrases for rhetorical or poetic effect |
| antagonist | the character in a narrative or play who is in conflict with the main character |
| anticlimax | The intentional use of elevated language to describe the trivial or commonplace, or a sudden transition from a significant thought to a trivial one in order to achieve a humorous or satiric effect |
| anti-hero | a protagonist who is the antithesis of the hero – graceless, inept, stupid, sometimes dishonest |
| antithesis | figure of speech in which a thought is balanced with a contrasting thought in parallel arrangements of words and phrases |
| aphorism | brief statement which expresses an observation on life, usually intended as a wise observation |
| apollonian | refers to the noble qualities of human beings and nature as opposed to the savage and destructive forces |
| apostrophe | addressing someone or something, usually not present, as though present. |
| apotheosis | a larger-than-life presence; a godlike paragon worthy of respect and reverence |
| appeal to ignorance | the claim that whatever has not been proved |
| aside | a statement delivered by a actor in such a way that the other characters on stage are presumed not to have heard him |
| arguments | assertions made based on facts, statistics, logical or objective reasoning, hard evidence, etc. |
| assonance | similarity or repetition of a vowel sound in two or more words, especially in a line of verse. |
| asyndeton | he omission of conjunctions that ordinarily join coordinate words and phrases |
| aubade | a poem about morning |
| auditory imagery | word choices that appeal to the ear, that help you “hear” the words |
| autobiography | author’s own life story; firstperson account |
| ballad | a form of verse to be sung or recited and characterized by a dramatic or exciting episode in fairly short narrative; poem written in a song-like stanza form |
| Carpe diem | A theme, especially common in lyric poetry, that emphasize that life is short, time is fleeting, and that one should make the most of present pleasures. |
| bathos | an anticlimax which is unintentional |
| begging the question | also called assuming the answer |
| bildungsroman | a novel showing the development of its central character from childhood to maturity |
| blank verse | unrhymed iambic pentameter |
| bombast | elevated language, often pompous and overdone |
| cacophony | a combination of harsh, unpleasant sounds which create an effect of discordance. Its opposite is euphony. |
| caesura | a pause for effect in the middle of a line of poetry |
| Canon | works generally considered by scholars, critics, and teachers to be the most important to study or read, which collectively constitute the "masterpieces" or "classics" of literature. |
| carpe diem | a Latin phrase which translated means "Seize (Catch) the day," meaning "Make the most of today." |
| catharsis | Aristotle’s word for the pity and fear an audience experiences upon viewing the downfall of a hero |
| cause and effect relationships | a dominant technique (also called rhetorical device) in which the author analyzes reasons for a chain of events. |
| characterization | the method a writer uses to reveal the personality of a character in a literary work. |
| chiasmus | repetition in successive clauses which are usually parallel in syntax |
| classicism | an approach to literature which emphasizes reason, harmony, balance, proportion, clarity, and the imitation of ancient writers and philosophers |
| climax | the turning point, or crisis, in a play or other piece of literature |
| colloquial | expressions - informal, not always grammatically correct expressions that find acceptance in certain geographical areas and within certain groups of people |
| comedy | a work which strives to provoke smiles and laughter |
| comic relief | something of humor interrupts an otherwise serious, often tragic, literary work |
| complication | the part of a plot in which the entanglement caused by the conflict is developed |
| conceit | an extended metaphor - two unlike things are compared in several different ways |
| concrete poetry | where the actual typeset layout of the poem suggests the topic. For example, a poem about trees might be shaped like a tree on the page. |
| conflict | a struggle between opposing forces |
| connotation | the emotional implications that a word may carry; implied or associated meaning for a particular word. |
| consonance | the repetition of consonant sounds with differing vowel sounds in words near each other in a line or lines of poetry |
| couplet | a pair of rhyming lines written in the same meter; may be a separate stanza |
| crisis | the climax or turning point of a story or play (may have more than one crisis when there are several almost-equal major characters) |
| dactyl | three syllable foot consisting of an accented syllable followed by the unaccented syllables. |
| denotation | the specific, exact meaning of a word; a dictionary definition |
| denouement | the resolution of a plot after the climax |
| deus ex machina | an unexpected, artificial, or improbable character, device, or event introduced suddenly in a work of fiction or drama to resolve a situation or untangle a plot |
| dialect | speech peculiar to a region; exhibits distinctions between two groups or even two persons. |
| dialogue | conversation between two or more characters, usually set off with quotation marks |
| diction | an author’s choice of words |
| didactic verse | a term for a poem that teaches, almost preaches. It often discusses the “proper” way to behave. The lesson being taught is more important to the writer than the artistic quality of the work |
| dionysian | pertaining to the base side of man |
| drama | story performed by actors on a stage |
| dramatic irony | irony in which the character use words which mean one thing to them but another to those who understand the situation better |
| dramatic monologue | a poem that reveals a “soul in action” through the speech of one character in a dramatic situation |
| dystopia | the opposite of a utopia; a controlled world where pain exists instead of pleasure |
| elegy | lyrical poem about death; a serious poem, usually meant to express grief or sorrow. The theme is serious, usually death. |
| empathy | feelings of pity and understanding for a character |
| end rhyme | schematic rhyme that comes at the ends of lines of verse |
| end stop line | line of verse in which both the grammatical structure and the sense reach completion at the end of a line |
| enjambment | line of verse that carries over into next line without a pause of any kind |
| envelope method | Begins and ends with same setting and/or narrator(s); middle is flashback |
| epic | a long narrative, usually written in elevated language, which related the adventures of a hero upon whom rests the fate of a nation |
| epigram | a witty saying, usually at the end of a poem, about 2 lines long; a brief, witty observation about a person, institution, or experience |
| epigraph | A brief quotation at the beginning of a book or chapter. |
| epiphany | an awakening; a sudden understanding or burst of insight; key moment in Greek plays |
| epitaph | an engraving on a tombstone |
| epithet | nickname or appellation, |
| euphemism | substitute word(s) that sounds better than another |
| euphony | a quality of style marked by pleasing, harmonious sounds, the opposite of cacophony |
| existentialism | a term applied to a group of attitudes which emphasize existence rather than the essence, and sees the inadequacy of human reason to explain the enigma of the universe |
| exposition | the introductory material which sets the tone, gives the setting, introduces the characters, and supplies necessary facts; |
| eye rhyme | a form of rhyme wherein the look rather than the sound is important. |
| fable | a story written to make a moral point, using animals as characters |
| fairy tale | a fictional tale, marked by fantasy and magic, often appealing to the imagination |
| falling action | everything that happens in plot between the climax or crisis and the denouemen |
| false dichotomy | two extremes in a continuum of intermediate possibilities. |
| fantasy | imaginative writing; writing in which the author breaks away from reality |
| farce | a totally ridiculous comedy |
| feminine rhyme | Double rhyme |
| figurative language | writing or speech not meant to be taken literally figure of speech; |
| figures of speech | Similes, metaphors and personification are figures of speech based on comparisons. |
| first person | subjective point of view when a character relays a narrative using “I |
| flashback | a device by which an author can present action or scenes that occurred before the opening scene in a work |
| flat character | a character who is not fully developed by an author; character who has only one outstanding trait or feature, or at the most a few distinguishing marks. |
| foil | character who provides a contrast to another character, thus emphasizing the other’s traits; a character in a play who sets off the main character or other characters by comparison. |
| folk tale | a story which has been composed orally and then passed down by word of mouth |
| foot | a unit of meter; a metrical foot can have two or three syllables; |
| Iamb | A metrical foot consisting of one unaccented syllable followed by one accented syllable. |
| Trochee | A metrical foot consisting of one accented syllable followed by one unaccented syllable |
| Anapest | A metrical foot consisting of two unaccented syllables followed by one accented syllable |
| Dactyl | A metrical foot consisting of one accented syllable followed by two unaccented syllables |
| Pyrrhic | A metrical foot consisting of two unaccented syllables. |
| Dipod | The basic foot of dipodic verse, consisting (when complete) of an unaccented syllable, a lightly accented syllable, an unaccented syllable, and a heavy accented syllable, in that succession. |
| Spondee | A metrical foot consisting of two syllables equally or almost equally accented |
| Monometer | A line of one metrical foot |
| Dimeter | A line of two metrical feet |
| Trimeter | A line of three metrical feet. |
| Tetrameter | A line of four metrical feet. |
| Pentameter | A line of five metrical feet. |
| Hexameter | A line of six metrical feet. |
| foreshadowing | the arrangement and presentation of events and information in such a way that prepare for later events in a work |
| form | the structure, shape, pattern, organization, or style of a piece of literature |
| frame | a narrative constructed so that one or more stories are embedded within another story |
| free verse | unrhymed poetry with lines of varying lengths, containing no specific metrical pattern |
| genre | a specific kind or category of literature, e.g., mystery story, sonnet, romance novel |
| gothic | a form of novel in which magic, mystery, horrors and chivalry abound |
| grotesque | focuses on physically or mentally (warped, deluded, retarded) impaired characters |
| haiku | popular Japanese form of poetry developed in 17th century. It usually had three lines, respectively, with 5, 7, then 5 syllables. Haiku often contrasts two opposing images and presents an implied comment of nature. |
| half rhyme | occurs when the final consonants rhyme, but the vowel sounds do not |
| hamartia | a tragic flaw or error in judgment. In literature, the tragic hero's error of judgement or inherent defect of character |
| hero / heroine | main character who has strength or moral character, a noble cause |
| heroic couplet | two successive lines of rhymed poetry in iambic pentameter |
| hexameter | a stanza of 6 lines. |
| homily | a long speech denouncing someone or something; a story or lecture on a religious or moral theme; a didactic lecture |
| hubris | the pride or overconfidence which often leads a hero to overlook divine warning or to break a moral law |
| humor | writing whose purpose it is to evoke some kind of laughter |
| hyperbole | exaggeration for effect and emphasis, overstatement; |
| iambic | 1 unaccented, 1 accented - “trapeze” - very Shakespearean |
| iambic pentameter | A metrical pattern in poetry which consists of five iambic feet per line. (An iamb, or iambic foot, consists of one unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable, |
| idioms | expressions that do not translate exactly into what a speaker means; idioms are culturally relevant; when a person uses an idiomatic expression, he or she truly "thinks" in the language. |
| imagery | devices which appeal to the senses: visual, tactile, auditory, gustatory, olfactory, kinetic; a group of words that create a mental “picture” |
| auditory imagery | sound imagery. It appeals to the sense of hearing. |
| gustatory imagery | imagery appealing to the sense of taste. |
| kinetic energy | magery that appeals to movement. Ex: The flies flew around our heads methodically, never ceasing their obnoxious spinning and swirling. |
| olfactory imagery | appeals to the sense of smell. |
| tactile imagery | type of imagery pertaining to the sense of touch. |
| visual imagery | type of imagery that appeals to the sense of sight. |
| in medias res | the story starts in the middle |
| intercalary chapters | expository chapters that come between chapters of plot to relay outside information |
| internal rhyme | rhyming within lines of verse instead of at the ends of lines |
| inverted sentence | reversing the normal subject - verb - complement order |
| irony | surprising, amusing, or interesting contrast between reality and expectation. |
| juxtaposition | he positioning of ideas or images side by side for emphasis or to show contrast |
| lampoon | a biting satire that makes its subject appear ludicrous |
| legend | a widely told tale about the past, one that may have a foundation in fact |
| limerick | a type of poem that consists of two lines of rhymed anapestic trimeter, two lines of rhymed anapestic dimeter, and an additional line of anapestic trimeter, the last word of which is the same as, or rhymes with, the last word of the first line. |
| line | unit of poetic verse. When writing verse in prose, use a / to indicate when lines change. |
| litotes | a type of meiosis (understatement) in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of the contrary, as in "not unhappy" or "a poet of no small stature." |
| local color | he descriptions of the setting, people, and dialect, etc., of a particular region |
| loose or cumulative sentence | has independent clause first, followed by a series of phrases and clauses |
| lyric verse | one of the main groups of poetry, the others being narrative, dramatic and didactic poetry. |
| masculine rhyme | Single rhyme |
| mask (persona) | a character with a distinct identity created by an author to achieve a particular effect of to deliver a particular message which reflect the author’s viewpoint |
| melodrama | a play based upon a dramatic plot and developed sensationally |
| metaphor | a figure of speech wherein a comparison is made between two unlike quantities without the use of the words "like" or "as." |
| metaphysical | of, from, of relating to forces or being outside the natural world |
| metaphysical poetry | although sometimes used in the broad sense of philosophical poetry, the term usually applies to the work of seventeenth-century poets, such as John Donne. |
| meter | the rhythmical pattern of a poem |
| Anapestic | A meter composed of feet that are short-short-long (or unaccented-unaccented-accented) |
| Dactylic | A meter composed of feet that are long-short-short: emphasis, juniper. |
| Iambic | A meter composed of feet that are short-long: propose, delete. Iambic is the predominant meter of verse written in English. |
| Trochaic | A meter composed of feet that are long-short: single, enter. |
| Pyrrhic | Two unstressed syllables: in a, of the. |
| Spondaic | A foot in which both syllables are stressed: taut skin. |
| metonomy | substituting a word naming an object for another word closely associated with it. |
| microcosm | a small “world” that stands for the larger one |
| mixed metaphor | a metaphor whose elements are either incongruent or contradictory by the use of incompatible identifications |
| monologue | a written or oral composition presenting the discourse of one speaker only |
| montage | a series of images that appear one after another |
| motif (leitmotiv) | a recurring concept or story element in literature. |
| Myth | a fictional tale, originally with religious significance, that explains heroes, gods, nature, and/or natural phenomenon |
| narrative | a story |
| narrative point of view | the narrator or speaker perspective from which story is told—personal, objective, omniscient, partial or limited omniscient. |
| narrator | speaker or persona, the one who tells a story |
| naturalism | writing that demonstrates a deep interest in nature (often sees nature as indifferent to the plight of man); also used to describe any form of extreme realism |
| near rhyme | a rhyme in which the sounds are similar, but not exact, as in home and come or close and lose. Emily Dickinson uses this a great deal. |
| neoclassicism | Restoration literary movement in which writers turned to Greek/Roman models for inspiration |
| non-sequitur | Latin for “It doesn’t follow” |
| octave | an eight-line stanza |
| ode | a long, formal lyric poem with a serious theme; a form of lyric poetry using elaborate, sophisticated vocabulary in iambic pentameter |
| omniscient | perspective from which story is told—personal, objective, omniscient, partial or limited omniscient. |
| onomatopoeia | the use of a word to represent or to imitate natural sounds. |
| oxymoron | echnique used to produce an effect by a seeming self-contradiction. |
| parable | a short story to prove a point with a moral basis |
| paradox | a statement which contains seemingly contradictory elements or appears contrary to common sense, yet can be seen as perhaps true when viewed from another angle |
| paralipsis | the suggestion, by deliberately concise treatment of a topic, that much of significance is being omitted, as in "not to mention other faults” |
| parallel stucture | a repetition of sentences using the same structure. |
| parallelism | the repetition of syntactical similarities in passages closely connected for rhetorical effect. |
| paraphrase | a restatement of an idea in such a way as to retain the meaning while changing the diction and form |
| parnassian | of or related to poetry, after Parnassus, a mountain in Greece with two summits |
| parody | ludicrous imitation, usually for comic effect but sometimes for ridicule, of the style and content of another work. |
| pastoral | a literary work that has to do with shephards and rustic settings |
| pathetic fallacy | verdone writing that sees the inadequacy of human reason to explain the enigma of the universe |
| pathos | Greek term for deep emotion, passion, or suffering |
| pentameter | poetic line that has 5 metrical feet |
| periodic sentence | saves the subject and verb of the independent clause until the end of the sentence |
| persona | the mask worn by an actor in Greek drama. In a literary context, the persona is the character of the first-person narrator in verse or prose narratives, and the speaker in lyric poetry. |
| personification | figure of speech in which inanimate objects are given qualities of speech and/or movement. |
| playwright | a person who writes a play |
| plot | the structure of a story or the sequence in which the author arranges events. |
| point of view | he narrator or speaker perspective from which story is told—personal, objective, omniscient, partial or limited omniscient. |
| polysyndeton | The repetition of a number of conjunctions in close succession, as in, "We have men and arms and planes and tanks." |
| post hoc, ergo propter hoc | Latin for “It happened after, so it was caused by |
| prose | all for of written expression not having a regular rhythmical pattern |
| protagonist | the main character in a story |
| pun | a play on words wherein a word is used to convey two meanings at the same time. |
| pyretic | a metrical foot having two unstressed syllables |
| quatrain | a four-line stanza |
| quintet | a five-line stanza |
| realism | fidelity to actuality in literature |
| refrain | a phrase or line, usually pertinent to the central topic, which is repeated at regular intervals throughout a poem, usually at the end of a stanza. |
| resolution | the part of a story or drama which occurs after the climax and which establishes a new norm, a new state of affairs - the way things are going to be from then on |
| rhetoric | The art of speaking or writing effectively; skill in the eloquent use of language. |
| rhetorical device | device used to produce effective speaking or writing |
| rhetorical question | a question solely for effect, with no answer expected. By the implication that the answer is obvious, it is a means of achieving an emphasis stronger than a direct statement. |
| rhyme scheme | a pattern of rhyming words in a stanza |
| rhyme | similarity or likeness of sound; may be internal (within a segment of writing) or at the ends of lines of verse in poetry |
| Double Rhyme | A rhyme in which the repeated vowel is in the second last syllable of the words involved (politely-rightly-sprightly); one form of feminine rhyme. |
| End Rhyme | Rhymes are end-rhymed when both rhyming words are at the end of the lines. |
| Feminine Rhyme | Rhymes are feminine when the sounds involve more than one syllable |
| Identical Rhyme | If the preceding consonant sound is the same |
| Internal Rhyme | An internal rhyme occurs when one or both rhyming words are within the line. |
| Masculine (or Single) Rhyme | Rhymes are masculine when the sounds involve only one syllable |
| Triple rhyme | A rhyme in which the repeated accented vowel sound is in the third last syllable of the words involved |
| rhythm | the metrical or rhythmical pattern in a poem |
| rising action | the development of conflict leading to a crisis; the second section of the typical plot, in which the main character begins to grapple with the story's main conflict |
| romance | works having extravagant characters, remote or exotic settings, adventure, magic, chivalry, and love |
| round character | a fully developed character; character who is complex, multi-dimensional, and convincing. |
| run-on-line | the carrying over of sense and grammatical structure from one to line to the next |
| sarcasm | the caustic and heavy use of apparent praise |
| satire | a piece of literature designed to ridicule the subject of the work. |
| scan | to mark off lines of poetry into rhythmic units, or feet, so as to show their metrical structure |
| scansion | a system for describing more of less conventional poetic rhythms by dividing the lines into feet |
| scene | short division within an act in a play; a particular setting in any work of literature |
| second person | the narrator uses “you” as the narrator telling the story |
| septet | a seven-line stanza |
| sestet | a six-line stanza |
| setting | the place(s) and time(s) of the story, inncluding the historical period, social milieu of the characters, geographical location, descriptions of indoor and outdoor locales, etc |
| short story | also called tale. Has many of the same characteristics as the novel but details are arranged to achieve a single effect, with action moving rapidly and with minimal complication or detail of setting. |
| simile | a figure of speech which takes the form of a comparison between two unlike quantities for which a basis for comparison can be found, and which uses the words "like" or "as" |
| slang | expressions that are usually fleeting and may or may not be particular to a certain region or group |
| soliloquy | a long speech made by a character who is alone on the stage in which he reveals his innermost thoughts & feelings |
| sonnet | The English, or Shakespearean sonnet is divided into three quatrains |
| Spenserian sonnet | a nine-line stanza, with the first eight lines in iambic pentameter and the last line in iambic hexameter |
| sound device | assonance, alliteration, consonance, onomatopoeia |
| spondee | two stressed syllables |
| stanza | a related group of lines in a poem, equivalent to a paragraph in prose |
| stanza forms | the names given to describe the number of lines in a stanzaic unit, such as: couplet (2), tercet (3), quatrain (4), quintet (5), sestet (6), septet (7) and octave (8). |
| static character | a character who is the same sort of person at the end of a story as s/he was at the beginning. |
| statistics of small numbers | a close relative of observational selection |
| stereotype | a characterization based on conscious or unconscious assumptions that one aspect |
| stock character | tereotyped character: one whose nature is familiar from prototypes in previous fiction. |
| stream of consciousness | narrative technique which presents thoughts as if they were coming directly from a character’s mind |
| stress | saying certain syllables or words in a line with more emphasis or volume. |
| structure | the planned framework for a piece of literature |
| style | a writer’s typical way of expressing him- or herself |
| Subtext | a term denoting what a character means by what (s)he says when there is a disparity between diction and intended meaning. |
| Syllogism | the underlying structure of deductive reasoning, having a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion based on logic. Syllogisms are either valid or invalid. |
| symbol | anything that stands for or represents anything else. |
| Symbolism | using an image to represent an idea. |
| synecdoche | figure of speech in which a part of something stands for the whole or the whole for a part |
| synesthesia | the perception or description of one kind of sense impression in words normally used to describe a different sense, like a "sweet voice" or a "velvety smile." |
| syntax | the arrangement of words in a sentence, the grammar of a sentence |
| tetrameter | poetic line with 4 metrical feet |
| tercet | a three-line stanza in poetry |
| Theater of the Absurd | play written to show the absurdity of life by having absurd situations |
| theme | an ingredient of a literary work which gives the work unity. |
| third-person narration | not a character in the story; refers to the story's characters as "he" and "she" but does not reveal thoughts. |
| Limited (partial omniscient) narrator | can only tell what one person is thinking or feeling. |
| Omniscient narrator | can tell what all characters are thinking and feelings |
| tone | expresses the author's attitude toward his or her subject |
| tragedy | depicts the downfall or destruction of a character |
| tragic flaw | a tragic flaw or error in judgment |
| trimeter | a poetic line with three metrical feet |
| trochaic | poetic line created with 1 accented, 1 unaccented syllable |
| trope | another name for figurative language |
| understatement | statement in which the literal sense of what is said falls short of the magnitude of what is being talked about |
| verbal irony | a kind of irony in which words are used to suggest the opposite of their actual meaning |
| verisimilitude | the semblance of truth; the degree to which a writer creates the appearance of truth |
| villanelle | a poem with five triplets and a final quatrain |
| voice | the “speaker” in a piece of literature |
| zeugma | any of several similar rhetorical devices, all involving a grammatically correct linkage (or yoking together) of two or more parts of speech by another part of speech. |
| Ballad | This is a narrative poem describing a past happening that is sometimes romantic but always ends catastrophically. |
| Concrete poetry or shaped verse | An attempt to supplement (or replace) verbal meaning with visual devices from painting and sculpture. |
| Elegy | A poem, usually personal, of grief or mourning. |
| Epic | A long narrative poem about a hero, usually starting with an invocation to the muse and beginning in medias res |
| Haiku | This form consists of seventeen separate syllables arranged in three lines according to a 5-7-5 count. It usually has a plain style and everyday language. |
| Occasional poetry | This is poetry written for a particular event or happening, the event being usually ceremonial or honorific. |
| Sonnet--Italian | A fixed form consisting of fourteen lines of iambic pentameter. |
| Sonnet--Shakespearean | A fixed form consisting of fourteen lines of iambic pentameter. |
| Villanelle | A poem with five triplets and a final quatrain |
Created by:
rylynroth
Popular English Vocabulary sets