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AP English Literature and Composition > AP Exam Flashcards - Glossary > Flashcards

AP Exam Flashcards - Glossary

1
Q

gerund

A

word that acts as both a noun and a verb
ex. “swimming across the lake is fun” - swimming

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2
Q

participle

A

word that acts as both an adjective and a verb
ex. “the girl, swimming across the lake, reminds me of my sister” - swimming

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3
Q

abstract

A

complex style discussing intangibles (good, evil), usually without examples as support

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4
Q

academic

A

dry, theoretical writing (analysis)

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5
Q

accent

A

stressed portion of a word in a poem (sometimes interpretable, sometimes not)

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6
Q

aesthetic(s)

A

adj: appealing to the senses
noun: coherent sense of taste
aesthetics (pl.): study of beauty

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7
Q

allegory

A

story where each aspect has a symbolic meaning beyond the text

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8
Q

alliteration

A

repetition of initial sounds

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9
Q

allusion

A

reference to another work or famous figure
- classical: Greek, Roman mythology, literature like “The Iliad”
- topical: current event
- popular: pop culture

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10
Q

anachronism

A

“misplaced in time”
ex. if an actor in “Julius Caesar” forgets to take off his wristwatch, which doesn’t belong in that time

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11
Q

analogy

A

comparison, usually between two or more symbolic parts

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12
Q

anecdote

A

short narrative

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13
Q

antagonist

A

character, group, characteristic, entity in opposition to protagonist

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14
Q

antecedent

A

a word, phrase, or clause that a pronoun replaces or is in reference to
ex. “the principal asked the children where they were going” - they is the pronoun, children the antecedent

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15
Q

anthropomorphism

A

when inanimate objects, animals, natural phenomena are given human characteristics or motivations

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16
Q

anticlimax

A

when an action has a smaller effect than expected; usually comic

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17
Q

aphorism

A

short and witty saying

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18
Q

apostrophe

A

address to someone not present, or to a personified object/idea

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19
Q

archaism

A

deliberate use of old-fashioned language (feelings of antiquity)

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20
Q

archetypes

A

standard, cliched character types

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21
Q

aside

A

short comment made by actor to audience, as if stepping aside of the action on stage

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22
Q

ballad

A

long, narrative poem with regular meter and rhyme; naive, folk-like, distinguished from epic poetry

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23
Q

bathos

A

straining for grandiosity with no effect

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24
Q

bombast

A

pretentious, exaggerated language (use of largest and most uncommon words, maybe)

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25
burlesque
broad parody ex. taking on "Hamlet" and exaggerating it until ridiculous
26
cacophony
deliberately harsh, awkward sounds
27
canto
name for a section division in long poetry (think chapters)
28
catharsis
"cleansing" of emotion of an audience member after having lived vicariously through a performance
29
chorus
group of people who stand outside and comment on main action
30
classic vs. classical
classic: typical, or accepted masterpiece classical: arts of ancient Greece/Rome
31
coinage (neologism)
word invented on the spot ex. using someone's name as a replacement for something bad
32
colloquialisim
word or phrase used in conventional English that is not "schoolbook" (formal)
33
conceit, controlling image, extended metaphor
poetry; startling, unusual metaphor, one developed over several lines controlling image: metaphor that dominates the work
34
denotation
literal meaning
35
connotation
everything but a literal meaning; everything suggested/implied
36
consonance
repetition of consonant sounds within words, not at beginning ex. flock of sick black ducks
37
couplet
pair of lines that end in rhyme
38
decorum
when a character's speech is modeled around social conformities or expectations
39
dirge
a song for the dead (slow, heavy, melancholy)
40
dissonance
incompatible sounds
41
doggerel
crude, simplistic verse; usually presented as part of sing-song rhyme
42
dramatic irony
when the audience knows something the character does not
43
elegy
poem about death or mortality (serious, thoughtful); usually use recent death of famous person or family member as starting point
44
enjambment
continuation of syntactic unit from one line or couplet to next, with no pause
45
epitaph
lines commemorating dead at burial place; usually serious or religious, sometimes witty
46
euphony
harmonious blend of sounds
47
farce
today: extremely broad humor earlier: funny play, comedy
48
feminine rhyme
lines rhymed by final two syllables
49
foot
basic rhythmic unit of a line of poetry (combination of stressed/unstressed syllables)
50
hubris
excessive pride or ambition leading to downfall
51
en medias res
"in the midst of things"; action in epic poems usually begins in medias res
52
inversion
switching conventional order of elements in sentence, phrase
53
lament
poem of sadness, grief over intense loss
54
loose and periodic sentence
loose: complete before its end periodic: not grammatically correct until its punctuation
55
lyric
poetry focused on feelings about the world; for tone, usually sweet, emotional, and melodious
56
masculine rhyme
regular rhyme (rhyme based on final syllable)
57
melodrama
hero is very good; villain is very bad; heroine is very pure (archetypes)
58
metonym
word used to stand for something that it is associated with
59
onomatopoeia
words that imitate sounds
60
opposition
pair of contrasting elements that make each other more vivid, informative because of their contrast
61
parable
story that instructs (fable, allegory)
62
paradox
situation that seems to contradict itself but actually does not
63
parallelism
repeated syntactical similarities
64
parody
work making fun of another work by exaggerating its qualities
65
pastoral
poem set in tranquil nature (specifically about shepherds)
66
personification
giving an inanimate object human qualities or form (physical shape)
67
plaint
poem epxressing sorrow
68
refrain
line or set of lines repeated several times throughout a poem
69
protagonist
main character of a novel or play
70
requiem
song of prayer for the dead
71
rhapsody
intensely passionate verse, usually focused on love or praise
72
satire
humor focused on making fun of society through witty, dark social commentary (raise awareness to ridiculousness)
73
stanza
group of lines in verse, analogous to paragraph
74
suspension of disbelief
acceptance of an audience or reader of the incidents of plot in a story
75
syncope
contracting or shortening a word by removing internal sounds, syllables, or letters, using an apostrophe instead ex. heav'n, ev'ry, fail'd
76
synecdoche
figure of speech where part represents whole
77
tragic flaw (hamartia)
weakness of a character that is otherwise good which ultimately leads to demise
78
travesty
distortion, corruption, terribly false representation of something
79
truism
too obvious truth
80
verisimilitude
appearance of being real or true
81
zeugma
use of a word to modify two or more words, but for different meanings ex. "he closed the door and his heart on his lost love"

AP English Literature and Composition (2 decks)

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