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AP Literature Terms (with images) Flashcards

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4479290380AllegoryThe representation of abstract ideas or principles by characters, figures, or events in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form.0
4479290381AlliterationThe repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of several words in a line of poetry.1
4479290382AnaphoraRepetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive lines in a poem.2
4479290383ApostropheWhen a character speaks to a character or object that is not present or is unable to respond.3
4479290384AssonanceThe repetition of the same vowel sound in a phrase or line of poetry.4
4479290385ClimaxThe turning point in the plot or the high point of action.5
4479290386Colloquial LanguageInformal, conversational language. Indicative of a specific region.6
4479290387ConnotationAn idea or meaning suggested by or associated with a word or thing, ie. Bat=evil.7
4479290388DictionWord choice or the use of words in speech or writing.8
4479290389EnjambmentThe continuation of reading one line of a poem to the next with no pause, a run-on line.9
4479290390EpiphanySudden enlightenment or realization, a profound new outlook or understanding about the world usually attained while doing everyday mundane activities.10
4479290391FlashbackWhen a character remembers a past event that is relevant to the current action of the story.11
4479290392ForeshadowingClues in the text about incidents that will occur later in the plot; creates anticipation in the novel.12
4479290393HyperboleA figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis or comic/dramatic effect.13
4479290394ImageryThe use of vivid or figurative language to represent objects, actions, or ideas. Also includes sensory language.14
4479290395IronyWhen one thing should occur, is apparent, or in logical sequence but the opposite actually occurs.15
4479290396MeterThe measured arrangement of words in poetry, as by accentual rhythm, syllabic quantity, or the number of syllables in a line.16
4479290397MetaphorA figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison; this comparison does not use like or as.17
4479290398MotifA dominant theme or central idea.18
4479290399OnomatopoeiaThe formation or use of words such as buzz or murmur that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.19
4479290400ParodyA literary or artistic work that imitates the characteristic style of an author or a work for comic effect or ridicule.20
4479290401PersonificationA figure of speech in which inanimate objects or abstractions are endowed with human qualities or are represented as possessing human form.21
4479290402ProseOrdinary speech or writing without metrical structure, written in paragraph form.22
4479290403SimileA figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared, often in a phrase introduced by like or as.23
4479290404SoliloquyA dramatic or literary form of discourse in which a character talks to himself or herself or reveals his or her thoughts without addressing a listener. Typical in plays.24
4479290405SymbolismSomething that represents something else by association, resemblance, or convention, especially a material object used to represent something invisible.25
4479290406ToneReflects how the author feels about the subject matter or the feeling the author wants to instill in the reader.26
4479290407TragedyA drama or literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances.27
4479290408SonnetA poem with fourteen lines. There are Italian and English (typically referred to as "Shakespearean") forms.28
4479290409SatireA literary work in which human vice or folly is attacked through irony, derision, or wit; the goal is to change the behavior/issue.29

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