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AP Literature: Poetry Terms Flashcards

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6656027218alliterationrepetition of similar consonant sounds0
6656027219allusiona reference in a work of literature to something outside the work, especially to a well-known historical or literary event person or work1
6656027220antithesisa figure of speech characterized by strongly contrasting words, clauses, sentences, or ideas2
6656027221apostrophean address to either an absent person, some abstract quality, or nonexistent personage3
6656027222assonancethe repetition of similar vowel sounds4
6656027223ballada poem or song narrating a story in short stanzas.5
6656027224blank verseunrhymed iambic pentameter6
6656027225cacophonya harsh, unpleasant combination of sounds or tones7
6656027226caesuraa pause, usually near the middle of a line of verse, usually indicated by the sense of the line, and often greater than the normal pause8
6656027227conceitan ingenious and fanciful notion or conception, usually expressed through an elaborate analogy or extended metaphor and pointing to a striking parallel between two seemingly dissimilar things.9
6656027228couplet2 consecutive rhyming lines10
6656027229dictionauthor/poet's word choice11
6656027230didactic poema poem which is intended to teach a lesson12
6656027231dramatic poema poem which employs a dramatic form or some element of dramatic techniques (think theater drama)13
6656027232elegya formal poem that mourns the loss of someone, a lament for the dead14
6656027233end stoppeda line with a pause at the end15
6656027234enjambmentthe continuation from one line to the next with no pause16
6656027235epic poema long narrative poem that records the adventures of a hero17
6656027236extended metaphoran implied analogy, or comparison, which is carried throughout a stanza or an entire poem18
6656027237eye rhyme/slant rhymerhyme that appears correct from spelling, but is half-rhyme or slant rhyme from pronunciation19
6656027238free versepoetry which is not written in traditional meter or rhyme20
6656027239heroic couplettwo rhyming lines of iambic pentameter (ten syllables, unstressed/stressed)21
6656027240hyperboleexaggeration22
6656027241imageryanything that appeals to at least one of the five senses,23
6656027242internal rhymerhyme that occurs within a line, rather than at the end24
6656027243lyric poema short poem that presents a single speaker who expresses thoughts and feelings, usually identified by its musical/lyrical quality25
6656027244metaphora direct comparison26
6656027245metonymya figure of speech which is characterized by the substitution of a term naming an object closely associated with the word in mind for the word itself27
6656027246narrative poema poem which tells a story or presents a narrative (epics and ballads are examples)28
6656027247octavean eight line stanza29
6656027248odea lyric poem written in the form of an address to someone or something, often elevated in style30
6656027249onomatopoeiathe use of words whose sound suggests their meaning31
6656027250oxymorona form of paradox that combines a pair of contrary terms into a single expression32
6656027251paradoxa situation or action or feeling that appears to be contradictory but on inspection turns out to be true or at least to make sense33
6656027252parallelismsimilar grammatical structure within a line or lines of poetry34
6656027253personificationgiving inanimate objects or abstract ideas human characteristics35
6656027254quatrainfour line stanza36
6656027255refraina group of words forming a phrase or sentence and consisting of one or more lines repeated at intervals in a poem, usually at the end of a stanza37
6656027256rhymecorrespondence of sound between words or the endings of words, especially when these are used at the ends of lines of poetry38
6656027257rhythmthe recurrence of stressed and unstressed syllable39
6656027258rhyme schemethe ordered pattern of rhymes at the ends of the lines of a poem or verse.40
6656027259sesteta six line stanza41
6656027260similea comparison of 2 seemingly unlike things using like, as or than42
6656027261sonneta fourteen line poem with a specific rhyme scheme43
6656027262speakerthe voice of the poem, not necessarily the poet44
6656027263stanzaa group of lines in a poem45
6656027264structurethe arrangement of materials within a work46
6656027265symbolsomething that represents something else47
6656027266synecdochea form of metaphor in which mentioning a part signifies the whole48
6656027267syntaxthe ordering of words into patterns or sentences, sentence structure49
6656027268terceta stanza of three lines in which each lines ends with the same rhyme50
6656027269terza rimaa three line stanza rhymed aba, bcb, cdc, etc51
6656027270thememain thought expressed by a work52
6656027271tonethe author's attitude toward the subject53
6656027272understatementa kind of irony that deliberately represents something as being much less than it really is54
6656027273villanellea 19 line poem divided into five tercets and a final quatrain. Line 1 is repeated in lines 6, 12, and 18 and line 3 is repeated in lines 9, 15, 19.55
6656027274meterstressed and unstressed syllabic pattern in a verse or within the lines of a poem56
6656028041Epitapha phrase or statement written in memory of a person who has died, especially as an inscription on a tombstone.57
6656030005Spondeea foot consisting of two long (or stressed) syllables.58

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