Literary Terms Flashcards
What is the Author’s Purpose?
The reason an author writes
Ex: persuade, inform, explain, and entertain
What are Rhetorical Devices?
Figurative language such as repetition or parallelism to effect an audience
Ex: repetition, figurative language
What are Symbols?
an object, person, or place, which stands for something else
Ex: four leaf clover represents or symbolizes good luck or fortune
What is the Theme?
Underlying message the author wants the reader to understand
Ex: compassion, courage, death or dying, hard work, love, and revenge
What is an inference?
Prediction in the story; logical assumption
Ex: if you see someone eating a new food and he or she makes a face, then you can infer they don’t like it
What is parallelism?
Pattern of words or sentence structure
Ex: “He likes baseball and running” “He really likes baseball and running” “Baseball and running is his favorite hobby”
What is repetition?
Repeat a sound or word for emphasis
Ex: Let is snow, let it snow, let it snow
What is text structure?
Arrangement of the story
Ex: novel, poem. or essay
What is a simile?
using like or as to compare two unlike things
ex: As brave as a lion, crazy like a fox
What is supporting textual evidence?
prove a point; material to prove a claim
Ex: citations
What is a metaphor?
a figurative of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action
What is a noun?
person, place, thing, or idea
ex: boy’s, Joe’s
What is a claim/ Point of View?
Who is narrating? First person, third person, omniscient third person
Ex: if it uses “I” it is first person
What is the mood?
feeling or atmosphere the writer creates
Ex: sad, happy, any figurative language
What is foreshadowing?
a writer’s use of hints or clues to suggest events that may occur later
Ex: a flash forward scene, or flash backwards scene
What is extended metaphor?
a figurative language of speech that compares two essentially unlike things
Ex: does not contain oras
What is the pace?
The speed of the story
Ex: slow or fast
What is the author’s tone?
the authors attitude for his or hers subject
Ex: depressed, cheerful, or intense
What is verbal irony?
when someone knowingly exaggerates or says something and means another
Ex: sarcasm
What is situational irony?
a contrast between what a reader or character expects and what actually exists or happens
Ex: a fire station burning down
What is figurative language?
It creates comparisons by linking the senses and the concrete to abstract.
What is fortune’s Fool?
the idea is that Romeo believes he is being used for the god’s entertainment, like a fool in a royal court. This causes the audience to sympathise with Romeo because they think Romeo’s unpleasant situation is the result of fate; events out of his control.
What is tragic hero?
A tragic hero is a character in a dramatic tragedy who has virtuous and sympathetic traits but ultimately meets with suffering or defeat.
What is foil?
foil, in literature, a character who is presented as a contrast to a second character so as to point to or show to advantage some aspect of the second character
