english final Flashcards
Abolitionist Writing
writings that are anti-slavery
Protest Poetry
poetry that is written against something
Rhyme Scheme
an author’s pattern of rhyme with other lines in a poem or stanza
Parallelism
when words or phrases are repeated in a similar way but not identical
Symbolism
when a concrete object is used to represent something abstract
Slave Narrative
an account of the life or a major portion of the life of a former slave
Autobiography
someone writing about their own life
Style
the way in which an author writes and/or tells a story
Tone
the attitude of the author
Audience
the people reading or listening to a piece of writing
Purpose
the reason or intent in writing
Objective approach
arguments using impartial language, which is not personal, judgemental, or emotive
Subjective approach
based on the person’s opinions, individual experiences, and based influences instead of facts
Diction
the selection of words an author uses to create a specific impact or tone in their writing
Local color
the certain feel or color you think of in a certain place
Setting
the time, place, and environment
Contrast
when there is a noticeable difference between two people, places, things, or ideas
Realism
a literary movement that represents reality by portraying mundane, everyday experiences as they are in real life
Dialect
a combination of accent, sentence structure, and word choices, that make up each character’s unique voice
Narrative point of view
the voice in which the story is told, 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person
First person
the story is being told by the character, uses personal pronouns
Third person limited
a pov where the narrator only has access to one character’s perspective at a time
Third person omniscient
narrator knows all of the thoughts and feelings of all of the characters at all times
Naturalism
a literary movement that uses determinism, detachment, scientific objectivism, and social commentary. Life is determined by forces beyond your control, mainly heredity and environment
Free verse
no meter or rhyme scheme
Repetition
repeat of the same word, or phrase
Catalog
use of frequent lists of people, things and attributes in poetry
Symbol
a concrete person or thing that represents an abstract idea/quality
Speaker
the voice in a poem that talks to the reader
Theme
a statement (sentence) the author is making about life
Paradox
a statement that seems to contradict itself but may nevertheless suggest an important truth
Metaphor
a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable
Extended metaphor
a metaphor that goes on for multiple sentences or paragraphs
Figurative language
a type of communication that doesn’t use a word’s literal meaning
Imagery
descriptions that help set a certain tone or mood, they can appeal to any or all of the five sense
Personification
assigning inanimate objects human qualities
Transitional poets
poets that show some elements associated with romanticism, but not ignore the old conventions
Experimental structure/style
it experiments with the conventions of literature, including boundaries of genres and styles
Slant rhyme
a type of rhyme with words that have similar, but not identical sounds
Quatrain
a four-line stanza, often with various rhyme schemes
Stanza
a division of a poem consisting of two or more lines arranged together as a unit
American Transcendentalism
each individual has the potential for spiritual perfection, commune with nature/follow your heart, if each individual achieves perfection, then the world will be perfect, and don’t let the world get in the way
Aphorism
short saying that expresses a truth about life
Brook Farm
an attempt at creating a utopia, where everyone was perfectly equal
Emotional appeal
appeals to emotion that are often based on specific examples of suffering or potential
Logical appeal
provide rational arguments to support the writers claims
Inductive/Deductive reasoning
beginning with examples or facts, or starting with a generalization or promise
Dark/Gothic Romanticism
the dark side of human nature, did it to show what happens to bad people so people avoid
Parable
delivers a moral message using characters that change in the story
Dynamic/Round character
characters that change throughout the story
Allegory
a story which teaches a moral lesson through the use of symbolic characters (static/flat, don’t change) and objects that represent abstract ideas such as greed, evil, purity, etc.
Omniscient narrator
Omni= all, niscient= all knowing, all knowing narrator that can see and hear inside the mind of all of the characters, god like voice
Characterization
how the narrator informs the reader the type of character it is
Situational irony
In a particular situation something unexpected happens or is said
Stock character
a well known or stereotypical character
Static/flat character
A character that does not change
Faust Legend
a long tradition of folklore stories where a person makes a deal with the devil selling their soul for earthly power, money, talent, etc
Slave Narrative
an account of the life or a major portion of the life of a former slave
Autobiography
someone writing about their own lifes as they are in real life
Nada
indicating the absence of meaning, value, worth, etc.
Existentialism
a philosophical and literary perspective that focuses on experience of an individual person and the way that he or she understands the world
The Lost Generation
a group of American writers who worked in Europe between WWII and the Great Depression
Code Hero
a man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage, and endurance, in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful
Modernism
a literary movement that focuses on contemporary elements
Alienation
when a person is separated from some essential aspect of their nature, or from society
Isolation:
a state of aloneness in which you truly feel cut off from others because of your location or emotions
Allusion
Allusion is a figure of speech, in which an object or circumstance from an unrelated context is referred to covertly or indirectly
Stream of Consciousness
a narrative style that tries to capture a character’s thought process in a realistic way
Epigraph
a short quote included at the beginning of a piece of writing
verbal irony
when what was said is the opposite of the literal meaning
Flashback
a literal flashback to an earlier time in the story, or before the story
Protagonist
the hero/main character
Foreshadowing
when the author hints to something that will happen later in the story
Motif
a repeated pattern (image, symbol, sound, word) that comes back again and again within a particular story
Jazz Age
refers not just to the musical style but to the 1920s culture and literature as well
Postmodernism
Rejects concepts of rationality, objectivity, and universal truth. Emphasizes the diversity of human experiences and multiplicity of perspectives
