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AP English Literature Vocabulary Flashcards

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840799024foreshadowingto hint at or to present an indication of the future beforehand0
840799087enjambmentthe continuation of a sentence from one line of a poem to the next1
840799095pastorala work that describes the simple life of country folk who live in a timeless, painless life in a world full of beauty, music and love; bucolic, idyll2
840799157odea lyric poem that is somewhat serious in subject and treatment, elevated in style and sometimes uses elaborate stanza structure, which is often patterned in sets of three3
840799158antithesisthe juxtaposition of sharply contrasting ideas in balanced or parallel words, phrases, grammatical structure, or ideas4
840799161apostrophean address or invocation to something that is inanimate5
840799162denotationa direct and specific meaning, often reffered to as the dictionary definition of a word6
840799165blank versethe verse form consisting of unrhymed lines in iambic pentameter7
840799168caesurapause in a line of verse, indicated by natural speech patterns rather than due to specific metrical patterns8
840799169antagonistany force that is in opposition to the main character9
840799170colloquialordinary language, the vernacular10
840799171themea generalized, abstract paraphrase of the dominant idea or concern of a work11
840799172couplettwo rhyming lines of iambic pentameter that together present a single idea or connection12
840799174dialectthe language and speech idiosyncrasies of a specific area, region, or group of people13
840799175synechdochewhen a part is used to signify a whole, as in "All hands on deck!"-hands= sailors14
840799176dictionthe specific word choice an author uses to persuade or convey tone, purpose, or effect15
840799177syntaxthe way words are put together to form phrases, clauses, and sentences16
840799179flashbackretrospection, where an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronology of the narrative17
840799180elegya poetic lament upon the death of a particular person, usually ending in consolation18
840799183epica poem that celebrates, in a continuou narrative, the achievements of mighty heroes and heroines, often concerned with the founding of a nation or developing of a culture19
840799185allusiona reference to a literary or historical event, person, or place20
840799186extended metaphora detailed and complex metaphor that extends over a long section of a work; also called a conceit21
840805284farcea play or scene in a play or book that is characterized by broad humor, wild antics, and often slapstick and physical humor22
840805285in-medis-resrefers to opening a story in the middle of the action, necessitating filing in past details by exposition or flashback; literally, "in the midst of things"23
840805288formal dictionlanguage that is lofty, dignified, and impersonal24
840805289expositionthat part of the structure of a plot that sets the scene, introduces and identifies characters, and establishes the situation at the beginning of a story or play25
840805558satirea literary work that holds up human failing to ridicule26
840805559alliterationthe sequential repetition of similar initial sound, usually applied to consonants, usually heard in closely proximate stressed syllables27
840805562stylea distinctive manner of expression expressed through an author's diction, rhythm, imagery, and more28
840805563free versepoetry that is characterized by varying line lengths, lack of traditional meter, and non-rhyming lines29
840805564genrea type or class of literature such as epic or narrative or poetry30
840805565hyperboleoverstatement characterized by exaggerated language31
840805566iambica metrical foot in poetry that consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable32
840805569conceita comparison of two unlikely things that is drawn out within a piece of literature; in particular, an extended metaphor within a poem33
840807959motifa recurrent device, formula, or situation that often serves as a signal for the appearance of a character or event34
840807969dramatic monologuealso, a soliloquy; a monologue set in a specific situation and spoken to an imaginary audience35
840807970imagerybroadly defined, any sensory detail or evocation in a work; more narrowly, the use of figurative language to evoke a feeling, to call to mind an idea, or to describe an object36
840807971informal dictionlanguage that is not as lofty or impersonal as formal diction; similar to everyday speech37
840807972ironya situation or statement characterized by a significant difference between what is expected or understood and what actually happens or is meant38
840807978lyricany short poem in which the speaker expresses intense personal emotion rather than desciribing a narrative or dramatic situation; a sonnet and ode are two examples39
840810212consonancethe repetition of a sequence of two or more consonants, but with a change in the intervening vowels40
840810213mooda feeling or ambiance resulting from the tone of a piece as well as the writer/narrator's attitude and point of view41
840811671metaphorone thing pictured as if it were something else, suggesting a likeness or analogy between them; an implicit comparison of two unlike things42
840811672villanellea verse form consisting of nineteen lines divided into six stanzas- five tercets and one quatrain; the first and third line of the first tercet rhyme, and this rhyme is repeated through each of the next four tercets and in the last two lines of the concluding quatrain43
840811673allegorya prose or poetic narrative in which the characters, behavior, and even the setting demonstrates multiple levels of meaning and significance; often is a universal symbol or personified abstraction44
840811674tonethe attitude a literary work takes toward its subject and theme45
840811675narrative structurea textual organization based on sequences of connected events, usually presented in a straightforward, chronological framework46
840811681narratorthe character who tells the story47
840811683connotationwhat is suggested by a word, apart from what it explictly describes48
840811685omniscientalso called unlimited focus; a perspective that can be seen from multiple characters49
840811689oxymorona figure of speech that combines two apparently contradictory elements, sometimes resulting in a humorous image or statement50
840811691parablea short fiction that illustrates an explicit moral lesson through the use of analogy51
840811693realismthe practice in literature of attempting to describe nature and life without idealization and with attention to detail52
840811694juxtapositionthe location of one thing as being adjacent with another; this placement of two items side by side creates a certain effect, reveals an attitude, or accomplishes some purpose of the writer53
840811695ancedotea brief story or tale told by a character in a piece of literature54
840811705structurethe organization or arrangement of the various elements in a work55
840811706parallel structurethe use of similar forms in writing for nouns, verbs, phrases, or thoughts; maintains balance and symmetry56
840811708personathe voice or figure of the author who tells and structures the story and who may or may not share the values of the actual author57
840811709archetyperecurrent designs, patterns of action, character types, themes, or images which are identifiable in a wide range of literature58
840811710refraina repeated stanza or line(s) in a poem or song59
840811711quatraina poetic stanza of four lines60
840811712rhymethe repetition of the same or similar sounds, most often at the ends of lines61
840811717similea direct, explicit comparison of two things, usually using like or as to draw the connection62
840811718solioquya monologue in which the character in a play is alone and speaking only to himself or herself63
840811735protagonistthe main character in a work who may or may not be heroic64
840811736assonancerepetition of identical or similar vowel sounds, usually those found in stressed syllables of close proximity65
840811737personificationtreating an abstraction or nonhuman object as if it were a person by endowing it with human qualitites66
840812195Shakespearean sonneta sonnet form divided into three quatrains and one couplet; also called an English sonnet67
840812529onomatopoeiaa work capturing or approximating the sound of what it describes68
840812530speakerthe person, not necessarily the author, who is the voice of the poem69
840812532symbolisma person, place, thing, event, or pattern in a literary work that designates itself and at the same time figuratively represents something else70
840812533Petrachan sonneta sonnet form divided into an octave and a sestet; also called an Italian sonnet71
840812534settingthe time and place of the action in a story, poem, or play72
840812535tragedya drama in which a character, usually of noble or high rank, is brought to a disastrous end in confrontation with a superior force73
840812536sestinaa highly structured poem consisting of six six-line stanzas followed by a tercet; the same set of six words ends the lines of each of the six-line stanzas, but in a different order each time74
840812537paradoxa statement that seems contradictory but may actually be true75
840812542rhythmthe modulation of weak and strong (stressed and unstressed) elements in the flow of speech76
840812543terza rimaa verse form consisting of three-line stanzas in which the second line of each rhymes with the first and third of the next77

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