Exam 1: Literary Terms Flashcards
the appeal to emotion
pathos
a lyric poem of fourteen lines, written in iambic pentameter with a fixed rhyme scheme
sonnet
the repetition of consonant sound sin successive words
alliteration
a rhetorical figure by which a subject matter is expanded upon; the boosting of a main point in an argument to increase its importance or effect
amplification
A rhetorical device that features contrasting words or phrases in a strong parallel structure. Example from Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”
antitheses
a direct, implicit comparison between two unlike things (does not use like, as, or than); shows that something unknown can be understood because it is similar to something known.
metaphor
a poem or work that celebrates the joys of simple rural life, often features an idyllic world of nature, bucolic landscapes, and a shepherd addressing a shepherdess, whom he loves; usually a lyric poem
pastoral
“a turn of thought”
volta
a short poem expressing the thoughts and feelings of a single speaker
lyric poem
the comparison of two unlike things with the use of like, as, or than; shows that something unknown can be understood because it is similar to something known
simile
the appeal to reason
logos
a two-line stanza in poetry, usually rhymed, which tends to have lines of equal length
couplet
the order in which rhymed words occur
rhyme scheme
the appeal that comes from the quality of the speaker’s character
ethos
four metrical feet per line
tetrameter
the repetition of a word or words at the beginning of two or more lines, phrases, or clauses
anaphora
a figure of speech in which someone (usually absent), an abstract quality, or a non-existent personage is addressed as though present
apostrophe
a figure of speech that gives human qualities to animals, inanimate objects, or ideas
personification
Similarity of structure in a pair or series of words, phrases, or clauses. Said another way: keeping words phrases, and clauses in the same grammatical form. Example from Jane Eyre: “The ground was hard, the air was still, my road was lonely.”
parallelism
In poetry, this is the term we use to refer to the narrating voice. (In short stories and novels, we refer to the narrating voice as the narrator.)
speaker
the repetition of identical words (or phrases) in successive clauses, but presented in inverted order
antimetabole
the recurrence of a regular rhythmic unit in a line of poetry
meter
the repetition of two or more parallel clauses/ideas, but presented in inverted order using different words
chiasmus
A line that has five feet per line (ten syllables total). Each metrical foot has two syllables, an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
iambic pentameter
