4792558922 | allegory | A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. | 0 | |
4792562362 | alliteration | It is a stylistic device in which a number of words, having the same first consonant sound, occur close together in a series. | 1 | |
4792562363 | allusion | A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance. | 2 | |
4792562364 | anagram | a word or phrase spelled by rearranging the letters of another word or phrase | 3 | |
4792563495 | antecedent | The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun. | 4 | |
4792563496 | antagonist | A character or force in conflict with the main character | 5 | |
4792575246 | anaphora | A rhetorical figure of repetition in which the same word or phrase is repeated in (and usually at the beginning of) successive lines, clauses, or sentences. | 6 | |
4792576343 | anastrophe | Inversion of the natural or usual word order | 7 | |
4792576344 | antithesis | A balancing of two opposite or contrasting words, phrases, or clauses. | 8 | |
4792577273 | aphorism | A brief, cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life. | 9 | |
4792577274 | apostrophe | A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or a personified abstraction, such as liberty or love. | 10 | |
4792578477 | assonance | Repetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity | 11 | |
4792603548 | asyndeton | A series of words separated by commas (with no conjunction), e.g. "I came, I saw, I conquered." The parts of the sentence are emphasized equally; in addition, the use of commas with no intervening conjunction speeds up the flow of the sentence. | 12 | |
4792607585 | blank verse | Poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter | 13 | |
4792612933 | caesura | A natural pause or break in a line of poetry, usually near the middle of the line. | 14 | |
4792616607 | cacophony | Harsh, discordant, or meaningless mixture of sounds | 15 | |
4792616608 | cadence | Rhythmic rise and fall | 16 | |
4792616609 | conceit | A fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects. | 17 | |
4792617470 | connotation | All the meanings, associations, or emotions that a word suggests | 18 | |
4792617471 | consonance | Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity. | 19 | |
4792618720 | couplet | A pair of rhymed lines that may or may not constitute a separate stanza in a poem. | 20 | |
4792618721 | dactyl | A stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables | 21 | |
4792618722 | denotation | Dictionary definition of a word | 22 | |
4792620641 | denouement | an outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot | 23 | |
4792620642 | diction | The choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing | 24 | |
4792620643 | didactic | Intended to instruct; teaching, or teaching a moral lesson | 25 | |
4792648530 | dirge | a funeral hymn or mournful speech | 26 | |
4792648531 | euphemism | An indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant | 27 | |
4792649783 | end-stopped line | A line that ends with a natural speech pause, usually marked by punctuation | 28 | |
4792649784 | enjambment | A run-on line of poetry in which logical and grammatical sense carries over from one line into the next. | 29 | |
4792649785 | epitaph | A brief statement written on a tomb or gravestone | 30 | |
4792650836 | epic | A long narrative poem, written in heightened language, which recounts the deeds of a heroic character who embodies the values of a particular society | 31 | |
4792650837 | epistolary | A piece of literature contained in or carried on by letters | 32 | |
4792652306 | flashback | A method of narration in which present action is temporarily interrupted so that the reader can witness past events | 33 | |
4792652307 | foreshadowing | A narrative device that hints at coming events; often builds suspense or anxiety in the reader. | 34 | |
4792653452 | foot | A metrical unit composed of stressed and unstressed syllables. | 35 | |
4792653453 | frame story | A secondary story or stories embedded in the main story | 36 | |
4792654632 | free verse | Poetry that does not have a regular meter or rhyme scheme | 37 | |
4792654633 | genre | A category or type of literature (or of art, music, etc.) characterized by a particular form, style, or content. | 38 | |
4792654634 | hamartia | tragic flaw which causes a character's downfall | 39 | |
4792655640 | heroic couplet | A pair of rhymed, iambic pentameter lines. | 40 | |
4792655641 | hexameter | A line of poetry that has six metrical feet. | 41 | |
4792656360 | hubris | Excessive pride or arrogance that results in the downfall of the protagonist of a tragedy | 42 | |
4792656361 | hyperbole | A figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor | 43 | |
4792656362 | iamb | A common meter in poetry consisting of an unrhymed line with five feet or accents, each foot containing an unaccented syllable and an accented syllable. | 44 | |
4792657713 | imagery | Descriptive or figurative language in a literary work; the use of language to create sensory impressions. | 45 | |
4792657714 | irony | A contrast or discrepancy between what is stated and what is really meant, or between what is expected to happen and what actually does happen. | 46 | |
4792657715 | verbal irony | In this type of irony, the words literally state the opposite of the writer's true meaning | 47 | |
4792659013 | situational irony | Occurs when the outcome of a work is unexpected, or events turn out to be the opposite from what one had expected | 48 | |
4792659014 | dramatic irony | Irony that occurs when the meaning of the situation is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play. | 49 | |
4792660210 | jargon | Special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand | 50 | |
4792660211 | juxtaposition | Placement of two things closely together to emphasize comparisons or contrasts | 51 | |
4792661651 | kenning | A device employed in Anglo-Saxon poetry in which the name of a thing is replaced by one of its functions or qualities. | 52 | |
4792729485 | metaphor | A comparison that establishes a figurative identity between objects being compared. | 53 | |
4792729486 | meter | A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry | 54 | |
4792730243 | metonymy | A figure of speech in which something is referred to by using the name of something that is associated with it | 55 | |
4792730244 | mood | Feeling or atmosphere that a writer creates for the reader | 56 | |
4792730245 | motif | (n.) a principal idea, feature, theme, or element; a repeated or dominant figure in a design | 57 | |
4792730803 | motivation | A psychological factor that provides a directional force or reason for behavior. | 58 | |
4792730804 | narration | The purpose of this type of rhetorical mode is to tell the story or narrate an event or series of events. | 59 | |
4792731772 | novel | A long fictional narrative written in prose, usually having many characters and a strong plot. | 60 | |
4792731773 | novella | A short novel usually under 100 pages. | 61 | |
4792732727 | novelette | When a novel is short and has chapters reffered to as vignettes | 62 | |
4792732728 | octave | a verse form consisting of eight lines of iambic pentameter | 63 | |
4792732729 | ode | A lyric poem usually marked by serious, respectful, and exalted feelings toward the subject. | 64 | |
4792733926 | onomatopoeia | A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words. | 65 | |
4792733927 | oxymoron | A figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory terms in a brief phrase. | 66 | |
4792734762 | paean | song of joy or triumph; a fervent expression of joy | 67 | |
4792734763 | parable | A simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson | 68 | |
4792735585 | paradox | A statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth. | 69 | |
4792735586 | parallelism | Phrases or sentences of a similar construction/meaning placed side by side, balancing each other | 70 | |
4792737177 | parody | A work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule. | 71 | |
4792737178 | pedantic | An adjective that describes words, phrases, or general tone that is overly scholarly, academic, or bookish. | 72 | |
4792737179 | pentameter | a rhythm in poetry that has five stressed syllables in each line (five metrical feet) | 73 | |
4792738086 | persona | A pattern of relatively permanent traits, dispositions, or characteristics that give some consistency to people's behavior. | 74 | |
4792738087 | personification | A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes | 75 | |
4792738088 | plot | Sequence of events in a story | 76 | |
4792739161 | point of view | The perspective from which a story is told | 77 | |
4792740103 | polysyndeton | Deliberate use of many conjunctions in close succession, especially where some might be omitted. Hemingway and the Bible both use extensively. Ex. "he ran and jumped and laughed for joy" | 78 | |
4792742361 | prosody | Appropriate expression when reading. Includes pitch (intonation), loudness, stressing phrases, etc. | 79 | |
4792742362 | protagonist | Chief character in a dramatic or narrative work, usually trying to accomplish some objective or working toward some goal. | 80 | |
4792743327 | pun | A joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word or the fact that there are words that sound alike but have different meanings. | 81 | |
4792925877 | quatrain | 4 line stanza | 82 | |
4792925878 | refrain | A line or set of lines repeated several times over the course of a poem. | 83 | |
4792926708 | rhetorical question | A question asked merely for rhetorical effect and not requiring an answer | 84 | |
4792926709 | end rhyme | A word at the end of one line rhymes with a word at the end of another line | 85 | |
4792926710 | eye rhyme | rhyme that appears correct from spelling but does not rhyme because of pronunciation | 86 | |
4792927911 | forced rhyme | when two words don't really rhyme together, but an author uses similar spelled, or sounding words to try to create a rhyme; Ex: stone, one | 87 | |
4792927912 | internal rhyme | A word inside a line rhymes with another word on the same line | 88 | |
4792927913 | slant rhyme | rhyme in which the vowel sounds are nearly, but not exactly the same (i.e. the words "stress" and "kiss"); sometimes called half-rhyme, near rhyme, or partial rhyme | 89 | |
4792928884 | rhyme scheme | A regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem | 90 | |
4792929866 | satire | A literary work that criticizes human misconduct and ridicules vices, stupidities, and follies. | 91 | |
4792930685 | sestet | a rhythmic group of six lines of verse | 92 | |
4792930686 | shifts/turns | Changes in the speaker's attitude. Look for key words such as but, yet, however, and although, punctuation, and stanza division. | 93 | |
4792931443 | sonnet | 14-line lyric poem focused on a single theme; usually written in iambic pentameter | 94 | |
4792931444 | symbol | A thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract. | 95 | |
4792932428 | synecdoche | a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa | 96 | |
4792932429 | syntax | Arrangement of words in phrases and sentences | 97 | |
4792932430 | theme | A topic of discussion or writing; a major idea broad enough to cover the entire scope of a literary work. | 98 | |
4792933094 | tone | A writer's attitude toward his or her subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language, and organization on the sentence and global levels. | 99 | |
4792933095 | understatement | the presentation of something as being smaller, worse, or less important than it actually is. | 100 | |
4792933096 | villanelle | A French verse form calculated to appear simple and spontaneous but consisting of nineteen lines and a prescribed pattern of rhymes. | 101 |
AP Literature - Literary Terms Flashcards
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