Terms : Hide Images
| 8474431848 | Allegory | A work that functions on a symbolic level | 0 | |
| 8474431849 | Alliteration | The repetition of initial consonant sounds | 1 | |
| 8474431850 | Allusion | A reference contained in a work to an event in history or to another piece of literature | 2 | |
| 8474431851 | Anapest | A metrical foot consisting of two unaccented syllables followed by one accented syllable. | 3 | |
| 8474431852 | Antagonist | A character or force in conflict with the main character | 4 | |
| 8474431853 | Apostrophe | Direct address in poetry | 5 | |
| 8474431854 | Aside | Words spoken by an actor intended to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on stage | 6 | |
| 8474431855 | Aubade | A love poem set at dawn which bids farewell to the beloved | 7 | |
| 8474431856 | Ballad | A simple narrative poem, often incorporating dialogue that is written in quatrains, generally with a rhyme scheme a,b,c,d | 8 | |
| 8474431857 | blank verse | unrhymed iambic pentameter | 9 | |
| 8474431858 | cacophony | harsh and discordant sounds in a line or passage in a literary work | 10 | |
| 8474431859 | Caesura | A break or pause within a line of poetry indicated by punctuation and used to emphasize meaning | 11 | |
| 8476257087 | Catharsis | The release of emotion that the audience of a tragedy experiences | 12 | |
| 8474431860 | character | one who carries out the action of the plot in literature | 13 | |
| 8474431861 | Climax | The turning point of action or character in a literary work, usually the highest moment of tension | 14 | |
| 8474431862 | comic relief | the inclusion of a humorous character or scene to contrast with the tragic elements of a work | 15 | |
| 8476230913 | conflict | A clash between opposing forces in a literary work, such as man v man; man v nature; man v God; man v self | 16 | |
| 8476266047 | Connotation | The interpretive level of a word based on its associated images rather than its literal meaning | 17 | |
| 8476270638 | Convention | A traditional aspect of a literary work, such as a soliloquy in a Shakespearean play or a tragic hero in a Greek tragedy | 18 | |
| 8476281866 | Couplet | 2 lines of rhyming poetry; often used by Shakespeare to conclude a scene or an important passage | 19 | |
| 8476290996 | Dactyl | A foot of poetry consisting of a stressed syllable followed by 2 unstressed syllables | 20 | |
| 8476303686 | Denotation | Literal or dictionary meaning of a word | 21 | |
| 8476308125 | Denouncement | the conclusion or tying up of loose ends in a literary work; the resolution of the conflict and plot | 22 | |
| 8476315630 | Deus ex machina | a Greek invention, literally "the god from the machine" who appears at the last moment and resolves the loose ends of a play. Today the term refers to anyone, usually of some stature, who untangles, resolves, or reveals the key to the plot of a work. | 23 | |
| 8476335955 | Diction | author's choice of words | 24 | |
| 8476340981 | Dramatic monolouge | a type of poem that presents a conversation between a speaker and an implied listner | 25 | |
| 8476348350 | Elegy | a poem that laments the dead or a loss. | 26 | |
| 8476352652 | Enjambment | a technique in poetry that involves the running on of a line or stanza. It enables the poem to move and to develop coherence as well as directing the reader with regard to form and meaning | 27 | |
| 8476390689 | Epic | a lengthy, elevated poem that celebrates the exploits of a hero | 28 | |
| 8476396956 | Epigram | a brief witty poem. Pope often utilizes this form for satiric commentary | 29 | |
| 8476405115 | Euphony | the pleasant, mellifluous presentation of sounds in a literary work | 30 | |
| 8476418983 | Exposition | background information presented in a literary work | 31 | |
| 8476418984 | Fable | a simple, symbolic story, usually employing animals as characters | 32 | |
| 8476422072 | Figurative language | the body of devices that enables the writer to operate on levels other than a literal one. Includes metaphor, simile, symbol, motif, hyperbole, & others | 33 | |
| 8476422073 | Flashback | A devices that enables a writer to refer to past thoughts, events, episodes | 34 | |
| 8476422074 | Foot | metrical unit in poetry; a syllabic measure of a line: iamb, trochee, anapest, dactyl, & spondee | 35 | |
| 8476425038 | Foreshadowing | hints of future events in a literary work | 36 | |
| 8476425039 | Form | the shape or structure of literary work | 37 | |
| 8476425040 | Free Verse | poetry without a defined form, meter, or rhyme scheme | 38 | |
| 8476428047 | Hyperbole | extreme exaggeration | 39 | |
| 8476428048 | Iamb | a metrical foot consisting of an unaccented syllable followed by an accented one; the most common poetic foot in the English language | 40 | |
| 8476428049 | Idyll | a type of lyric poem which extols the virtues of an ideal place or time | 41 | |
| 8476430047 | Image | a verbal approximation of a sensory impression, concept, or emotion | 42 | |
| 8476430048 | Imagery | total effect of related sensory images in a work of literature | 43 | |
| 8476433856 | Impressionism | writing that reflects a personal image of a character, event, or concept | 44 | |
| 8476433857 | Irony | unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended to happen or expected to happen. It involves dialogue and situation; and it can be intentional or unplanned. Dramatic irony centers around the ignorance of those involved while the audience is aware of the circumstances | 45 | |
| 8476435791 | Lyric Poetry | a type of poetry characterized by emotion, personal feelings, and brevity; a large and inclusive category of poetry that exhibits rhyme, meter, and reflective thought | 46 | |
| 8476435792 | Magical Realism | a type of literature that explores narratives by and about characters who inhabit and experience their reality differently from what we term the objective world. | 47 | |
| 8476438388 | Metaphor | direct comparison between dissimilar things | 48 | |
| 8476438389 | Metaphysical poetry | refers to the work of poets like John Donne who explore highly complex, philosophical ideas through extended metaphors and paradox | 49 | |
| 8476438390 | Meter | pattern of beats in poetry | 50 | |
| 8476441749 | Metonymy | figure of speech in which a representative term is used for larger ideas ("The pen is mightier than the sword") | 51 | |
| 8476441750 | Monologue | a speech given by one character | 52 | |
| 8476444266 | Motif | the repetition or variations of an image or idea in a work which is used to develop theme or characters | 53 | |
| 8476446214 | Narrative Poem | poem that tells a story | 54 | |
| 8476446215 | Narrator | speaker of the literary work | 55 | |
| 8476448675 | Octave | 8-line stanza, usually combined with a sestet in a Petrarch sonnet | 56 | |
| 8476448676 | Ode | formal, lengthy poem that celebrates a particular subject | 57 | |
| 8476450943 | Onomatopoeia | words that sound like the sound they represent | 58 | |
| 8476450944 | Oxymoron | an image of contradictory terms (bittersweet, pretty ugly, giant economy size) | 59 | |
| 8476450945 | Parable | story that operates on more than 1 level and usually teaches a moral lesson | 60 | |
| 8476453448 | Paradox | set of seemingly contradictory elements which nevertheless reflects an underlying truth. ("Come, Lady, die to live") | 61 | |
| 8476455913 | Parallel Plot | secondary story line that mimics and reinforces the main plot (Hamlet loses his father so does Ophelia) | 62 | |
| 8476455914 | Parody | comic imitation of a work that ridicules the original | 63 | |
| 8476455915 | Pathos | aspects of a literary work that elicit pity from the audience | 64 | |
| 8476458841 | Personification | assigning human qualities to inanimate objects or concepts | 65 | |
| 8476458842 | Plot | sequence of events in a literary work | 66 | |
| 8476461427 | Point of View | method of narration in a work | 67 | |
| 8476461428 | Protagonist | hero or main character in a literary work, the character the audience sympathizes with | 68 | |
| 8476465112 | Quatrain | 4-line stanza | 69 | |
| 8476469661 | Resolution | denouncement of a literary work | 70 | |
| 8476472829 | Rhetorical Question | a question that doesn't expect an explicit answer. It is used to pose an idea to be considered by the speaker or audience | 71 | |
| 8476476334 | Rhyme/rime | duplication of final syllable sounds in 2 or more lines | 72 | |
| 8476476335 | Rhyme Scheme | annotation of the pattern of the rhyme | 73 | |
| 8476478556 | Rhythm | repetitive pattern of beats in poetry | 74 | |
| 8476478557 | Romanticism | a style or movement of literature that has as its foundation an interest in freedom, adventure, idealism, and escape | 75 | |
| 8476480462 | Satire | a mode of writing based on ridicule, which criticizes the foibles and follies of society without necessarily offering a solution | 76 | |
| 8476480463 | Scansion | analysis of a poem's rhyme and meter | 77 | |
| 8476482878 | Sestet | a 6-line stanza, usually paired with an octave to form a Petrarchan sonnet | 78 | |
| 8476482879 | Sestina | a highly structured poetic form of 39 lines, written in iambic pentameter. It depends upon the repetition of 6 words from the first stanza in each of the 6 stanzas | 79 | |
| 8476482908 | Setting | time and place of a literary work | 80 | |
| 8476486354 | Simile | an indirect comparison that uses the word "like" or "as" to link the differing items in the comparison | 81 | |
| 8476488682 | Soliloquy | a speech in a play which is used to reveal the character's inner thoughts to the audience (Hamlet's "To be or not to be....") | 82 | |
| 8476488683 | Sonnet | a 14-line poem with a prescribed rhyme scheme in iambic pentameter | 83 | |
| 8476488684 | Spondee | a poetic foot consisting of 2 accented syllables | 84 | |
| 8476490911 | Stage Directions | Specific instructions a play-wright includes concerning sets, characterization, delivery, etc. | 85 | |
| 8476490912 | Stanza | a unit of a poem, similar in rhyme, meter, and length to other units in the poem | 86 | |
| 8476492343 | Structure | organization and form of a work | 87 | |
| 8476492344 | Style | The unique way an author presents his ideas. Diction, syntax, imagery, structure, and content all contribute to a particular style. | 88 | |
| 8476492345 | Subplot | a secondary plot that explores ideas, different from the main storyline. (subplot of Hamlet would be him dealin with his love for Ophelia) | 89 | |
| 8476494630 | Subtext | Implied meaning of a work or section of a work | 90 | |
| 8476494631 | Symbol | Something in a literary work that stands for something else | 91 | |
| 8476496655 | Synecdoche | a figure of speech that utilizes a part as representative of the whole ("All hands on deck" is an example) | 92 | |
| 8476496656 | Syntax | the grammatical structure of prose and poetry | 93 | |
| 8476498296 | Tercet | a 3-line stanza | 94 | |
| 8476498297 | Theme | Underlying ideas that the author illustrates through characterization, motifs, language, plots, etc. | 95 | |
| 8476498298 | Tone | Author's attitude towards the subject | 96 | |
| 8476500522 | Tragic Hero | A basically good person of noble birth or exalted position who has a fatal flaw or commits an error in judgement which leads to his downfall. The tragic hero must have a moment of realization and live and suffer. | 97 | |
| 8476502154 | Trochee | A single metrical foot consisting of 1 accented (stressed/long) syllable followed by 1 unaccented (unstressed/short) syllable | 98 | |
| 8476502155 | Understatement | The opposite of an exaggeration. It is a technique for developing irony and/or humor where one writes or says less than intnede | 99 | |
| 8476504182 | Villanelle | A highly structured poetic form that comprises 6 stanzas: 5tercets and a quatrain. The poem repeats the first and third lines throughout | 100 |
