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Literary Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Abstract (style) | A style of writing that focuses on ideas and qualities that are not physical or concrete, such as emotions, concepts, or theoretical constructs. |
| Academic (style) | the formal, objective, and evidence-based writing used in scholarly fields to present research and arguments |
| Accent | the rhythmic emphasis on a syllable within a word or verse |
| Aesthetic, Aesthetics | the study of beauty, art, and sensory and emotional responses evoked by them |
| Allegory | a literary device that uses symbolic characters, events, and settings to represent abstract ideas, often with a moral, spiritual, or political message |
| Alliteration | the repetition of beginning consonant sounds in multiple words in a single line, sentence, or phrase |
| Allusion | an indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or political significance |
| Anachronism | a person, object, event, or idea that is placed in the wrong historical time period |
| Analogy | a literary device that compares two unlike things to explain an abstract or complex idea by highlighting their similarities |
| Anecdote | a short, personal story that recounts an amusing, interesting, or illustrative event to make a point or enrich a narrative |
| Antecedent | a word, phrase, or clause that a pronoun refers back to |
| Anthropomorphism | the literary device of assigning human qualities, such as emotions, behaviors, and physical traits, to non-human entities like animals or inanimate objects |
| Anticlimax | a sudden, disappointing decline from a serious or dramatic build-up to something trivial or ludicrous |
| Antihero | a central character in a story who lacks traditional heroic qualities like bravery, integrity, and idealism |
| Aphorism | a concise, often witty, statement that expresses a general truth or a profound principle about life |
| Apostrophe | a figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses someone absent, dead, or not a person, such as an inanimate object or an abstract concept. |
| Archaism | the deliberate use of old-fashioned or outdated words, phrases, or sentence structures to achieve a specific artistic effect |
| Aside | a remark or passage in a play that is intended for the audience to hear but not for the other characters on stage to hear |
| Assonance | a literary device characterized by the repetition of similar vowel sounds in words that are close to each other, creating a musical or rhythmic effect |
| Atmosphere | the overall feeling or mood of a place or situation, created by a combination of literary elements |
| Ballad | a narrative poem that tells a story, often with origins in oral tradition |
| Black humor | black humor is a form of comedy that uses morbid, cynical, or grotesque subject matter as a source of amusement |
| Bombast | pompous, exaggerated, or high-sounding language that is often intended to be impressive but is, in fact, full of little meaning or substance |
| Burlesque | a comedic or satirical imitation of a serious work, subject, or genre, achieved by creating a ridiculous disparity between the matter and the manner of the writing |
| Cacophony | a device that uses harsh, discordant sounds to create a jarring or unsettling effect |
| Cadence | the rhythmic flow of words, a natural rise and fall that creates the "sound" of a written or spoken piece |
| Canto | a major division within a long poem, similar to a chapter in a book |
| Caricature | a character whose personality or physical traits are exaggerated and oversimplified for humorous or satirical effect |
| Catharsis | the emotional release or purification an audience experiences through witnessing a story's climax, often triggered by a tragedy |
| Chorus | a group of performers who comment on the action of a play |
| Colloquialism | the use of informal, everyday language that imitates casual conversation, often specific to a particular region, social group, or time period |
| Conceit | an elaborate and often surprising comparison between two seemingly unlike things, used to create a deeper meaning and provoke thought |
| Connotation | the emotional or cultural association that a word carries beyond its literal dictionary definition |
| Consonance | a literary device characterized by the deliberate repetition of consonant sounds within a group of words, enhancing the rhythm and musicality of a text |
| Couplet | a pair of consecutive lines in a poem that typically rhyme and share the same meter |
| Decorum | the principle of appropriateness in speech, behavior, and style that is suitable for a particular character, subject, or situation |
| Denotation | the literal, dictionary-defined meaning of a word, devoid of any subjective emotional or cultural associations |
| Diction | the author's choice of words to create a specific effect |
| Dirge | a mournful song, poem, or piece of music composed to express grief for the dead, often performed at a funeral or memorial service |
| Dissonance | a lack of harmony, often created through jarring sounds, inconsistent rhythms, or clashing ideas, to evoke a specific emotional effect |
| Doggerel | poetry that is poorly written, often characterized by a clumsy, irregular rhythm and forced, simplistic rhymes |
| Dramatic irony | a literary device where the audience or reader knows something that a character in the story does not |
| Dramatic monologue | a literary device in which a single character speaks at length, revealing their personality, motivations, and inner conflict to an implied audience |
| Elegy | a poem expressing sorrow, particularly for someone who has died, but it can also lament a loss, a disaster, or a feeling |
| Enjambment | a poetic device where a sentence or phrase continues to the next line of a poem without a natural pause or punctuation |
| Epic | long, narrative poem, often in an elevated style, that tells the story of heroic deeds and events of national or cultural significance |
| Epitaph | a brief text, often in prose or verse, written to honor and commemorate a deceased person, and it can also be a short poem intended as an inscription on a tombstone |
| Euphemism | a mild or indirect word or phrase used to replace one that is considered too harsh, blunt, or offensive |
| Euphony | the use of words and phrases with harmonious, pleasing sounds to create a melodious and beautiful effect |
| Farce | a type of comedy that uses exaggerated, improbable situations, broad humor, and stereotyped characters to entertain an audience |
| Feminine Rhyme | a rhyme involving two syllables |
| Foil | a character who contrasts with another, usually the protagonist, to highlight particular traits, values, or choices |
| Foot | the basic unit of a poem's rhythm and meter, consisting of a specific pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables |
| Foreshadowing | a literary device in which an author gives hints or clues about events that will happen later in the story |
| Free verse | a style of poetry that lacks a regular, fixed meter or rhyme scheme |
| Gothic novel | a genre of fiction blending horror, mystery, and romance, set in a gloomy atmosphere that often features spooky castles, old mansions, and other decaying, isolated settings |
| Hubris | excessive pride or overconfidence that leads a character to their downfall |
| Hyperbole | an extravagant exaggeration used in literature as a figure of speech to create emphasis or humor, not meant to be taken literally |
| Interior monologue | a narrative technique that presents a character's inner thoughts and feelings directly to the reader, often as if they are thinking aloud to themselves |
| Inversion | a stylistic device where the normal order of words in a sentence is reversed, often for emphasis, rhythm, or poetic effect |
| Irony | a versatile and powerful device where there is a contradiction between what appears to be true and what is actually true |
| Lampoon | a sharp, written attack in prose or verse that viciously and often unfairly mocks a specific, real-life individual or institution |
| Lyric | a type of poetry that expresses personal emotions or thoughts, often with a musical quality |
| Masculine Rhyme | describes those rhymes ending in a stressed syllable |
| elodrama | a literary genre characterized by exaggerated emotions, sensational plots, and a clear moral dichotomy between good and evil |
| Metaphor | a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things without using "like" or "as," suggesting a similarity between them |
| Metonymy | a figure of speech where a word or phrase is substituted for another word or concept with which it is closely associated |
| Nemesis | an archenemy or a long-standing rival to the protagonist, often representing an insurmountable obstacle or a source of harm |
| Objectivity | the quality of being impartial and unbiased, representing facts without allowing personal feelings, opinions, or beliefs to influence the judgment or presentation of information |
| Onomatopoeia | a poetic device where a word is created to phonetically imitate a sound |
| Oxymoron | a figure of speech that combines two contradictory or opposite words to create a new, thought-provoking phrase or idea |
| Parable | a short, simple story that uses a relatable, familiar event to illustrate a deeper moral, ethical, or spiritual lesson |
| Paradox | a statement or concept that appears self-contradictory but reveals a deeper or more complex truth upon closer examination |
| Parallelism | a literary device that uses similar grammatical structures, words, or phrases to emphasize related ideas |
| Parody | an imitation of the style, manner, and conventions of a particular work, author, or genre, created for comic effect and often with satirical intent |
| Pastoral | a genre that idealizes rural life and the lives of shepherds, portraying them as simple, peaceful, and idyllic |
| Pathos | a rhetorical device used to evoke an emotional response in the reader, such as sympathy, pity, or sadness |
| Persona | a distinct speaker created by an author to tell a story or write a poem, separate from the author's own identity |
| Personification | a literary device where non-human subjects, such as animals, objects, or abstract ideas, are given human qualities, actions, or emotions |
| Plaint | a sad cry, a lament, or a complaint, often expressed in a sorrowful or poetic way. It represents a deep expression of grief, sorrow, or a plea for help |
| Protagonist | the main character of a story, who is central to the plot and drives the narrative forward |
| Pun | a play on words that uses a word or phrase with multiple meanings, or a word that sounds similar to another word, to create a humorous or rhetorical effect |
| Refrain | a repeated word, line, or group of lines, most often at the end of a stanza, used to emphasize an idea, create rhythm, and build emotional intensity |
| Requiem | composition that honors or commemorates the dead, taking the form of a solemn poem, song, or other tribute |
| Rhapsody | an exalted or impassioned expression of feeling or a literary work composed in an intense or exalted style |
| Rhetorical Question | a question posed for effect rather than to elicit a direct answer |
| Satire | a technique that uses humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize the flaws, foolishness, and corruption of individuals, institutions, or society |
| Simile | a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things using the words "like" or "as" to create vivid imagery and add descriptive detail |
| Soliloquy | a speech delivered by a character in a play that reveals their inner thoughts and feelings, usually when alone on stage |
| Stanza | a group of lines in a poem that are separated from other lines by a space, forming a unit that expresses a particular idea or theme |
| Stock characters | a stereotypical fictional person, recognized by readers or audiences from frequent appearances in a particular literary or theatrical tradition |
| Subjectivity | a subjective character is defined by their personal experiences, emotions, and individual perspective, which shapes their unique interpretation of events and motivations |
| Subjunctive mood | verb form used to express hypothetical, unreal, or non-factual situations, as well as wishes, demands, and suggestions |
| Summary | a concise restatement of its main ideas and key points, written in your own words, that provides an overview without giving away the entire plot or all details |
| Symbolism | a literary device where a writer uses a concrete object, person, or event to represent an abstract idea, concept, or quality beyond its literal meaning |
| Theme | the central idea or underlying message that a work of literature explores |
| Thesis | main argument or central idea of a piece of writing, often stated in a single sentence known as a thesis statement |
| Tragic flaw | a character's inherent weakness or defect that ultimately leads to their downfall |
| Travesty | a form of burlesque that treats a serious or dignified subject in an inappropriately trivial and ridiculous manner |
| Truism | a statement that is so obviously true that it is often considered boring, or a "stale" cliché |
| Utopia | an imaginary, ideal society, often used as a tool for social and political critique by highlighting flaws in the present |
| Zeugma | a literary device where a single word, typically a verb or adjective, governs two or more other words in a sentence, often with different meanings for each |
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Popular Literature sets