Starting point; these terms are--hopefully--familiar already...
Terms : Hide Images
| 30004167 | alliteration | repetition of initial consonant sounds | |
| 30004168 | allusion | a reference to another work of literature, person, or event | |
| 30004169 | antagonist | a character in conflict with protagonist | |
| 30004170 | antithesis | the juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas | |
| 30004171 | apostrophe | direct address of an inanimate object, dead or absent person, or an idea | |
| 30004172 | assonance | the repetition of similar vowels in the stressed syllables of successive words | |
| 30004173 | consonance | identical consonant sounds preceded by similar vowels | |
| 30004174 | details | the facts described by the author or speaker that contribute to tone or meaning | |
| 30004175 | flat character | one-sided and often stereotypical character | |
| 30004176 | round character | complex character displaying the inconsistencies of most humans | |
| 30004177 | dynamic character | character who undergoes significant change in response to plot events | |
| 30004178 | static character | character who remains unchanged thorughout the literature | |
| 30004179 | archetype | universal symbols that evoke deep, unconscious responses | |
| 30004180 | diction | word choice that contributes to tone and meaning | |
| 30004181 | figurative language | writing that is not meant to be taken literally | |
| 30004182 | flashback | a shift to an previous event that interrupts the chronological development of the plotline | |
| 30004183 | foreshadowing | suggestion or hint of future developments | |
| 30004184 | hyperbole | extravagant exaggeration | |
| 30004185 | imagery | description that appeals to the senses | |
| 30004186 | dramatic irony | meaning of a situation is understood by the reader but not by the characters in the fiction | |
| 30004187 | situational irony | outcome of events is the opposite of what is expected | |
| 30004188 | verbal irony | what is said contradicts what is meant or thought | |
| 30004189 | metaphor | makes a direct comparison between two unlike things | |
| 30004190 | mood | a prevailing emotional tone of a literary work | |
| 30004191 | onomatopoeia | words formed in imitation of natural sounds | |
| 30004192 | oxymoron | pair of contradictory words; compact paradox | |
| 30004193 | paradox | contradictory statement that, on closer look, reveals truth | |
| 30004194 | personification | attributing human characteristics to abstract ideas or inanimate objects | |
| 30004195 | plot | the sequence of events in a story (may be linear, flashback, in medias res, etc.) | |
| 30004196 | point of view | Perspective from which a story is told | |
| 30004197 | 1st person POV | speaker tells the story as "I" and is a minor or major participant | |
| 30004198 | 2nd person POV | speaker tells the story directly to "You"; rarely used | |
| 30004199 | 3rd person POV | speaker narrates the story using "he, she, they" | |
| 30004200 | stream of consciousness | speaker shares thoughts as they scroll through his or her mind | |
| 30004201 | omniscient POV | all-knowing speaker shares the actions, thoughts, and dialogue of all characters | |
| 30004202 | objective narrator POV | speaker reports the plot line objectively without access to thoughts of any character | |
| 30004203 | limited omniscient POV | speaker shares actions/dialogue of all characters, but the thoughts of one or two characters only | |
| 30004204 | protagonist | main character who must overcome obstacles and resolve the conflict | |
| 30004205 | sarcasm | cutting ironic remark; scornful remarks; stinging rebuke | |
| 30004206 | setting | the time and place in which the action of a literary work occurs | |
| 30004207 | simile | figurative language comparing two unlike things using like, as, seems, etc. | |
| 30004208 | sound devices | rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, and onomatopoeia that give literature a musical quality | |
| 30004209 | structure | the arrangement of the text--paragraphs, stanzas; | |
| 30004210 | style | writer's characteristic manner of using language to convey meaning | |
| 30004211 | suspense | feeling of growing uncertainty or tension about the outcome of events | |
| 30004212 | symbol | something concrete that by association or convention represents an abstract idea as aspect of personality | |
| 30004213 | synecdoche | figure of speech in which a part represents the whole | |
| 30004214 | metonymy | figure of speech in which a word/phrase is substituted for a closely associated word/phrase | |
| 30004215 | syntax | sentence structure; word order | |
| 30004216 | theme | a unifying, central idea in a literary work wholly expressed as an attitude plus topic | |
| 30004217 | tone | attitudes and presuppositions of the author as discovered through analysis of the text | |
| 30004218 | understatement | opposite of hyperbole; words say less than is intended | |
| 30004219 | meiosis | expressive understatement for rhetorical effect | |
| 30004220 | litotes | understatement that expresses an affirmative by negating the contrary | |
| 30012281 | claim | assertion that requires support (thesis or topic sentence) | |
| 30012282 | data | evidence from the literature, preferably direct quotes | |
| 30012283 | warrant | statement(s) that justify the relevance of the data; connection from data to claim | |
| 30012628 | connotation | associations/implications beyond word definition | |
| 30012629 | colloquial diction | conversational, slang word choices | |
| 30012630 | dialect | diction that reveals characters' geographic or social connections |
