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AP Literature Vocabulary (Poems) Flashcards

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3194460731AllegoryA literary work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions (EX: Death portrayed as Grim reaper)0
3194483224AlliterationRepetition of consonant sounds (EX: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickeled peppers)1
3194493329AllusionA brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance2
3194522292AnapesticMetrical foot in poetry that consists of two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed syllable (Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house)3
3194548705AnaphoraRepetition of a word or words at the beginning of two or more successive verses, clauses, or sentences (EX: I have a dream Speech)4
3194550756AnecdoteA brief narrative that focuses on a particular incident or event. (EX: Canterburry Tale's)5
3194554376AntagonistA character or force in conflict with the main character6
3194557285AntithesisA juxtaposition of sharply contrasting ideas in balanced or parallel words, phrases, grammatical structure, ideas. (EX: Laugh and the world laughs with you; Weep and you will weep alone)7
3194572571ApostropheA figure of speech in which someone absent or dead or something nonhuman is addressed as if it were alive and present and could reply (EX: Someone releasing anger yelling at the ocean; retard)8
3194584725ArchetypeA detail, image, or character type that occurs frequently in literature and myth and is thought to appeal in a universal way to the unconscious and to evoke a response, very identifiable9
3194591478AssonanceRepetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity10
3194596450AsyndetonA construction in which elements are presented in a series without conjunctions (EX: I came, I saw, I conquered.)11
3194600298AttitudeSense expressed by the tone of the voice or mood of a piece of writing12
3194613232BalladA narrative poem written in four-line stanzas, characterized by swift action and narrated in a direct style. Meant to be sung13
3194622530Ballad StanzaFour-line stanzas (quatrains) with alternating four-beat and three-beat lines, and rhymes in the second and fourth lines.14
3194627085Blank Verseverse without rhyme, especially that which uses iambic pentameter.15
3194630484CaesuraA pause in a line of verse, indicated by natural speech patterns rather than due to specific metrical patterns.16
3194632351Caricaturea verbal description, the purpose of which is to exaggerate or distort, for comic effect, a person's distinctive physical features or other characteristics. (Example: The pupils of her eyes are small; like a pebble of sand floating atop a can of blue paint. or Political cartoons)17
3194637889ChiasmusA statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed ("Susan walked in, and out rushed Mary."), A statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed ("Susan walked in, and out rushed Mary." or Pleasure's a sin, and sometimes sin's a pleasure)18
3194646184ColloquialCharacteristic of ordinary conversation rather than formal speech or writing19
3194650299ConceitA fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects. (EX; Love affair as flower growing, not similar)20
3194657351ConnotationAll the meanings, associations, or emotions that a word suggests, implied meaning (EX: I loveeee your outfit, bullshit)21
3194665926ConsonanceRepetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity. (Pitter-patter, pish posh)22
3194673881CoupletA pair of rhymed lines that may or may not constitute a separate stanza in a poem.23
3194678384Dactylicstressed unstressed unstressed24
3194687577DenotationDirect and specific meaning, often referred to as the dictionary definition25
3194689782Denouementan outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot26
3194691621DialectA regional speech pattern; the way people talk in different parts if the world. Dialect is a from or regionalism in writing and is often refereed to as "colloquial language"27
3194694785DictionWord choice to persuade or convey tone28
3194696157Dramatic monolougepoem in which a speaker addresses a silent or absent listener in a moment of high intensity of deep emotion; no dialogue, the poet speaks through an assumed voice (Soliloquy, To be or not to be)29
3194702572Elegya poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.30
3194705148Enjambmentthe continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza.31
3194708874EpicA long narrative poem, written in heightened language, which recounts the deeds of a heroic character who embodies the values of a particular society (EX: Odyssey)32
3194710524ExpositionA narrative device, often used at the beginning of a work that provides necessary background information about the characters and their circumstances.Sets the scene33
3194713115Extended MetaphorA metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work.34

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