literary terms Flashcards
ballad
is a poem that tells a story and is meant to be sung or recited
biography
the story of a persons life that is written by someone else
blank verse
unrhymed iambic pentameter
caesura
a pause or a sudden break in a line of poetry
cause and effect
the event that happens first is the cause, the one that follows is the effect
character
a person who is responsible for the thoughts and actions within a story
evaluating
the process of judging the value of something or someone
exaggeration
see hyperbole
exposition
see plot
extended metaphor
a figure of speech that compares two essentially unlike things in great length
external conflict
conflict outside the story
fable
a brief tale that teaches a lesson about human nature
fact and opinion
a fact is a statement that can be proved, an opinion is a statement that reflects the writers or speakers belief and cannot be supported by proof
falling action
see plot
fantasy
a work of literature that contains at least one fantastic or unreal element
auschwitz
the infamous concentrateion camp established by the nazis in poland
bastille
a prison in Paris where many political prisoners and tortured until the time of the french revolution
alamo
a fort once a chapel in san antonio, Texas where a group of americans made a heroic stand agianst a much larger mexican force in 1836
abstract
refers to language that describes concepts rather than concrete images and qualities rather than observable or specific things
allegory
an extended narrative in prose or verse in which characters, events, and settings represent abstract qualities
anecdote
a short, simple narrative of an incident,effect or to make a point
annotation
explanatory notes added to a text to explain, cite sources, or give bibliographical data
antithesis
the presentation of two contrasting images
aphorism
a short, often witty statementof a principle or a truth about life
apostraphe
usually in poetry but sometimes in prose
argumentation
writing that attempts to prove the validity of a point of view
cacophonony
harsh, awkward, or dissonant sounds used deliberately in poetry or prose
caricature
descriptive writing that greatly exaggerates a specific feature of a persons appearance or a fact of euphony
colloquialism
a word or phrase used in everyday conversation and informal writing
coherence
quality of a piece of writing in which all the parts contribute to the development of the central idea
concrete language
language that describes things, people or places rather than ideas or qualities
connotation
implied or suggested meaning of a word because of its association in the readers mind
consonance
repetion of identical consonant sounds within two or more words in close proximity
conundrum
a riddle whose answer is or involves a pun
deduction
the process of moving from a general rule to a specefic example
denotation
literal meaning of a word as defined
description
the picturing in words of something or someone through detailed obserevation
diction
word choice an element of style, creates tone, attitude, and style as well as meaning
chronological order
the order in which events happen in time
clarifying
the readers process of pausing occasionally while reading to quickly review what he or she understands
cliche
a type of figurative language containing an overused expression or a sying that is no longer considerd original
climax
see plot
comedy
a dramatic work that is light and often humorous in tone and usually ends happily
comparison
identifying similarities
concrete poetry
a type of poetry that uses its physical or visual form to present its message
conflict
the tension or problem in the story
central conflict
dominant or most important conflict in the story
external conflict
problem or struggle that exists between the main character and an outside force
internal conflict
the problem or struggle that takes place in the main characters mind
drawing conclusion
combining several pieces info to make an inference is called drawing conclusion
dramatic monologue
literary device that is used when a character reveals his or her innermost thoughts and feelings
elegy
a type of literature defined as a song or poem that expresses sorrow or lamentation
enjambment
in poetry, incoplete syntax at the end of a line, the meaning running over into the next line without terminal
epigram
a short poem or verse that seeks to ridicule a thought or event
epic
a long narrative poem about adventures of a hero whose actions reflect the ideas and values of a nation or group
epiphany
a sudden moment of understanding that causes a character to changeor to act in a certain way
epitaph
a short poem or verse written in memory of someone
essay
a short work of nonfiction that deals with a single subject
fiction
prose writing that tells an imaginary story
figurative language or figure of speech
expressions that are not literally true
first person point of view
see point of view
flashback
an event of earlier occurence
foil
see character
folklore
traditions, custims and stories that are passed down with a culture
antagonist
character ina storyor poem who decieves, frustates, or works agianst the main character or protagonist
hero/heroine
a character whose actions are inspiring or noble, often the main character in a story
chorus
see refrain
descriptive essay
one that describes a subject
expository essay
one whose purpose is to expain and give information about a subject
formal essay
highly organized and thoroughly researched
humorous essay
one whose purpose is to amuse or entertain the reader
informal essay
is lighter in tone and usually reflects the writers fellings and personality
narrative essay
an essay that tells a story
persuasive essay
attempts to convince a reader to adopt a particular option or course of action
folktale
a simple story that has been passed from
foot
a unit of meter with in a line of poetry
foreshadowing
when the writer provides clues or hints that suggest or predict future event in a story
free verse
poetry without regular patterns of rhyme and rhythm
generalizalition
a broad atatement about an entire group
genre
a type or category of literature
haiku
a traditional form of japanese poetry
historical fiction
fiction that explores a pst time period
horror fiction
fiction that contains mysterious and often supernatural events to create a sense of terror
humor
provokes laughter or amusement
hyperbole
a figure of speech in which the truth is exaggarated for emphasis or humorous effect
iambic pentameter
see meter
idiom
a phrase or expression that means something different
imagery
the use of words and phrases that appeal to the five senses
inference
is a logical guess based on evidence in the text
internal conflict
see conflict
interview
a meeting in which one person asks another about personal matters, professional matters or both
irony
a conflict between what is expected and what actually exists or happens
memoir
a specific type of autobiography, a memoir is about the authors personal experiences
metaphor
a type of figurative language in which a comparison is made between two things that are essentially unlike but may have one quality in common
meter
the regular pattern of accented and unaccented syllables
