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AP Literature Vocab Flashcards

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3811916873AllegoryPOETIC DEVICES: using character and/or story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literal meaning Ex: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis0
3811916874AlliterationRHYME: the repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words Ex: "Bright black-eyed creature, brushed with brown."1
3811916875AllusionPOETIC DEVICE: a (in)direct reference to something which is presumably commonly known Ex: biblical references in the Grapes of Wrath2
3811916876AmbiguityOTHER: the multiple meanings of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage Ex: "Each of us saw her duck"3
3811916877AmphibrachOTHER METER: a foot with unstressed, stressed, unstressed syllables Ex: Chi-ca-go4
3811916878AmphimacerOTHER METER: a foot with stressed, unstressed, stressed syllables Ex: at-ti-tude5
3811916879AnacrusisOTHER METER: an extra unaccented syllable at the beginning of a line before the regular meter begins Ex: "Mine / by the right / of the white / election"6
3811916880AnadiplosisPOETIC DEVICES: the repetition of a key word, especially the last one, at the beginning of the next sentence/clause Ex: "They call for you: The general who became a slave; the slave who became a gladiator; the gladiator who defied an Emperor."7
3811916881AnalogyPOETIC DEVICES: a similarity/comparison between two different things or the relationship between them Ex: "Life is like a box of chocolates."8
3811916882AnapestMETER: a foot in poetry with two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed syllable Ex: con-tra-dict9
3811916883AnaphoraPOETIC DEVICES: repeating a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences for emphasis Ex: I have a dream that... I have a dream ...10
3812843845AnastropheGRAMMAR: the normal order of words is reversed in order to achieve a particular effect of emphasis or meter Ex: the soldier strong, shouts the policeman, worlds between11
3811916884AnathemaOTHER: a thing or person accursed or damned; a formal curse or condemnation excommunicating a person; any strong curse Ex: Hitler12
3811916885AntecedentGRAMMAR: the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun Ex: "Bob works at McDonald's. He loves it" (Bob is the ___ for "He")13
3811916886AnticlimaxPOETIC DEVICES: using a sequence of ideas that abruptly diminish in dignity or importance at the end of a sentence Ex: He'd been waiting his whole life to pick up the penny.14
3811916887AntimetabolePOETIC DEVICES: repeating words in reverse order for surprise and emphasis Ex: "Eat to live, not live to eat."15
3811916888AntithesisPOETIC DEVICES: a contrast or opposition of thoughts; the exact opposite Ex: "Love is the ___ of selfishness"16
3811916889AphorismOTHER: a terse statement of known authorship which expresses a general truth or a moral principle Ex: The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.17
3811916890ApostrophePOETIC DEVICE: a figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or personified abstraction Ex: liberty or love18
3811916891AppositionGRAMMAR: When a noun or word is followed by another noun or phrase that renames or identifies it Ex: "she looked like a mechanical woman, a machine with flashing, glassy circles for eyes"19
3811916892ArchetypeOTHER: the original pattern or model from which all other things of the same kind are made; a perfect example of a type or group Ex: hero20
3811916893AssonanceRHYME: the repetition of vowel sounds in a series of words as in "cry" and "side" Ex: "Burnt the fire of thine eyes"21
3811916894AsyndetonPOETIC DEVICES: leaving out usual conjunctions between coordinate sentence elements Ex: Smile, shake hands, part.22
3811916895AtmosphereOTHER: the emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work Ex: sad (from rain; gloomy diction, melancholy tone, etc.)23
3811916897Balanced sentenceGRAMMAR: phrases or clause balance each other in structure, meaning, or length Ex: "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters."24
3811916898BalladPOEM TYPES: simple, narrative verse which tells a story to be sung or recited Ex: "Richard Cory" by Edward A Robinson25
3811916899BathosPOETIC DEVICES: an abrupt change from the lofty to the ordinary or trivial in writing or speech (same as anticlimax)26
3811916900Blank versePOEM TYPES: unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter Ex: "Something there is that doesn't love a wall. That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it, And spills the upper boulders in the sun;"27
3811916901CacophonyRHYME: the use of inharmonious sounds in close conjunction for effect (opposite of euphony) Ex: Or, my scrofulous French novel On grey paper with blunt type! Simply glance at it, you grovel Hand and foot in Belial's gripe;28
3811916902CaesuraOTHER METER: a pause or break in the middle of a line of poetry Ex: "Flood-tide below me! || I see you face to face!"29
3811916903CatalexisOTHER METER: an extra unaccented syllable at the ending of a line after the regular meter ends Ex: "I'll tell / you how / the sun / rose"30
3811916904ChiasmusPOETIC DEVICES: reversing the grammatical elements of a sentence for emphasis Ex: "Never let a Fool Kiss You or a Kiss Fool You."31
3811916905Complex sentenceGRAMMAR: one independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses Ex: You said that you would tell the truth.32
3811916906Compound sentenceGRAMMAR: contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinate conjunction or by a semicolon Ex: The singer bowed to the audience, but she sang no encores.33
3811916907Compound-complex sentenceGRAMMAR: contains two or more independent clauses and one or more subordinate clauses Ex: The singer bowed while the audience applauded, but she sang no encores34
3811916908ConceitPOETIC DEVICES: a fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects Ex: The broken heart is a damaged china pot.35
3811916909ConsonanceRHYME: the repetition of a consonant sound within a series of words to produce a harmonious effect Ex: And all is seared with trade; bleared smeared with toil; And wears man's smudge and shares men's smell; the soil36
3811916910CoupletMETER: a pair of lines37
3811916911DactylMETER: a foot in poetry with one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables Ex: ma-ni-ac38
3811916912DidacticOTHER: teaching; any work that aims to teach or instruct Ex: The Bible39
3811916913DimeterMETER: a verse written in two-foot lines40
3811916914DirgePOEM TYPES: a funeral hymn; a slow, sad song, poem or musical composition expressing grief or mourning Ex: funeral march song41
3811916915Dramatic monologuePOEM TYPES: a lyric poem in which the speaker tells an audience about a dramatic moment in his/her life42
3811916916ElegyPOEM TYPES: a poem of lament/praise, meditating on death; as in given during a funeral service Ex: "Elegy for Jane"43
3811916917EllipsisGRAMMAR: the omission of a word or words necessary for complete grammatical construction but understood in the context Ex: ...44
3811916918EnjambmentOTHER METER: the running on of a sentence from one line or couplet to the next, with little or no pause Ex: Green rustlings, more-than-regal charities Drift coolly from that tower of whispered light.45
3811916919EpanalepsisPOETIC DEVICES: opening and closing a sentence with the same word or phrase for surprise and emphasis Ex: Buster is deeply concerned to promote the health and well-being of Buster46
3811916920EpicPOEM TYPES: a long, dignified narrative poem (gives account of a hero) Ex: "Iliad" by Homer47
3811916921EpigramPOEM TYPES: a short poem with a witty or satirical point; any terse, witty, pointed statement, often antithetical48
3811916922EpistlesPOEM TYPES: literary letter addressed to a distant person or group of people Ex: the book of Ephesians49
3811916923EpitaphPOEM TYPES: inscription on a tomb or gravestone in memory/tribute to a dead person Ex: "Here lies...."50
3811916924EpithetOTHER: an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned. Ex: Alexander "the Great"51
3811916925EuphemismPOETIC DEVICES: a more agreeable/less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept Ex: "passed away"52
3811916926EuphonyRHYME: the quality of having a pleasing sound; pleasant combination of agreeable sounds Ex: I knew a woman, lovely in her bones, When small birds sighed, she would sigh back at them.53
3811916927Eye rhymeRHYME: similarity of words in spelling but not in pronunciation Ex: "love" and "move"54
3811916928FablePOEM TYPES: a brief story that uses non-human characters to teach a lesson or moral Ex: The Tortoise and the Hare55
3811916929Feminine RhymeRHYME: rhyme in which two consecutive syllables of the rhyming words correspond; double rhyme Ex: Trembling, hoping, lingering, flying O the pain, the bliss of dying!56
3811916930FootOTHER METER: the units by which meter is measured usually containing two syllables; (un)accented/(un)accented57
3811916931Free versePOEM TYPES: unrhymed lines without regular rhythm58
3811916932HaikuPOEM TYPES: Japanese verse; three lines of five, seven, and five syllables.59
3811916933HomilyPOEM TYPES: a solemn, moralizing talk or writing Ex: a sermon60
3811916934IambMETER: a foot in poetry with one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable Ex: bal-loon61
3811916935IdyllPOEM TYPES: lyric poetry describing the life of the Shepard in pastoral, idealistic terms; little picture Ex: Come live with me and be my Love, And we will all the pleasures prove That hills and valleys, dale and field, And all the craggy mountains yield.62
3811916936InferOTHER: to conclude or decide from something known or assumed; derive by reasoning Ex: I inferred he was sick because he had a fever and was vomitting63
3811916937InvectiveOTHER: a violent verbal attack; strong criticism, curses Ex: "I hate you"64
3811916938Inverted order of a sentenceGRAMMAR: constructing a sentence so that the predicate comes before the subject Ex: In California oranges grow (Yoda)65
3811916939IronyPOETIC DEVICES: the contrast between actual meaning and the suggestion of another meaning a. Verbal: meaning one thing and saying another b. Dramatic: 2 levels of meaning (speaker's vs author's) c. Situational: when something unexpected occurs66
3811916940IsocolonGRAMMAR: involves a succession of sentences, phrases and clauses of grammatically equal length Ex: What the hammer? what the chain? In what furnace was thy brain? What the anvil? what dread grasp Dare its deadly terrors clasp?67
3811916941JuxtapositionPOETIC DEVICES: the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.68
3811916942Light versePOEM TYPES: written to entertain (lyric, epigrams, and limericks), but can also have a serious side (parody or satire)69
3811916943LimerickPOEM TYPES: humorous nonsense-verse in five anapestic lines (aabba)70
3811916945LitotesPOETIC DEVICES: understatement employed for the purpose of enhancing the effect of the ideas expressed; contains a negative Ex: "Not bad"71
3811916946Loose sentenceGRAMMAR: makes sense if brought to a close before the actual ending Ex: We reached Edmonton/that morning/after a turbulent flight/ and some exciting experiences72
3811916947LyricPOEM TYPES: subjective, reflective poetry with regular rhyme scheme and meter; reveals the poet's thoughts and feelings to create a single unique impression Ex: elegies, odes, and sonnets73
3811916948Masculine rhymeRHYME: rhyme in which only the last, accented syllable of the rhyming words correspond exactly in sound Ex: She walks in beauty like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies; And all that's best of dark and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes:74
3811916949MetonymyPOETIC DEVICES: the use of the name of one thing for that of another associated with or suggested by it Ex: "the White House" or the "President"75
3811916950Mock heroicOTHER: burlesquing or mocking heroic manner, action, or character76
3811916951MonometerMETER: a verse written in one-foot lines77
3811916952MoodOTHER: the atmosphere of a literary work Ex: indicative, imperative, and subjunctive78
3811916953MotifOTHER: a main theme or subject79
3811916954MythOTHER(TYPES): a fictional tale that explains the actions of gods or heroes or the causes of natural phenomena Ex: The myths of the greek gods80
3811916955NarrativePOEM TYPES: nondramatic, objective verse with regular rhyme scheme and meter; story81
3811916956Natural order of a sentenceGRAMMAR: constructing a sentence so the subject comes before the verb Ex: Oranges grow in California82
3811916957NovelTYPES: a fictional prose narrative Ex: The Pearl83
3811916958OdePOEM TYPES: elaborate lyric verse which deals seriously with a dignified theme; expresses strong love/respect for something/someone Ex: Ode (from ode packet)84
3811916959OnomatopoeiaRHYME: the use of a word whose sound suggests its meaning Ex: "Bang" OR "The buzz saw snarled and rattled in the yard"85
3811916960OxymoronPOETIC DEVICES: contradictory terms brought together Ex: "jumbo shrimp"86
3811916961ParablePOEM TYPES: a brief story that generaly uses human characters to teach a moral lesson Ex: Christ's parables (different seed types)87
3811916962ParadoxPOETIC DEVICE: a statement which appears self-contradictory, but underlines a basis of truth Ex: "Elected silence, sing to me"88
3811916963ParallelismPOETIC DEVICES: grammatical or structural similarity between sentences or parts of a sentence Ex: I learned to swim, to play, and to ride.89
3811916964ParodyPOEM TYPES: imitates and makes fun of another work type of work (good intentioned)90
3811916965PedanticOTHER: an unnecessary display of scholarship lacking in judgement or sense of proportion Ex: Emily couldn't stand her geometry class, because her teacher made a big deal if the students did not follow an exact color coded system of pens or colored pencils when doing their homework.91
3811916966PentameterMETER: a verse written in five-foot lines92
3811916967Periodic SentenceGRAMMAR: makes sense only when the end of the sentence is reached Ex: That morning, after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, we reached Edmonton.93
3811916968PeriphrasisGRAMMAR: the use of indirect and circumlocutory speech or writing. Ex: When that fell arrest Without all bail shall carry me away.94
3811916969Point of viewOTHER: the person or intelligence the writer creates to tell the story to the reader Ex: the ____ of a character in the story or an outside narrator95
3811916970PolyptotonOTHER: the stylistic scheme in which words derived from the same root are repeated Ex: "strong" and "strength"96
3811916971ProseOTHER: the ordinary form of written or spoken language, without rhyme or meter Ex: anything that is not poetry97
3811916972ProsodyOTHER: the science or art of versification including the study of metrical structure, rhyme, stanza forms, etc.98
3811916973PunPOETIC DEVICES: play on words that are identical or similar in sound but have sharply diverse meanings Ex: Santa's helpers are known as subordinate Clauses.99
3811916974RepetitionPOETIC DEVICES: in which words, sounds, or ideas are used more than once to enhance rhythm and create emphasis Ex: "...government of the people, by the people, for the people..."100
3811916975Rhyme schemeRHYME: pattern of rhymes with a unit of verse; represented by letters Ex: ababab cdcdcd abba baab101
3811916976RomanceOTHER: a story that presents remote or imaginative incidents rather than ordinary commonplace experiences Ex: The Notebook102
3811916977SatireOTHER: a work that ridicules various aspects of human behavior; often to correct certain faults (attacking) Ex: the Colbert Report103
3811916978SemanticsOTHER: the branch of linguistics and logic concerned with meaning of words Ex: "Some see the glass half empty and others see the glass half full."104
3811916979Simple sentenceGRAMMAR: contains one subject and one verb Ex: "The cat jumped"105
3811916980Slant rhymeRHYME: rhyme in which either the vowels or the consonants of stressed syllables are identical Ex: eyes, light; years, yours106
3811916981SonnetPOEM TYPES: a rigid 14-line verse form, usually about love, death, or life, and either Shakespearean or Petrarchan (abbaabba then sestet varies) Ex: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day..."107
3811916982Split order of a sentencePOETIC DEVICES: divides the predicate into two parts with the subject coming in the middle Ex: "In California oranges grow"108
3811916983SpondeeMETER: a duple foot with two stressed syllables Ex: man-made, football109
3811916984Stream of consciousnessPOETIC DEVICES: a narrative technique that presents thoughts as if they were coming directly from a character's mind Ex: Holden Caulfield's musings in Catcher in the Rye110
3811916985Submerged metaphorOTHER: a metaphor in which the vehicle is implied, or indicated by one aspect Ex: "my winged thought"111
3811916986SyllogismOTHER: form of reasoning; two premises are made -> logical conclusion drawn Ex: "All mammals are warm blooded. Whales are mammals. Therefore whales are warm blooded."112
3811916987SymbolismPOETIC DEVICES: the use of one object to suggest another, hidden object or idea Ex: the crucifix -> Christianity113
3811916988SynecdochePOETIC DEVICES: a figure of speech wherein a part of something is used to signify the whole Ex: "Not a hair perished (person)."114
3811916989Synesthetic imageryPOETIC DEVICES: detail that moves from the stimulation of one sense to a response by another sense Ex: "the cinnamon beat of the music"115
3811916990SyntaxPOETIC DEVICES (General): sentence structure and word order116
3811916991TercetMETER: three lines of poetry117
3811916992TetrameterMETER: a verse written in four-foot lines118
3811916993TrimeterMETER: verse written in three-foot lines119
3811916994TriteOTHER: an expression or idea which through repeated use or application has lost its original freshness; cliche Ex: "fair and square"120
3811916995TrocheeMETER: a foot in poetry with one stressed syllable followed by one unstressed syllable Ex: so-da121
3811916996UnderstatementPOETIC DEVICES: a literary device in which a writer or speaker attributes less importance or conveys less passion than the subject would seem to demand122
3811916997VernacularPOETIC DEVICES: using the native language of a country or place Ex: medical lingo used by doctors "stat"123
3811916998VignettePOEM TYPES: a short, delicate literary sketch Ex: "Some boys taught me to play football. This was fine sport. ... In winter, ... the boys and I threw snowballs at passing cars. I got in trouble throwing snowballs, and have seldom been happier since."124
3811916999VillanellePOEM TYPES: a French verse form (simple/spontaneous); five tercets and a final quatrain (aba aba aba aba aba abaa) Ex: "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas125
3811917000VoltaOTHER: the turn of thought or argument in a Sonnet Ex: for Petrarchan: occurs between the octave and sestet for Shakespearean: occurs before the final couplet126
3811917001ZeugmaOTHER: a figure of speech in which a word applies to two others in different senses Ex: "John and his license expired last week"127

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