Literary Terms Flashcards
Repetition
A literary technique in which a sound, word, phrase or line is repeated for emphasis.
Parallelism
When the same patterns of words or structures are used to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance.
Text Structure
How an author arranges parts of a story.
Simile
Comparing two things by using like or as.
supporting Textual Evidence
Material that serves to prove a claim.
Metaphor
Comparing two things by stating one is another.
Author’s Purpose
`The reasoning behind why the author wrote the piece.
Rhetorical Devices
Use of language that is intended to have an effect on its audience.
Figurative Language
Words or phrases are used in a non-literal way for particular effect, for example simile, metaphor, personification.
Fortune’s Fool
Words that bring the idea of fate and destiny back into the audience’s mind.
Tragic Hero
A character in a dramatic tragedy who has virtuous and sympathetic traits but ultimately meets with suffering or defeat.
Foil
Prevent, usually something considered wrong or undesirable, from succeeding.
Pun
A joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word.
Dramatic Irony
The expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite.
Tragic Flaw
