AP Literature Terms Flashcards

2725425041	allegory	a literary work in which characters, object, or actions represent abstractions	0
2725425042	aliteration	the repetition of initial sounds in successive or neighboring words	1
2725425043	allusion	a reference to something literary, mythological, or historical that the author assumes the reader will recognize	2
2725425044	analogy	a comparison of two different things that are similar in some way	3
2725425045	anaphora	the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of consecutive lines or sentences	4
2725425046	anecdote	a brief narrative that focuses on a particular incident or event	5
2725425047	antecedent	the word, phrase, or clause to which a pronoun refers	6
2725425048	antithesis	a statement in which two opposing ideas are balanced	7
2725425049	aphorism	a concise statement that expresses succinctly a general truth or idea, often using rhyme or balance	8
2725425050	apostrophe	a figure of speech in which one directly addresses an absent or imaginary person, or some abstraction	9
2725425051	chiasmus	a statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed	10
2725425052	cliche	an expression that has been overused to the extent that its freshness has worn off	11
2725425053	colloquialism	informal words or expressions not usually acceptable in formal writing	12
2725425054	conceit	a fanciful, particularly clever extended metaphor	13
2725425055	elegy	a formal poem presenting a meditation on death or another solemn theme	14
2725425056	ellipsis	the omission of a word or phrase which is grammatically necessary but can be deduced from the context	15
2725425057	epigram	a brief, pithy, and often paradoxical saying	16
2725425058	epigraph	a saying or statement on the title page of a work, or used as a heading for a chapter or other section of a work	17
2725425059	foreshadowing	the presentation of material in such a way that the reader is prepared for what is to come later in the work	18
2725425060	genre	a major category or type of literature	19
2725425061	hyperbole	intentional exaggeration to create an effect	20
2725425062	hypothetical question	a question that raises a hypothesis, conjecture, or supposition	21
2725425063	idiom	an expression in a given language that cannot be understood from the literal meaning of the words in the expression; or, a regional speech or dialect	22
2725425064	imagery	the use of figures of speech to create vivid images that appeal to one of the senses	23
2725425065	inference	a conclusion one draws (infers) based on premises or evidence	24
2725425066	invective	an intensely vehement, highly emotional verbal attack	25
2725425067	irony	the use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning; or, incongruity between what is expected and what actually occurs	26
2725425068	juxtaposition	placing two elements side by side to present a comparison or contrast	27
2725425069	litotes	a type of understatement in which an idea is expressed by negating its oppostie (descriing a particularly horrific scene by saying, "it was not a pretty picture.")	28
2725425070	malapropism	the mistaken substitution of one word for another word that sounds similar	29
2725425071	maxim	a concise statement, often offering advice; an adage	30
2725425072	metaphor	a direct comparison of two different things	31
2725425073	metonymy	substituting the name of one object for another object closely associated with it	32
2725425074	mood	the emotional atmosohere of a work	33
2725425075	motif	a standard theme, element, or dramatic situation the recurs in various works	34
2725425076	non sequitur	an inference that does not follow logically from the premises	35
2725425077	onomatopoeia	a word formed from the imitation of natural sounds	36
2725425078	oxymoron	an expression in which two words that contradict each other are joined	37
2725425079	paradox	an apparently contradictory statement that actually contains some truth	38
2725425080	parallelism	the use of corresponding grammatical of syntactical forms	39
2725425081	parody	a humorous imitation of a serious work	40
2725425082	philippic	a strong verbal denunciation	41
2725425083	polysyndeton	the use, for rhetorical effect, of more conjunction than is necessary or natural	42
2725425084	pun	a play on words, often achieve through the use of words with similar sounds but different meanings	43
2725425085	rhetoric	the art of presenting ideas in a clear, effective, and persuasive manner	44
2725425086	rhetorical question	a question asked merely for rhetorical efffect and not requiring an answer	45
2725425087	rhetorical devices	literary techniques used to heighten the effectiveness of expression	46
2725425088	romantic	a term describing a character or literary work the reflects that characteristics of Romanticism, the literary movement beginning the late 18th century that stress emotion, imagination, and individualism	47
2725425089	scapegoat	a person or group that bears the blame for another	48
2725425090	simile	a comparison of two things using "like," "as," or other specifically comparative words	49
2725425091	solecism	nonstandard grammatical usage; a violation of grammatical rules	50
2725425092	surrealism	an artistic movement emphasizing the imagination and characterized by incongruous juxtapositions and lack of conscious control	51
2725425093	syllepsis	a construction in which one word is used in two different sense	52
2725425094	syllogism	a three-part deductive argument in which a conclusion is based on a major premise and a minor premise	53
2725425095	symbol	an object that is used to represent something else	54
2725425096	synecdoche	using one part of an object to represent the entire object	55
2725425097	synesthesia	describing one kind of sensation in term of another	56
2725425098	syntax	the manner in which words are arranged into sentences	57
2725425099	tautology	needless repetition which adds no meaning or understanding	58
2725425100	theme	a central idea of a work	59
2725425101	thesis	the primary position taken by a writer or speaker	60
2725425102	tone	the attitude of a writer, usually implied, toward the suject or audience	61
2725425103	topic	the subject treated in a paragraph or work	62
2725425104	tragedy	a work in which the protagonist, a person of high degree, is engaged in a significant struggle which ends in ruin or destruction	63
2725425105	trilogy	a work in three parts, each of which is a complete work in itself	64
2725425106	trite	overused and hackneyed	65
2725425107	turning point	the point in a work in which a very significant change occurs	66
2725425108	understatement	the deliberate representation of something as lesser in magnitude than it actually is; a deliberate under-emphasis	67
2725425109	usage	the customary way language or its elements are used	68
2725425110	vernacular	the every day speech of a particular country or region, often involving nonstandard usage	69