AP Literature - Literary Terms Flashcards

4792558922	allegory	A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.	0
4792562362	alliteration	It is a stylistic device in which a number of words, having the same first consonant sound, occur close together in a series.	1
4792562363	allusion	A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance.	2
4792562364	anagram	a word or phrase spelled by rearranging the letters of another word or phrase	3
4792563495	antecedent	The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun.	4
4792563496	antagonist	A character or force in conflict with the main character	5
4792575246	anaphora	A rhetorical figure of repetition in which the same word or phrase is repeated in (and usually at the beginning of) successive lines, clauses, or sentences.	6
4792576343	anastrophe	Inversion of the natural or usual word order	7
4792576344	antithesis	A balancing of two opposite or contrasting words, phrases, or clauses.	8
4792577273	aphorism	A brief, cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life.	9
4792577274	apostrophe	A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or a personified abstraction, such as liberty or love.	10
4792578477	assonance	Repetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity	11
4792603548	asyndeton	A series of words separated by commas (with no conjunction), e.g. "I came, I saw, I conquered." The parts of the sentence are emphasized equally; in addition, the use of commas with no intervening conjunction speeds up the flow of the sentence.	12
4792607585	blank verse	Poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter	13
4792612933	caesura	A natural pause or break in a line of poetry, usually near the middle of the line.	14
4792616607	cacophony	Harsh, discordant, or meaningless mixture of sounds	15
4792616608	cadence	Rhythmic rise and fall	16
4792616609	conceit	A fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects.	17
4792617470	connotation	All the meanings, associations, or emotions that a word suggests	18
4792617471	consonance	Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity.	19
4792618720	couplet	A pair of rhymed lines that may or may not constitute a separate stanza in a poem.	20
4792618721	dactyl	A stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables	21
4792618722	denotation	Dictionary definition of a word	22
4792620641	denouement	an outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot	23
4792620642	diction	The choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing	24
4792620643	didactic	Intended to instruct; teaching, or teaching a moral lesson	25
4792648530	dirge	a funeral hymn or mournful speech	26
4792648531	euphemism	An indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant	27
4792649783	end-stopped line	A line that ends with a natural speech pause, usually marked by punctuation	28
4792649784	enjambment	A run-on line of poetry in which logical and grammatical sense carries over from one line into the next.	29
4792649785	epitaph	A brief statement written on a tomb or gravestone	30
4792650836	epic	A long narrative poem, written in heightened language, which recounts the deeds of a heroic character who embodies the values of a particular society	31
4792650837	epistolary	A piece of literature contained in or carried on by letters	32
4792652306	flashback	A method of narration in which present action is temporarily interrupted so that the reader can witness past events	33
4792652307	foreshadowing	A narrative device that hints at coming events; often builds suspense or anxiety in the reader.	34
4792653452	foot	A metrical unit composed of stressed and unstressed syllables.	35
4792653453	frame story	A secondary story or stories embedded in the main story	36
4792654632	free verse	Poetry that does not have a regular meter or rhyme scheme	37
4792654633	genre	A category or type of literature (or of art, music, etc.) characterized by a particular form, style, or content.	38
4792654634	hamartia	tragic flaw which causes a character's downfall	39
4792655640	heroic couplet	A pair of rhymed, iambic pentameter lines.	40
4792655641	hexameter	A line of poetry that has six metrical feet.	41
4792656360	hubris	Excessive pride or arrogance that results in the downfall of the protagonist of a tragedy	42
4792656361	hyperbole	A figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor	43
4792656362	iamb	A common meter in poetry consisting of an unrhymed line with five feet or accents, each foot containing an unaccented syllable and an accented syllable.	44
4792657713	imagery	Descriptive or figurative language in a literary work; the use of language to create sensory impressions.	45
4792657714	irony	A contrast or discrepancy between what is stated and what is really meant, or between what is expected to happen and what actually does happen.	46
4792657715	verbal irony	In this type of irony, the words literally state the opposite of the writer's true meaning	47
4792659013	situational irony	Occurs when the outcome of a work is unexpected, or events turn out to be the opposite from what one had expected	48
4792659014	dramatic irony	Irony that occurs when the meaning of the situation is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play.	49
4792660210	jargon	Special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand	50
4792660211	juxtaposition	Placement of two things closely together to emphasize comparisons or contrasts	51
4792661651	kenning	A device employed in Anglo-Saxon poetry in which the name of a thing is replaced by one of its functions or qualities.	52
4792729485	metaphor	A comparison that establishes a figurative identity between objects being compared.	53
4792729486	meter	A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry	54
4792730243	metonymy	A figure of speech in which something is referred to by using the name of something that is associated with it	55
4792730244	mood	Feeling or atmosphere that a writer creates for the reader	56
4792730245	motif	(n.) a principal idea, feature, theme, or element; a repeated or dominant figure in a design	57
4792730803	motivation	A psychological factor that provides a directional force or reason for behavior.	58
4792730804	narration	The purpose of this type of rhetorical mode is to tell the story or narrate an event or series of events.	59
4792731772	novel	A long fictional narrative written in prose, usually having many characters and a strong plot.	60
4792731773	novella	A short novel usually under 100 pages.	61
4792732727	novelette	When a novel is short and has chapters reffered to as vignettes	62
4792732728	octave	a verse form consisting of eight lines of iambic pentameter	63
4792732729	ode	A lyric poem usually marked by serious, respectful, and exalted feelings toward the subject.	64
4792733926	onomatopoeia	A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words.	65
4792733927	oxymoron	A figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory terms in a brief phrase.	66
4792734762	paean	song of joy or triumph; a fervent expression of joy	67
4792734763	parable	A simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson	68
4792735585	paradox	A statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.	69
4792735586	parallelism	Phrases or sentences of a similar construction/meaning placed side by side, balancing each other	70
4792737177	parody	A work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule.	71
4792737178	pedantic	An adjective that describes words, phrases, or general tone that is overly scholarly, academic, or bookish.	72
4792737179	pentameter	a rhythm in poetry that has five stressed syllables in each line (five metrical feet)	73
4792738086	persona	A pattern of relatively permanent traits, dispositions, or characteristics that give some consistency to people's behavior.	74
4792738087	personification	A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes	75
4792738088	plot	Sequence of events in a story	76
4792739161	point of view	The perspective from which a story is told	77
4792740103	polysyndeton	Deliberate use of many conjunctions in close succession, especially where some might be omitted. Hemingway and the Bible both use extensively. Ex. "he ran and jumped and laughed for joy"	78
4792742361	prosody	Appropriate expression when reading. Includes pitch (intonation), loudness, stressing phrases, etc.	79
4792742362	protagonist	Chief character in a dramatic or narrative work, usually trying to accomplish some objective or working toward some goal.	80
4792743327	pun	A joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word or the fact that there are words that sound alike but have different meanings.	81
4792925877	quatrain	4 line stanza	82
4792925878	refrain	A line or set of lines repeated several times over the course of a poem.	83
4792926708	rhetorical question	A question asked merely for rhetorical effect and not requiring an answer	84
4792926709	end rhyme	A word at the end of one line rhymes with a word at the end of another line	85
4792926710	eye rhyme	rhyme that appears correct from spelling but does not rhyme because of pronunciation	86
4792927911	forced rhyme	when two words don't really rhyme together, but an author uses similar spelled, or sounding words to try to create a rhyme; Ex: stone, one	87
4792927912	internal rhyme	A word inside a line rhymes with another word on the same line	88
4792927913	slant rhyme	rhyme in which the vowel sounds are nearly, but not exactly the same (i.e. the words "stress" and "kiss"); sometimes called half-rhyme, near rhyme, or partial rhyme	89
4792928884	rhyme scheme	A regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem	90
4792929866	satire	A literary work that criticizes human misconduct and ridicules vices, stupidities, and follies.	91
4792930685	sestet	a rhythmic group of six lines of verse	92
4792930686	shifts/turns	Changes in the speaker's attitude. Look for key words such as but, yet, however, and although, punctuation, and stanza division.	93
4792931443	sonnet	14-line lyric poem focused on a single theme; usually written in iambic pentameter	94
4792931444	symbol	A thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract.	95
4792932428	synecdoche	a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa	96
4792932429	syntax	Arrangement of words in phrases and sentences	97
4792932430	theme	A topic of discussion or writing; a major idea broad enough to cover the entire scope of a literary work.	98
4792933094	tone	A writer's attitude toward his or her subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language, and organization on the sentence and global levels.	99
4792933095	understatement	the presentation of something as being smaller, worse, or less important than it actually is.	100
4792933096	villanelle	A French verse form calculated to appear simple and spontaneous but consisting of nineteen lines and a prescribed pattern of rhymes.	101