Definitions

Question 1

alliteration

Answer 1

the repetition of initial consonants - should be atleast two repetitions in a row

Question 2

allusion

Answer 2

a reference to a famous person or event in life or literature

Question 3

anagnorisis

Answer 3

a moment of epiphany; character discovers his true identity

Question 4

anecdote

Answer 4

a brief story

Question 5

antagonist

Answer 5

the character who opposes the protagonist; contrast to the protagonist

Question 6

antonomasia

Answer 6

identification of a person by an appropriate subtitle

Question 7

apostrophe

Answer 7

addressing an abstraction or thing, present or absent, or addressing an absent person or entity

Question 8

archetype

Answer 8

original model for person appearing later in history or in literature

Question 9

climax

Answer 9

the turning point of the action in the plot of a play or story - represents the point of greatest tension in the work

Question 10

dialogue

Answer 10

the actual words that characters speak; conversation

Question 11

diction

Answer 11

words authors use (word choice)

Question 12

dramatic irony

Answer 12

failure of character to see/understand what is obvious to the audience

Question 13

euphemism

Answer 13

word/phrase that soften the hard reality of truth

Question 14

flashback

Answer 14

when events that took place before the current action of a story are explained in order to give background information; often reflected by characters thinking back to previous events

Question 15

foil characters

Answer 15

a secondary character who contrasts with a major character

Question 16

foreshadowing

Answer 16

hints of what is to come

Question 17

gasconade

Answer 17

bragging

Question 18

hamartia

Answer 18

character flaw; often pride (hubris)

Question 19

hyberbole

Answer 19

exaggeration

Question 20

imagery

Answer 20

descriptive language

Question 21

in medias res

Answer 21

in the middle of things - story begins in the middle of the plot

Question 22

irony

Answer 22

creates a contrast between what is said and what is meant

Question 23

jargon

Answer 23

vocabulary understood by members of a profession/trade but usually not by others

Question 24

juxtaposition

Answer 24

putting opposites beside each other in order to show the difference

Question 25

metaphor

Answer 25

a comparison

Question 26

minor characters

Answer 26

not the protagonist

Question 27

onomatopoeia

Answer 27

the use of words to imitate the sounds they describe

Question 28

oration

Answer 28

speech delivered with great emotion to spur listeners to action

Question 29

oxymoron

Answer 29

putting two contradictory words together

Question 30

pathetic fallacy

Answer 30

when nature mimics what is happening in a story

Question 31

pathos

Answer 31

quality in a play that awakens feelings of sympathy

Question 32

personification

Answer 32

giving human qualities to animals or objects

Question 33

protagonist

Answer 33

the main character

Question 34

realism

Answer 34

presentation of life as it actually is

Question 35

satire

Answer 35

blends a critical attitude with humor - purpose is to ridicule in order to inspire reform

Question 36

simile

Answer 36

comparison using like or as

Question 37

soliloquy

Answer 37

speech given by a character revealing his innermost thoughts while being alone on stage

Question 38

static characters

Answer 38

characters who do not change their outlooks in response to events taking place

Question 39

stock characters

Answer 39

stereotype characters

Question 40

round/dynamic/multidimensional/complex characters

Answer 40

characters who have many aspects to their personality

Question 41

symbol

Answer 41

an object/image/character/action that stands for an idea beyond its literal meaning

Question 42

tone

Answer 42

the attitude the author has toward the subject; most created through the author’s choice of words

Question 43

tragedy

Answer 43

play with a calamitous ending

Question 44

understatement

Answer 44

a form of irony in which something is intentionally represented as less important that it is