Terms : Hide Images
| 7576413637 | Alliteration | The repetition of accented consonant sounds at the beginning of words that are close to each other, usually to create an effect, rhythm, or emphasis. | 0 | |
| 7576487834 | Allusion | A reference in literature or in art to previous literature, history, mythology, pop culture/current events, or the Bible. | 1 | |
| 7576496247 | Ambiguity | Quality of being intentionally unclear. Events or situations that are ambiguous can be interpreted in more than one way. This device is especially beneficial in poetry, as it tends to grace the work with the richness and depth of multiple meanings. | 2 | |
| 7576516803 | Anachronism | An element in a story that is out of its time frame; sometimes used to create humorous or jarring effect. Beware: This sometimes can also occur because of careless or poor research on the author's part. | 3 | |
| 7576527262 | Analogy | An analogy clarifies or explains an unfamiliar concept or object, or one that cannot be put into words, by comparing it with one which is familiar. By explaining the abstract in terms of the concrete, an analogy may force the reader to think more critically about a concept. Analogies tend to appear more often in prose than poetry. They enliven writing by making it more interesting, entertaining, and understandable. Similes and metaphors are to specific types of analogies. | 4 | |
| 7576564752 | Analysis | The process of examining the components of a literary work. | 5 | |
| 7576569376 | Anapest | The poetic foot (measure) that follows the pattern of unaccented, unaccented, accented. The poet is usually trying to convey a rollicking, moving rhythm with this pattern. | 6 | |
| 7576580701 | Anecdote | A short and often personal story used to emphasize a point, to develop a character or a theme, or to inject humor. | 7 | |
| 7576587562 | Antagonist | A character who functions as a resisting force to the goals of the protagonist. The antagonist is often a villain, but in a case where the protagonist is evil (for example, in Macbeth), the antagonist may be virtuous (i.e. Macduff). | 8 | |
| 7588638713 | Antecedent | The word or phrase to which a pronoun refers. It often precedes a pronoun in prose (but not necessarily in poetry). | 9 | |
| 7588650743 | Anticlimax | An often disappointing, sudden end to an intense situation. | 10 | |
| 7588659112 | Antihero | A protagonist who carries the action of the literary piece but does not embody the classic characteristics of courage, strength, and nobility. | 11 | |
| 7588672187 | Antithesis | A concept that is directly opposed to a previously presented idea. | 12 | |
| 7588682648 | Aphorism | A terse statement that expresses a general truth or moral principle; sometimes considered a folk proverb. | 13 | |
| 7588693076 | Apostrophe | A rhetorical (not expecting an answer) figure of direct address to a person, object, or abstract entity. (can be a poem to someone) | 14 | |
| 7588709021 | Apotheosis | Elevating someone to the level of a god. | 15 | |
| 7588712883 | Archetype | A character, situation, or symbol that is familiar to people from all cultures because it occurs frequently in literature, myth, religion, or folklore. | 16 | |
| 7588748036 | Aside | A short speech or remark made by an actor to the audience rather than to the other characters, who do not hear him or her. Shakespeare's characters often share their thoughts with us in this way. | 17 | |
| 7588762338 | Assonance | The repeated use of a vowel sound. | 18 | |
| 7588765773 | Attitude | The author's feelings toward the topic he or she is writing about. Attitude, often used interchangeably with "tone," is usually revealed through word choice. | 19 | |
| 7588780494 | Aubade | A poem or song about lovers who must leave one another in the early hours of the morning. | 20 | |
| 7588789007 | Ballad | A folk song or poem passed down orally that tells a story of which may be derived from an actual incident or from legend or folklore. Usually composed in four-line stanzas (quatrains) with the rhyme scheme abcb. Ballads often contain a refrain. | 21 | |
| 7588812729 | Blank verse | Unrhymed poetry of iambic pentameter (five feet of two syllables each- unstressed and stressed); favored technique of Shakespeare. (maybe look up example) | 22 |
