English Literary Terms 10H

Question 1

ad hominem

Answer 1

is Latin for “against the man,” and refers to the logical fallacy (error) of arguing
that someone is incorrect because they are unattractive, immoral, weird, and so on.
Ex: A professor is presenting their latest research on quantum mechanics to a group of
colleagues. At the end of the presentation, a person whispers to the other: “I don’t
believe a word. Did you know that he has been cheating on his partner for years?”

Question 2

allegory

Answer 2

a story within a story. It has a “surface story” and another story hidden underneath.
Dr. Seuss wrote The Sneetches as an allegory for racism and other forms of
prejudice. The story is all about creatures who are treated as inferior because they don’t
have stars on their bellies. It’s written in a child-friendly, playful style, but it still contains
an important political message.

Question 3

alliteration

Answer 3

In alliteration, words that begin with the same sound are placed close together.
Ex: Sally sells seashells by the seashore.

Question 4

allusion

Answer 4

is basically a reference to something else. It’s when a
writer mentions some other work or refers to an earlier part of the current work.
Ex: You’re acting like such a Scrooge!

Question 5

ambiguity

Answer 5

an idea or situation that can be understood
in multiple ways.
EX “The murderer killed the student with a book.” We know what all these words mean
individually, but altogether they are ambiguous; was the book used as a murder
weapon? Or was the victim carrying a book during the attack?

Question 6

analogy

Answer 6

An analogy is a literary technique in which two unrelated objects are compared for
their shared qualities. This is not done for poetic purposes, but to make rational arguments.
Ex: Raising children requires the same dedication you would give to a garden. Nurture
them, feed them, introduce them to both light and dark, and have patience; and soon
you will see them grow into blooming wonders.

Question 7

anaphora

Answer 7

is when a certain word or phrase is repeated at the beginning of
clauses or sentences that follow each other. This repetition emphasizes the phrase while
adding rhythm to the passage, making it more memorable and enjoyable to read.
Ex: I’m sick and tired of you letting me down. I’m sick and tired of you making me mad.
And I’m sick and tired of you doing such silly things!

Question 8

anecdote

Answer 8

is a very short story that is significant to the topic at hand; usually
adding personal knowledge or experience to the topic
Ex: Mom and Dad discuss whether or not to get a dog for the family. Dad says:
You know, when I was a kid, my dog was my best friend. He made my childhood better.
Mom contemplates his anecdote and then agrees that they should get a dog.

Question 9

antithesis

Answer 9

is the opposite of a statement, concept, or idea. In literary
analysis, an antithesis is a pair of statements or images in which the one reverses the other.
The pair is written with similar grammatical structures to show more contrast.
Ex: That’s one small step for a man – one giant leap for mankind. (Neil Armstrong, 1969,
said upon walking on the moon for the first time)

Question 10

aphorism

Answer 10

is a short statement of a general truth, insight, or good advice. It’s
roughly similar to a “saying.”
Ex: “The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.“

Question 11

archetype

Answer 11

is an idea, symbol, pattern, or character-type, in a
story. It’s any story element that appears again and again in stories from cultures around the
world and symbolizes something universal in the human experience.
Ex: Hero, Trickster, Lost Love, the Mentor, and Fire.

Question 12

assonance

Answer 12

is the repetition of the same or similar
vowel sounds within words, phrases, or sentences.
Ex: She seems to beam rays of sunshine with her eyes of green. (4 forms of the same
sound).

Question 13

caesura

Answer 13

refers to a break or pause in the middle of a
line of verse. It can be marked as || in the middle of the line, although generally it is not
marked at all – it’s simply part of the way the reader or singer pronounces the line.
Ex: “Oh, say can you see || by the dawn’s early light…”

Question 14

catharsis

Answer 14

meaning “cleansing” in Greek, refers to a literary theory that cleansing
our emotions was the purpose of a tragedy. Catharsis applies to any form of art or media that
makes us feel strong negative emotions. Afterward, we can walk out of the theater feeling
better. Catharsis is roughly synonymous with the idea of “blowing off steam.”
Ex: If you listen to a death metal song in which the singer screams the lyrics, it might
help lessen your own feelings of needing to scream.

Question 15

cliché

Answer 15

is a saying, image, or idea which has been used
so much that it sounds terribly uncreative.
Ex: As white as snow, happily ever after, don’t judge a book by its cover.

Question 16

connotation

Answer 16

A connotation is a feeling or idea that a word has, in addition to its literal or
main meaning (the denotation) - basically, the emotions or meanings that are implied.
Ex: Here are some word groups where each word has a different feeling or idea 1)
Stench, smell, aroma, scent, odor, and 2) Proud, confident, arrogant, egotistical.

Question 17

consonance

Answer 17

is the repetition of a consonant
sound in a line or sentence, creating rhythm. Alliteration is consonance limited to just sounds
at the beginning of words.
Ex: Are you asking me to come up with examples of consonance? I’ll find it in the lyrics.

Question 18

conundrum

Answer 18

is a difficult problem, one that is
impossible or almost impossible to solve - anything from moral dilemmas to riddles.
Ex: 1. What can be swallowed, or can swallow a person? Pride
2. Imagine you got into only two colleges – one was a better school with better faculty,
but the other has a reputation for being more fun and has a more socially active student
body. Which school should you pick? Which one would make you happy in the future?

Question 19

19. deux ex machina

Answer 19

is Latin for “a god from the machine.” It’s when
some new character, force, or event suddenly shows up to solve a seemingly hopeless
situation-(Hero) The effect is usually unexpected, and it’s often disappointing for audiences.
Ex: In the original story, Little Red Riding Hood is simply eaten by the wolf. But some
later authors, deciding that this was too sad for young children, decided to add a random
woodsman who appears right at the end and kills the wolf.

Question 20

diction

Answer 20

Diction (pronounced DIK-shun) refers to word choice and phrasing in any written or
spoken text.
Ex: formal, informal, elementary teacher, police officer, sarcastic, flowery. The King
James Bible has very distinct diction, with words like “yea” and “thy.”

Question 21

double entendre

Answer 21

A double entendre is much like what it sounds like—a double meaning or
interpretation for a word, phrase, or figure of speech. Usually, the first meaning is
straightforward, but another meaning is slightly inappropriate or risqué.
Ex: At a local farmer’s market, a woman is working at a fruit stand. A man walks up…
Man: “Wow, those are some huge melons you’ve got there. Did you grow them yourself?
Can I see one?”
Woman: “EXCUSE ME?”
Man points to a pile of watermelons behind her.
Man: “The watermelons, can I see one?”
Woman: “Oh, yes, of course. Here you go.”

Question 22

dramatic irony

Answer 22

Dramatic irony occurs when the audience knows something the characters
don’t — so the characters might get an unexpected outcome, but for the audience, it’s not
unexpected at all.
Ex: In the last scene, we saw the intruder sneak into the bedroom, so we feel anxious for
the little girl who walks in five minutes later.

Question 23

equivocation

Answer 23

is the use of vague language to hide one’s meaning or to avoid committing to a
point of view. It’s often used to avoid admitting guilt, without lying openly.
Ex: During a school-closure controversy, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel used the
phrase “optimize school resource utilization” instead of “close schools.”

Question 24

ethos

Answer 24

one of the three basic argumentative appeals, in which a speaker establishes their
credibility and knowledge, as well as their good moral character.
An ad for shampoo features a well-known
celebrity hairdresser who vouches for the product.

Question 25

euphemism

Answer 25

polite, mild phrases which substitute unpleasant ways of
saying something sad or uncomfortable.
Ex: We have to let you go, Tyler (meaning fire) or friendly fire (one army accidentally
killing its own soldiers).

Question 26

exposition

Answer 26

The exposition of a story is the first paragraph or paragraphs in which the
characters, setting (time and place), and basic information is introduced.
Ex: A movie starts by panning over the city or countryside and showing the main
character doing something such as walking, working, or waking up.

Question 27

fallacy

Answer 27

a mistaken belief, especially one based on an unsound argument.
Ex: “The notion that the camera never lies is a fallacy.”

Question 28

hamartia

Answer 28

Hamartia is the tragic flaw or error that reverses a protagonist’s fortune from good
to bad. Hamartia, pronounced hah-mahr-tee–uh, is derived from the Greek phrase
hamartanein meaning “to err” or “to miss the mark.”
Ex: Hamartia includes character flaws such as excessive ambition, greed, or pride which
result in tragic consequences.

Question 29

homophone

Answer 29

is Greek for “same sound.” It’s when two or more
words have the same sound, but different meanings.
Ex: to, too, two, or bear, bare.

Question 30

hubris

Answer 30

means “excessive pride” or “overconfidence. It’s when somebody gets so confident
that they start to believe they’re invincible. As a result, they make foolish decisions that
ultimately bring about their defeat.
Ex: Advertisements for Titanic said she was “practically unsinkable,”

Question 31

hyperbole

Answer 31

is a figure of speech in which an author or speaker purposely and obviously
exaggerates to an extreme.
Ex: I haven’t seen you in a million years!

Question 32

idiom

Answer 32

phrase that conveys a figurative meaning different from the words used.

Question 33

imagery

Answer 33

Language used by poets, novelists, and other writers to create images in the mind
of the reader. Imagery includes figurative and metaphorical language to improve the reader’s
experience through their senses.
Ex: The night was black as ever, but bright stars lit up the sky in beautiful and varied
constellations which were sprinkled across the astronomical landscape. In this example,
the experience of the night sky is described in depth with color (black as ever, bright),
shape (varied constellations), and pattern (sprinkled).

Question 34

inference

Answer 34

An inference is the process of drawing a conclusion from supporting evidence. It’s
when you go beyond the evidence and reach some further conclusion
Ex: I’ve found a way to get some “extra help” on the test.

Question 35

innuendo

Answer 35

is when you say something which is polite and innocent on the surface, but
indirectly hints at an insult or rude comment, a dirty joke, or even social or political criticism.
Ex: I’ve found a way to get some “extra help” on the test.

Question 36

irony

Answer 36

is when there are two contradicting meanings of the same situation, event, image,
sentence, phrase, or story.
A popular visual representation of irony shows a seagull sitting on top of a “no
seagulls” sign.

Question 37

Juxtaposition

Answer 37

is the placement of two or more things
side by side, often in order to bring out their differences.
Ex:A butler spends his days in a beautiful mansion dressed in a tuxedo, but returns
home to a closet-sized apartment in a rundown part of town.

Question 38

logos

Answer 38

or the appeal to logic, means to appeal to the audiences sense of reason or logic

Question 39

motif

Answer 39

A motif is a symbolic image or idea that appears frequently in a story. Motifs can be
symbols, sounds, actions, ideas, or words.

Question 40

nemesis

Answer 40

is an enemy, often a villain.

Question 41

onomatopoeia

Answer 41

refers to words whose
pronunciations imitate the sounds they describe

Question 42

oxymoron

Answer 42

An oxymoron is a figure of speech that puts together opposite elements. The
combination of these contradicting elements serves to reveal a paradox, confuse, or give the
reader a laugh.
Ex: My room is an organized mess, or controlled chaos if you will. Same difference.

Question 43

paradox

Answer 43

is a statement that contradicts itself, or that must be both true and untrue at the
same time. Paradoxes are quirks in logic that demonstrate how our thinking sometimes goes
haywire, even when we use perfectly logical reasoning to get there.
less is more” is a paradox because it contains two words that directly contradict each other: “less” and “more

Question 44

parallelism

Answer 44

also known as parallel structure, is when phrases in a sentence have similar or
the same grammatical structure. In its most basic usage, parallelism provides a phrase with
balance and clarity. Parallelism also serves to give phrases a pattern and rhythm
The famous line by Julius Caesar of “I came, I saw, I conquered” is an example of parallelism because each phrase begins with I and they all agree grammatically as well as in meaning.

Question 45

parody

Answer 45

is a work that’s created by imitating an existing original work in order to make fun of
or comment on an aspect of the original. Parodies can target celebrities, politicians, authors, a
style or trend, or any other interesting subject.

Question 46

pathos

Answer 46

One of the three basic argumentative appeals, which appeals to emotion.

Question 47

personification

Answer 47

is a kind of metaphor in which you describe an inanimate object, abstract
thing, or non-human animal in human terms

Question 48

situational irony

Answer 48

is the irony of something happening that is very different from what was
expected
Ex: a fire station burning down

Question 49

soliloquy

Answer 49

is a kind of monologue or an extended speech by
one character. The character is simply “thinking out loud” or talking to an empty room.
Ex: Remember when Romeo was standing under Juliet’s Balcony in Act 2 Sc. 2
professing his love for her to the night sky? That’s an example of a soliloquy

Question 50

stereotype

Answer 50

Stereotyping is assuming that “they’re all alike.” It’s looking at a whole group of
people and assuming that they all share certain qualities.

Question 51

synecdoche

Answer 51

is a figure of speech that allows a part to stand
for a whole or for a whole to stand for a part.
The expression “breadwinner” is an example of synecdoche because the word “bread” refers to food in general.

Question 52

trope

Answer 52

The word trope can refer to any type of figure of speech, theme, image, character, or
plot element that is used many times.
Ex: The “ticking clock” is a common trope of screenwriting. If you watch closely, the most
exciting scenes in many stories will have a ticking clock – a deadline, the arrival of
reinforcements, or something else that the protagonists have to struggle against or hold
out for.

Question 53

understatement

Answer 53

Understatement is when a writer presents a situation or thing as if it is less
important or serious than it is in reality.
Ex: There’s some water in the Atlantic Ocean.

Question 54

vernacular

Answer 54

is everyday speech. It’s just the way people talk
in day-to-day life. The opposite of vernacular is formal writing.
Ex: The word “y’all” is very common vernacular in more Southern states.