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English Vocab > English Midterm > Flashcards

English Midterm Flashcards

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Proverbs and Idioms flashcards
1
Q

epic

A

long narrative poem of Gods and heroes with a grand historical or geographical scope (Iliad)

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2
Q

in medias res

A

“in the middle of things” - a type of opening (Iliad)

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3
Q

aristoi

A

the best people (Iliad)

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4
Q

time (tee-may)

A

“honor” in ancient Greek (Iliad)

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5
Q

invocation of Muse

A

(Iliad)

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6
Q

iconoclast

A

someone who breaks traditional values (Iliad)

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7
Q

shame culture

A

a culture in which good is defined by external judgments by peers, rather than internal conscience, in an internally and externally competitive society, identity is defined by being an excellent warrior (Iliad)

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8
Q

epic simile

A

a comparison using like or as and going on and on at great length usually something in the human world compared to something in the natural world (Iliad, Odyssey)

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9
Q

bildungsroman

A

a coming of age story/quest (Odyssey)

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10
Q

side-shadowing

A

(Odyssey)

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11
Q

stock epithet

A

recurrent descriptor of a person or thing, e.g. “godlike Achilles” (Iliad, Odyssey)

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12
Q

sophrosunné

A

knowing your limits, self-restraint (Iliad, Odyssey)

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13
Q

hubris

A

overstepping one’s boundaries (Iliad, Odyssey)

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14
Q

story

A

chronological sequence of events (Odyssey)

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15
Q

plot

A

an author’s arrangement of chronology for thematic or aesthetic purposes (Odyssey)

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16
Q

nadir

A

lowest possible point (Odyssey)

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17
Q

virtue/faith (men)

A

valor – can be sexually or romantically unloyal but still have valor (Iliad, Odyssey)

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18
Q

virtue/faith (women)

A

sexual fidelity (Iliad, Odyssey)

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19
Q

deus ex machina

A

“God out of a machine” – an ending where God/Gods come down and solve all problems, or where the author’s force on the ending is tangible (Odyssey)

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20
Q

gnothi seauton

A

“know thy self” (Agamemnon)

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21
Q

chorus

A

a group of performers whose role it is to comment on the events of the story, provide the audience with background info, and help show the themes of the story – the voice of the observers (Agamemnon)

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22
Q

pathei mathos

A

“in suffering comes learning” (Agamemnon)

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23
Q

tragic double bind

A

a lose-lose situation (Agamemnon)

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24
Q

civilized (Homer)

A

hospitality, sophrosuné, live in the moment, duty (Iliad, Odyssey)

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25
Q

diké

A

justice (Agamemnon)

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26
Q

pathos

A

an appeal to emotion or pity

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27
Q

wasteland myth

A

a universal story about blight/suffering being ended by a hero (Oedipus)

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28
Q

dramatic irony

A

an incongruity between what a character knows and what the audience knows (Oedipus)

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29
Q

3 components of tragedy (Aristotle)

A

1) the plot must have a downward path and reversal of fate
2) must have a character with essential nobility and a lot to lose, who experiences hamartia
3) must provide catharsis by being a safe way for the audience to experience emotions like pity and terror and leave feeling cleansed

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30
Q

plot (Aristotle)

A

an imitation of an action

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31
Q

essential nobility (Aristotle)

A

what is morally deserving of praise

32
Q

hamartia (Aristotle)

A

an error in judgment or a fatal flaw

33
Q

allegory

A

a literal story in which persons, places, or ideas systematically stand for ideas (AotC)

34
Q

seen vs. understood (Plato)

A

understanding is a higher power than seeing – hierarchy (AotC)

understood/theoretical
1) the forms, perfect ideas, archetypes (justice, beauty, truth)
2) mathematical formulae, geometry

seen/empirical
3) physical objects
4) shadows, images, reflections

35
Q

eros

A

passion or sexual desire (Lysistrata)

36
Q

satire

A

a type of comedy using wit or humor to make fun of political or social circumstances for the purpose of reform (Lysistrata)

37
Q

stichomythia

A

the back and forth of witty banter (Lysistrata)

38
Q

polis

A

the political field (Lysistrata)

39
Q

oikos

A

the household (Lysistrata)

40
Q

scatological content

A

body humor, like poop (Lysistrata)

41
Q

pious

A

in the Roman world, it was duty to family, people, and the Gods (Aeneid)

42
Q

amour

A

love (Aeneid)

43
Q

covenantal

A

relationship w/ promises on both ends (Genesis - humans promises to God and God’s promises to humans)

44
Q

psychosomatic unity

A

the idea that the mind (“psyche”) and body (“soma”) are inseparable, and that what affects one part of the body or mind also affects the other (Job’s mental suffering being directly linked to physical suffering (misery ==> sickness, association between physical afflictions and moral shortcomings)

45
Q

gospel

A

in original Greek means “good news”(Jesus’ life and teachings are good news)

46
Q

koine

A

the common dialect of Greek in the Byzantine era

47
Q

parable

A

a story that invites allegorical interpretation, used to teach moral and spiritual lessons (Book of Job ==> must put your complete trust/faith in God no matter what you must endure)

48
Q

Middle Ages

A

(500-1500) period in between fall of Roman Empire and start of Renaissance

49
Q

ab ovo

A

“from the egg”, starting at the very beginning of a story w/ the plot in perfect chronological order (Augustine’s Confessions)

50
Q

prodigal

A

extravagant, excessive, wasteful (Matthew 13 Prodigal Son Parable, younger son while older son is responsible and father is all forgiving/merciful)

51
Q

ethical monotheism

A

belief in one God who is the source of morality and demands ethical behavior from humans

52
Q

logical trilemma

A

three claims of God that do not work together logically (all powerful, all good, all knowing) (Book of Job)

53
Q

theodicy

A

the questioning of if God is all powerful and all good, why would there be so much evil (Book of Job)

54
Q

in malo/ in bono

A

“for ill/ for good”, everything in reality is intrinsically good but humans can use it for good

55
Q

cupiditas (vs. caritas)

A

egotistic love, opposite of divine love (Augustine’s Confessions)

56
Q

caritas (vs. cupiditas)

A

divine love, opposite of egotistic love (Augustine’s Confessions)

57
Q

terza rima

A

rhymes in 3s (Dante’s Inferno)

58
Q

limbo

A

1st circle of hell that holds the souls of the unbaptized, the souls that died before the time of Christ, and the souls of good/virtuous pagans (Dante’s Inferno)

59
Q

contrapassion

A

law of hell such that each sin is punished by equal or opposite action (Dante’s Inferno ==> sin of lust punished with huge whirlwind that whips them around violently and erratically the way lust makes people behave)

60
Q

incontinence

A

lack of moral/spiritual restraint, lack of control/ moral immoderation (Dante’s Inferno ==> lust, gluttony, etc.)

61
Q

fortuna

A

fortune (Dante’s Inferno ==> lady fortune, wheel of fortune)

62
Q

purgatory

A

the place one’s soul goes to purify and become worthy of heaven by working off sins (Dante’s Purgatorio)

63
Q

mystical

A

experience of union w/ Reality a.k.a. the Divine (Dante’s Paradiso ==> experience with God)

64
Q

noetic

A

experience that leaves meaning or significance (Dante’s Paradiso ==> experience with God)

65
Q

ineffable

A

hard to put into words (Dante’s Paradiso ==> experience with God)

66
Q

lai (lay)

A

a short narrative poem featuring love, quests, and often the supernatural (Marie de France’s Laustic)

67
Q

fin’ amour

A

refined love, courtly love, secretive love, love at a distance, unconsummated love, extramarital love (Laustic)

68
Q

mal mariée

A

“badly married one”, stock figure in Medieval romance (Laustic ==> woman)

69
Q

trouthe

A

being true to your word/promises, part of Chivalric code (Gawain & the Green Knight)

70
Q

chivalric code

A

code of values that govern knights: prowess on battlefield, bravery/valor, courtesy/fine manners, service to women and children, humility, service to and faith in God (Gawain & the Green Knight)

71
Q

avatar

A

embodiment or incarnation of something (Gawain & the Green Knight ==> the Green Knight as avatar of nature or something else)

72
Q

gentilesse

A

“nobility”, Middle English word (Chaucer ==> new meaning about nobility equating to morality and behavior vs. original meaning about nobility equating to birth/social status)

73
Q

estate satire

A

genre in which narrator states a social status/role from the estates (classes: those who fight [aristocrats], those who pray [religious], those who work the land [peasants], new emerging middle class [bourgeoisie, where Chaucer is]), and the portrait shows how the individual fulfills the role or falls short (Wife of Bath’s Tale ==> old woman, knight, priest)

74
Q

pardoner

A

preacher delegated w/ the authority to give remission of punishment in purgatory (Pardoner’s Tale)

75
Q

apostrophe

A

a direct address to an idea or entity that is not present (Pardoner’s Tale ==> Pardoner addressing idea of avarice [love of money])

76
Q

polysyndeton

A

the use of many connective words, like “and”, when not necessary to add drama to speech (Pardoner’s Tale ==> Pardoner talking about people committing sin of gluttony all over the world)

English Vocab (1 decks)

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