Literary Terms Flashcards
allegory
story, poem or picture that has a hidden meaning, typically moral or political.
analogy
comparison between one thing and another, usually for explanation or clarification.
archetype
a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art or mythology
axiomatic
something that is self-evident and cannot be questioned
brevitas
Use of a concise statement to say a lot more
convention
defining characteristics of a genre
dialect
form of language which is specific to a region or group
diction
the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing.
didactic
intended for instruction
discourse markers
embedded phrases in text that show a change of direction - ‘anyway’, ‘so’, ‘the next thing’
elision
omission of letter/s replaced by an apostrophe
figurative language
language that does not mean exactly as it says, representing an object or idea using metaphors.
idiom
a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the original words
lexicon
specific vocabulary of a person or branch of knowledge
litotes
understatement, where affirmative is expressed by negative ‘not bad at all’
metafiction
author self-consciously alludes to the artificiality of a work
metonym
word that denotes one thing but refers to a related thing Westminster = UK government
palimpsest
a narrative overwritten with another
polysyndeton
the use of several conjunctions in a row
pun
exploiting the two meanings of a word
register
variety of language used for particular purpose/social setting
satire
humour that exposes foolishness and corruption
style
the way the writer expresses themself
syntax
rules that govern structure of sentences
