general terms

Question 1

a narrative either in verse or prose, in which characters, action, and sometimes setting represent abstract concepts apart from the literal meaning of the story. (ex. Everyman)

Answer 1

allegory

Question 2

the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.

Answer 2

alliteration

Question 3

a brief reference to a person, event, or place in history, or to a work of art/ literature.

Answer 3

allusion

Question 4

a comparison made between two items, situations, or ideas that are somewhat alike but unlike in most respects.

Answer 4

analogy

Question 5

figure of repetition that occurs when the first word or set of words in one sentence, clause, or phrase is/are repeated at or very near the beginning of successive sentences, clauses, or phrases.

Answer 5

anaphora

Question 6

A short account of an interesting or humorous incident

Answer 6

anecdote

Question 7

a character in a story or play who opposes the chief character or protagonist.

Answer 7

antagonist

Question 8

a character, an action, or situation that seems to represent common patterns of human life. Often include a symbol, a theme, a setting, or a character that have a common meaning in an entire culture, or even the entire human race.

Answer 8

archetype

Question 9

purification or purging of emotions (pity or fear).

Answer 9

catharsis

Question 10

the method an author uses to acquaint the reader with his or her characters.

Answer 10

characterization

Question 11

an expression or phrase that is overused as to become trite and meaningless.

Answer 11

cliche

Question 12

External (person vs. person, society, nature) & Internal (within person vs. self)

Answer 12

conflict

Question 13

the emotional associations surrounding a word, as opposed to its literal meaning or denotation.

Answer 13

connotation

Question 14

the strict, literal meaning of a word.

Answer 14

denotation

Question 15

the resolution of the plot.

Answer 15

denouement

Question 16

the conversation between two or more people in a literary work.

Answer 16

dialogue

Question 17

the author’s choice of words or phrases in a literary work.

Answer 17

diction

Question 18

A character (sense 1) who during the course of a story undergoes a permanent change in some aspect of character (sense 2) or outlook.

Answer 18

dynamic character

Question 19

a revealing scene or moment in which a character experiences a deep realization about him/ himself.

Answer 19

epiphany

Question 20

using a mild or gentle phrase instead of a blunt, embarrassing, or painful one.

Answer 20

euphemism

Question 21

immediately follows the climax and shows the aftereffects of the events in the climax

Answer 21

falling action

Question 22

interruption of the narrative to show an episode that happened before that particular point in the story.

Answer 22

flashback

Question 23

A character (sense 1) whose character (sense 2) is summed up in one or two traits

Answer 23

flat character

Question 24

a character who contrasts with another character (usually the protagonist) in order to highlight various features of that other character’s personality, throwing these characteristics into sharper focus

Answer 24

foil character

Question 25

a hint given to the reader of what is to come.

Answer 25

foreshadowing

Question 26

A type or class, as poetry, drama, etc.

Answer 26

genre

Question 27

a figure of speech involving great exaggeration.

Answer 27

hyperbole

Question 28

the sensory details that provide vividness in a literary work and tend to arouse emotions or feeling in a reader which abstract language does not.

Answer 28

imagery

Question 29

Latin for “in the middle of things”; used to describe a plot that begins in the middle of events and then reveals the past through flashbacks.

Answer 29

in media res

Question 30

the term used to describe the contrast between what appears to be and what really is.

Answer 30

irony

Question 31

placing two ideas, words, or images side by side so that their closeness creates and original, ironic, or insightful meaning.

Answer 31

juxtaposition

Question 32

a recurrent word, image, theme, object, or phrase that tends to unify a literary work or that may be elaborated into a theme.

Answer 32

motif

Question 33

(persona/ point of view) the teller of the story.

Answer 33

narrator

Question 34

a statement, often metaphorical, that seems to be self-contradictory but which has valid meaning.

Answer 34

paradox

Question 35

the representation of abstractions, ideas, animals, or inanimate objects as human beings by endowing them with life-like qualities.

Answer 35

personification

Question 36

the series of happenings in a literary work.

Answer 36

plot

Question 37

the relation between the teller of the story and the characters in it.

Answer 37

point of view

Question 38

the time, place, societal situation, and weather in which the action of a narrative occurs.

Answer 38

setting

Question 39

an occurrence that is contrary to what is expected or intended.

Answer 39

situational irony

Question 40

a person, place, or object that represents something beyond itself.

Answer 40

symbol

Question 41

a set of rules in a language. It dictates how words from different parts of speech are put together in order to convey a complete thought.

Answer 41

syntax

Question 42

the main idea or underlying meaning of a literary work.

Answer 42

theme