AP Literature Terminology (2016) Flashcards
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| 4911819748 | Foil | A character who is in most ways opposite to the main character (protagonist) or one who is nearly the same as the protagonist. The purpose of the foil character is to emphasize the traits of the main character by contrast only | 0 | |
| 4911819749 | Hamartia | tragic flaw which causes a character's downfall | 1 | |
| 4911822066 | Catharsis | An emotional discharge that brings about a moral or spiritual renewal or welcome relief from tension and anxiety | 2 | |
| 4911822067 | Deus Ex Machina | "An unrealistic or unexpected intervention to rescue the protagonists or resolve the conflict. The term means ""The god out of the machine"" and refers to stage machinery." | 3 | |
| 4911823686 | Dramatic Irony | Irony that occurs when the meaning of the situation is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play. | 4 | |
| 4911825943 | Round Character | A character who demonstrates some complexity and who develops or changes in the course of a work | 5 | |
| 4911825944 | Static Character | A character that does not change from the beginning of the story to the end | 6 | |
| 4911827916 | Stock Character | a fictional character that relies heavily on cultural types or stereotypes for its personality manner of speech and other characteristics. Stock characters are instantly recognizable to members of a given culture. | 7 | |
| 4911827917 | Flat Character | A character who embodies a single quality and who does not develop in the course of a story | 8 | |
| 4911829789 | Empathy | Identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives | 9 | |
| 4911829790 | Exposition | Background information presented in a literary work. | 10 | |
| 4911829791 | Hyperbole | A figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor | 11 | |
| 4911831223 | Motif | A recurring subject, theme, or idea in a literary work. | 12 | |
| 4911832799 | Paradox | A statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth. | 13 | |
| 4911832800 | Persona | An individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. | 14 | |
| 4911834406 | Connotation | All the meanings, associations, or emotions that a word suggests | 15 | |
| 4911834407 | Denotation | The dictionary definition of a word | 16 | |
| 4911836042 | 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 | 17 | |
| 4911836043 | Resolution | End of the story where loose ends are tied up | 18 | |
| 4911836044 | Ambiguity | An event or situation that may be interpreted in more than one way. | 19 | |
| 4911837760 | Analogy | A comparison of two different things that are similar in some way | 20 | |
| 4911837761 | Canon | A term used widely to refer to a group of literary works that are considered the most important of a particular time period or place. | 21 | |
| 4911837762 | Colloquialism | a word or phrase that is not formal or literary, typically one used in ordinary or familiar conversation. | 22 | |
| 4911837763 | Conceit | A fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects. | 23 | |
| 4911839739 | Euphemism | An indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant | 24 | |
| 4911839740 | Existentialism | A philosophy based on the idea that people give meaning to their lives through their choices and actions | 25 | |
| 4911839741 | Frame | a basic structure that underlies or supports a system, concept, or text | 26 | |
| 4911841801 | Grotesque | Absurd; distorted | 27 | |
| 4911841802 | Local Color | a term applied to fiction or poetry which tends to place special emphasis on a particular setting, including its customs, clothing, dialect and landscape. | 28 | |
| 4911848417 | Hubris | Excessive pride or self-confidence | 29 |