American Literature Flashcards
(136 cards)
The repetition of a similar sound most often consonant sounds at the beginning of words
Alliteration
A reference in a work of literature to a character, a place or situation from history from music and art or another work of literature
Allusion
A comparison to show similarities between two things that are otherwise dissimilar. Writers often use an analogy to explain something unfamiliar by comparing it to something familiar
Analogy
A person or a force that opposes the protagonist or central characters in a story or drama. The reader is generally meant not to sympathize with the antagonist.
Antagonist
A short pointed statement that expresses a wise or clever observation about the human experience.
Aphorisms
In play a comment made by a character that is heard by the audience or another character but is not heard by the audience or another character is not heard by another character on stage
Aside
The dominant mood or feeling conveyed by a piece of writing.
Atmosphere
The story of a person’s life written by that person.
Autobiography
An account of someone’s life written by someone else.
Biography
The creation or construction of a fictional character.
Characterization
Greek or Roman principles and style in art and literature, generally associated with harmony, restraint, and adherence to recognized standards of form and craftsmanship, especially from the Renaissance to the 18th century.
Classicism
The climax or turning point of a narrative work is its point of highest tension and drama, or it is the time when the action starts during which the solution is given. The climax of a story is a literary element.
Climax
is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium.
Comedy
A particular form of a language which is peculiar to a specific region or social group
Dialect
Conversation between two or more people as a feature of a book, play, or movie
Dialogue
The choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing.
Diction
is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television
Drama
A long poem, typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the deeds and adventures of heroic or legendary figures or the history of a nation
Epic
A pithy saying or remark expressing an idea in a clever and amusing way
Epigram
An adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned.
Epithet
is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author’s own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have traditionally been sub-classified as formal and informal.
Essay
A comprehensive description and explanation of an idea or theory.
Exposition
A short story, typically with animals as characters, conveying a moral.
Fable
A comic dramatic work using buffoonery and horseplay and typically including crude characterization and ludicrously improbable situations.
Farce
