Literary Devices Flashcards
Personification
Giving human characteristics to inanimate objects
Simile
A comparison that uses like or as
Metaphor
A comparison between two unlike objects
Iambic pentameter
A form of meter that is unstressed stressed
Foreshadowing
A hint of what’s to come in literature
Monologue
When a single character expresses their thoughts
Soliloquy
A dramatic device in which a character speaks their thoughts alone
Dialogue
Direct speech between two characters
Rising action
Action leading up to the climax that develops the conflict
Climax
Turning point in literature
Falling action
Results or effects of climax
Resolution
At the end of literature where loose ends are tied up and questions are answered
Prose
Written or spoken language in its own form without meter
Couplet
Two lines of verse that usually rhyme and form a unit
Pun
When multiple meanings of a word are used to convey different things
(Play on words)
Blank verse
Unrhymed iambic pentameter
Free verse
No clear rhyme scheme or meter but have short lines as opposed to sentences
Irony
The opposite of what is expected in the expression
Verbal irony
When someone writes or says one thing but means the opposite
Situational irony
When the outcome is not what was expected
Dramatic irony
When the audience or reader understands what’s going on but not the character
Sonnet
A poem with 14 lines and usually in iambic pentameter
Oxymoron
A phrase that contains two words that are contradictory
Speaker
Voice in the poem, the person or thing speaking
Setting
A time or place of a literary work
Symbolism
One noun that is used to represent something else
Imagery
Language that appeals to the five senses
Mood
The overall atmosphere of the literary piece
Tone
The authors attitude toward the subject of the work
Theme
The underlying main idea of the literature. Theme differs from the subject of the literature
Hyperbole
Extreme exaggeration to add meaning
Conflict
Struggle between two or more opposing forces
Aside
A dramatic device in that a character makes a small speech intended for the audience to hear but not other characters
Prologue
A separate introductory section to a piece of literature
Subtext
An underlying distinct theme or idea that is clearly shown in a piece of writing or conversation
Alliteration
Repetition of initial consonant sounds
Assonance
Repetition of vowel sounds followed by different consonant sounds
Consonance
A reoccurrence of similar sounds, mainly consonants in close proximity
Apostrophe
Addressing an absent person or an abstract inanimate object
Onomatopoeia
A formation of a word from the sound its associated with
Allusion
Allusion – a reference to something well-known that exists outside the literary work
Ba’al Shem Tov
18th century founder of Chasidism
Shabbat
The sabbath, weekly festival where all work stops for Friday night and Saturday
Yeshiva
a special Jewish parochial school where boys and girls are educated separately, and where stress is placed on study of the Torah and Talmud
Tzitzit
the ritual fringes used to remind Jews of God’s commandments; found either on a prayer shawl or a special undergarment worn under the shirt
Rabbi
Jewish religious and spiritual leader trained in scholarship and to lead the community
Rebbe
a revered leader of a Chasidic sect; the Rebbe is consulted in nearly all matters by his followers because he is considered the wisest man in the community and because it is believed that he is best able to interpret God’s will on earth
Hebrew
the language the Torah is written in and therefore considered a holy tongue. Chasidim do not speak Hebrew for trivial matters, but converse in Yiddish. Hebrew has been adopted as the national language of the modern nation of Israel, founded in 1948
Yiddish
a language, a combination of Hebrew, German, Polish and other European languages, spoken among Chasidic Jews
Yarmulke
a small hat worn by Jewish men to remind themselves that they are continually below God
Abba
Hebrew word for father
Talmud
the oral law. According to Jewish tradition, when the Torah was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai, Moses also received oral instructions which were passed down orally, but not written down for many generations. Several generations later, a group of rabbis did write down their discussions of the oral laws and those writings are known as the Talmud
tzaddikim
The righteous ones – “a superhuman link between themselves and God.”
Tefilin
two boxes with long straps crafted of unblemished leather that contain particular Bible verses in them. They are worn around the head and between the eyes, and around the arm traditionally by Jewish men during morning weekday services so that they can literally fulfill the commandment in Deuteronomy that says, “and you shall wear them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes.”
Torah
literally “law” the first five books of the Bible that traditional Jews believe were handed to Moses on Mt. Sinai while they were in the desert returning to Canaan after years of slavery in Egypt (613 commandments)
Momzer
a contemptible person
Samovars
an urn with a spigot at its base for tea
Hasidic Jews
Hasidim, or pious ones, are followers of a Polish Jew named Israel who lived in the 18th century. Also called a saintly man, he taught and mingled with his people out of a sense of love, not duty. The leaders of this sect are known as Tzaddikim, the righteous ones. Reb Saunders is a Tzaddik
Gentiles
non-Jewish faih, Christian
Kosher
clean or fit to eat according to Jewish law
Apostate
a person guilty of abandoning his faith
