Literary Elements Flashcards
Prologue
At the beginning of the play.
Is sung or chanted by a chorus
Allusion
A literary device that stimulates ideas, associations and extra information in the readers mind
A refrence to a historical or literary figure
Aside
A dramatic convention by which an actor directly addresses the audience but is not supposed to be heard by other actors on the stage
Character foil
Sets off or illuminates the major character — usually to create a contrast that is favorable to the major character
Extended Metaphor
Also known as a “conceit”, it is a metaphor that is sustained or developed through considerable number of lines
Foreshadowing
The author uses hints and suggestions to foretell the end of a story
Verbal Irony
A figure in speech in which what is said is the opposite of what is meant
Dramatic Irony
When the reader knows more about the tru state of affairs than the characters do
Situational Irony
When there is a difference in what the reader/audience is led to expect in a situation and what actually happens.
Monologue
A long uninterrupted speech that a character speaks in front of other characters
Motif
Devices that continually reoccur in a work
Oxymoron
Two concepts that do not go together but are used together
Paradox
A statement that contradicts itself. There are more words in a Paradox than an oxymoron
Personification
When an inanimate object or abstract noun is endowed with human qualities or abilities.
Pun
A play on words based on the similarity of sounds between the two words with different meanings (Son and Sun or I and Eye)
