AP Literature Vocabulary Flashcards

7110044303	Abstract	existing in thought or as an idea but not having a physical or concrete existence.	0
7110044304	Adage	A proverb, wise saying	1
7110045718	Allegory	A story in which each aspect of the story has a symbolic meaning outside the tale itself.	2
7110045719	Alliteration	Repetition of initial consonant sounds	3
7110046090	Allusion	an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly	4
7110046091	Ambiguity	An event or situation that may be interpreted in more than one way.	5
7110046833	Anachronism	something out of place in time	6
7110046834	Analogy	A similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them.	7
7110046835	Annotation	(n.) a critical or explanatory note or comment, especially for a literary work	8
7110049238	Antagonist	A character or force in conflict with the main character	9
7110049239	Antithesis	a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else	10
7110049808	Aphorism	A brief, cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life.	11
7110049809	Apostrophe	addressing someone or thing, most probably dead, within a speech or poem	12
7110050152	Archetype	Prototypical story lines which most stories follow; kind of a skeleton for the body that is a novel	13
7110050746	Assonance	Repetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity	14
7110050747	Ballad	a songlike narrative about an adventure or a romance	15
7110050748	Bard	A poet; in olden times, a performer who told heroic stories to musical accompaniment.	16
7110051429	Bibliography	A document showing all the sources used to research information.	17
7110051430	Blank verse	verse without rhyme, especially that which uses iambic pentameter.	18
7110051835	Burlesque	A work of literature meant to ridicule a subject; a grotesque imitation.	19
7110051836	Caesura	A natural pause or break in a line of poetry, usually near the middle of the line.	20
7110052236	Canon	an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature	21
7110052237	Caricature	A grotesque or exaggerated likeness of striking qualities in persons and things.	22
7110052737	Carpe diem	Literally, "seize the day"; enjoy life while you can, a common theme in literature	23
7110052738	Catharsis	the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions.	24
7110053805	Classical	An age marked by great achievements, 1750-1830	25
7110053806	Climax	Most exciting moment of the story; turning point	26
7110054784	coming-of-age story	an adolescent central character moves from childhood to adulthood	27
7110054785	Conceit	A fanciful, particularly clever extended metaphor	28
7110055186	Connotation	All the meanings, associations, or emotions that a word suggests	29
7110055187	Consonance	Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity.	30
7110055188	Couplet	A pair of rhymed lines that may or may not constitute a separate stanza in a poem.	31
7110055459	Denotation	The dictionary definition of a word	32
7110055932	Denouement	an outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot	33
7110055933	Diction	the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing.	34
7110055934	Dramatic Irony	the contrast between what a character expects and what the audience knows is true	35
7110055935	Elegy	a sorrowful poem or speech	36
7110056628	Ellipsis	in a sentence, the omission of a word or words replaced by three periods	37
7110057217	Elliptical Construction	A sentence containing a deliberate omission of words.	38
7110057218	Empathy	Identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives	39
7110057219	End-Stopped	When the end of a line in poetry has a pause noted with some kind of punctuation	40
7110057790	Enjambment	In poetry, the use of successive lines with no punctuation or pause between them	41
7110057791	Epic	A long narrative poem telling of a hero's deeds	42
7110057792	Epigram	A concise but ingenious, witty, and thoughtful statement.	43
7110058130	Euphony	pleasant, harmonious sound	44
7110058131	Epithet	A descriptive name or phrase used to characterize someone or something	45
7110058132	Euphemism	An indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant	46
7110058415	Expose	to put something out for others to see	47
7110058416	Exposition	a comprehensive description and explanation of an idea or theory.	48
7110058417	Explication	the act of interpreting or discovering the meaning of a text	49
7110059517	Extended metaphor	A metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work.	50
7110059518	Fable	A brief story that leads to a moral, often using animals as characters	51
7110059519	Falling action	Events after the climax, leading to the resolution	52
7110059918	Fantasy	A highly imaginative type of fiction in which the events could not really happen.	53
7110059919	Farce	broad comedy; mockery; humorous play full of silly things happening; ADJ. farcical	54
7110060285	Figure of speech	A device used to produce figurative language. Many compare dissimilar things.	55
7110060286	First-person	The story is told by one of the characters in his/her own words	56
7110060673	Flashback	present action is temporarily interrupted so that past events can be described	57
7110060674	Foil	A character who contrasts and parallels the main character in a play or story.	58
7110060675	Foot	A metrical unit composed of stressed and unstressed syllables.	59
7110060676	Foreshadowing	the use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in a plot	60
7110061306	Frame	A structure that provides a premise or setting for a narrative or other discourse.	61
7110061307	Free verse	Poetry that does not have a regular meter or rhyme scheme	62
7110061308	Genre	a major category or type of literature	63
7110061754	Gothic novel	a suspenseful story that usually features a gloomy setting and supernatural occurrences	64
7110061755	Harangue	A long, strongly expressed speech or lecture	65
7110062209	Heroic couplet	Iambic pentameter lines rhymed in pairs.	66
7110062210	Hubris	excessive pride or self-confidence	67
7110062211	Humanism	A belief that emphasizes faith and optimism in human potential and creativity	68
7110062821	Hyperbole	exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.	69
7110062822	Idyll	Story or incident in peaceful or ideal setting	70
7110062823	Image	Description that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste)	71
7110063159	Indirect quotation	actual words are not stated but only approximated or paraphrased	72
7110063160	Irony	the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning	73
7110063161	Kenning	a device in which the name of a thing is replaced by one of its functions or qualities a compound expression in Old English and Old Norse poetry with metaphorical meaning	74
7110063551	Lampoon	a written satire used to ridicule or attack someone	75
7110063552	Light verse	A variety of poetry meant to entertain or amuse, but sometimes with a satirical thrust	76
7110064104	Litotes	A form of understatement that involves making an affirmative point by denying its opposite	77
7110064105	Loose sentence	A complex sentence in which the main clause comes first and the subordinate clause follows	78
7110064106	Lyric poetry	A short poem in which a single speaker expresses personal thoughts and feelings	79
7110064880	Maxim	A general truth or fundamental principle, esp. expressed as a proverb or saying	80
7110064881	Melodrama	genre of musical theater that combined spoken dialogue with background music	81
7110064882	Metaphor	A comparison that establishes a figurative identity between objects being compared.	82
7110065284	Metaphysical poetry	intricate 17th century English poetry employing wit and unexpected images Poetry that rejects worldly value systems (status categories, institutional authority)	83
7110065285	Meter	A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry	84
7110065286	Metonym	Substituting the name of one object for another object closely associated with it	85
7110065287	Middle English	The language spoken in England roughly between 1150 and 1500 A.D.	86
7110065732	Mock epic	A parody of traditional epic form.	87
7110065733	Mode	a way or method of doing something; type, manner, fashion	88
7110065734	Montage	any combination of disparate elements that form a unified, single image	89
7110065735	Mood	Feeling or atmosphere that a writer creates for the reader	90
7110066125	Moral	A brief and often simplistic lesson that a reader may infer from a work of literature.	91
7110066126	Motif	a distinctive feature or dominant idea in an artistic or literary composition	92
7110066127	Muse	(v.) to think about in a dreamy way, ponder	93
7110066128	Myth	a fictional tale that explains the actions of gods or the causes of natural phenomena	94
7110066933	Narrative	The telling of a story or an account of an event or series of events.	95
7110066934	Naturalism	a style and theory of representation based on the accurate depiction of detail.	96
7110066935	Novella	a fiction work that is longer than a short story but shorter than a novel	97
7110066936	Ode	a lyric poem that expresses strong emotions about life	98
7110067621	Old English	Anglo-Saxon, earliest form of English Language, 5th-7th century	99