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Literary Terms 11R
English 11 Literary Terms
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Alliteration | The repetition of initial consonant sounds |
Allusion | A reference to a historical or literary person, place, thing, or event with with the reader is assumed to be familiar |
Characterization | The method in which an author reveals information about characters |
Conflict | The struggle or problem between opposing forces within a story |
Foreshadowing | A writer's use of hints or clues to indicate events that will occur later in a narrative |
Hyperbole | A figure of speech in which an overstatement or exaggeration occurs |
Imagery | Describes words and phrases that re-create vivid sensory experiences for the reader |
Irony | A contrast between what is expected and what actually exists or happens |
Metaphor | The comparison of one thing to another without the use of like or as |
Mood | The general atmosphere created by the author's words. It is the feeling the reader gets from reading those words. |
Onomatopoeia | The process of creating or using words that imitate sounds |
Personification | A figure of speech in which human qualities are attributed to an object, animal, or idea |
Setting | The time and place in which the story takes place |
Simile | The comparison of one thing to another using like or as |
Symbolism | A person, place, or object that represents something beyond itself |
Theme | The general idea or insight about life that a writer wishes to express |
Tone | The authors attitude toward the writing (his characters, the situation) and the readers |
Oxymoron | Putting two contradictory words together |
Allegory | A story that has a deeper or more general meaning in addition to its surface meaning |
Protagonist | The main character or hero in a story whose decisions move the plot along |
Antagonist | The character that opposes the protagonist |
Dialogue | A conversation between two or more characters |
Plot | Refers to the chain of related events that take place in a story |