Literary devices Flashcards
Form
Allegory
A story with a hidden meaning in which specific characters and events symbolise more general moral issues of human life.
Comedy
A work which explores human failings in a light-hearted manner, but in which
the central character(s) triumph over afflictions. Comedies end happily.
Existentialism
An idea made famous by Jean Paul Sartre in which the world has no
meaning and each person is alone and completely responsible for the actions which define their character. Existentialism often involves choices made by characters that
define them.
Genre
The term refers to the type of literature as defined by its contents and style.
Generic features help establish expectations of what follows
Gothic
A literary genre which comprises a series of frightening and often apparently supernatural events and mysterious circumstances. The settings of gothic literature are usually dark and moody
Realism
The attempt by writers to mimic real life. The subject matter and details of
realism are lifelike. The narrative focus of realism is on character motivation/psychology. NB: Realism is not to be confused with the more general term realist/realistic, which refers to pragmatic thinking of someone who faces the truth.
Romanticism
A style of literature prevalent during the late 18th and early 19th centuries;
it foregrounded the importance of the imagination and the emotions
Tragedy
A narrative with a serious theme, involving the downfall of a great person who suffers as a result of a flaw in either their character or circumstance
Parody
Conscious imitation of a writer’s style, or of the features of a particular genre,
exaggerated for comic effect.
Satire
Humour or exaggeration designed to expose/mock human vice or folly. It is
therefore ‘humour with a bite’.
Structure
Anti-climax
An abrupt change where our expectations of what will happen next are disappointed or deflated.
Catharsis
The purging/cleansing of emotion, especially pity and fear. The term is most often used to describe audience response to the tragic hero’s downfall in drama
Chronological
If a story is told in the order in which events actually occurred, they are
said to be presented in chronological order. If not, the narrative is non-chronological.
Climax
This usually occurs near the end of the narrative and describes the most intense or significant point, where tension or conflict is at its strongest. It marks a decisive moment, where rising action becomes falling action. Also known as a crisis point.
Closure
This word refers to a particular kind of ending where difficulties and sufferings
are resolved and we are left with a sense that a new beginning is possible. It describes the sense of completion this brings for the reader. NB: Some writers consciously resist closure
– creating instead ambiguity or open-ended narratives with unanswered questions.
Epilogue
A section of a narrative which comments on what has happened in the main body of the narrative. It occurs after the climax and can disclose the fates of characters. It
is usually set some time into the future. In drama, it involves an actor stepping forward to address the audience directly. (Also known as a post-script.)
Exposition
The opening of a narrative which introduces us to its characters and their circumstances.
Falling action
This occurs right after the climax, when the main problem of the story
resolves. It is one of the elements of the plot of the story, while others are exposition, rising action, climax and resolution. It ‘wraps up’ the narrative, resolves its ‘loose ends’ and leads towards the closure.
