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English Team > Literary terms > Flashcards

Literary terms Flashcards

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1
Q

blank verse

A

unrhymed iambic pentameter

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2
Q

free verse

A

unrhymed lines without regular rhythm

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3
Q

end rhyme

A

rhyme occurring at the ends of verse lines; most common rhyme form

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4
Q

internal rhyme

A

rhyme contained within a line of verse

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5
Q

assonance

A

repetition of two or more vowel sounds within a line

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6
Q

consonance

A

repetition of two or more consonant sounds within a line

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7
Q

alliteration

A

the repetition of one or more initial sounds, usually consonants, in words
within a line

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8
Q

onomatopoeia

A

the use of a word whose sound suggests its meaning

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9
Q

euphony

A

the use of compatible, harmonious sounds to produce a pleasing, melodious effect

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10
Q

cacophony

A

the use of inharmonious sounds in close conjunction for effect; opposite of
euphony

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11
Q

metaphor

A

a direct comparison of two unlike objects by identification or substitution

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12
Q

simile

A

a direct comparison of two unlike objects, using like or as

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13
Q

conceit

A

an extended metaphor comparing two unlike objects with powerful effect (It owes its roots to elaborate analogies in Petrarch.)

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14
Q

personification

A

a figure of speech in which objects and animals have human qualities

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15
Q

metonymy

A

the substitution of a word which relates to the object or person to be named, in place of the name itself

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16
Q

synecdoche

A

a figure of speech in which a part represents the whole object or idea

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17
Q

hyperbole

A

gross exaggeration for effect: overstatement

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18
Q

irony

A

the contrast between actual meaning and the suggestion of another meaning

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19
Q

verbal irony

A

meaning one thing and saying another

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20
Q

dramatic irony

A

two levels of meaning - what the speaker says and what he/she means, and what the speaker says and the author means

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21
Q

situational irony

A

when the reality of a situation differs from the anticipated or intended effect; when something unexpected occurs

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22
Q

symbolism

A

the use of one object to suggest another, hidden object or idea

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23
Q

imagery

A

the use of words to represent things, actions, or ideas by sensory description

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24
Q

paradox

A

a statement which appears self-contradictory, but underlines a basis of truth

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25
Q

oxymoron

A

contradictory terms brought together to express a paradox for strong effect

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26
Q

understatement

A

diction in which the literal sense of what is said falls detectably short of (or “under”) the magnitude of what is being talked about

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27
Q

allusion

A

a reference to an outside fact, event, or other source

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28
Q

tone (of poetry)

A

the author’s attitude toward his/her audience and subject (You must interpret form, rhyme, connotation, figurative language, and the like since you cannot hear vocal
inflection.)

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29
Q

theme (of poetry)

A

the author’s major idea or meaning (What is the dominant purpose behind writing the poem? How does the poet achieve this purpose?)

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30
Q

dramatic situation (of poetry)

A

the circumstances of the speaker (Who is the speaker? To whom is he speaking? What are the circumstances? Does this situation contribute to the total meaning and impact of the poem?)

31
Q

denotation

A

dictionary definition of a word

32
Q

connotation

A

the force or impact carried by a term that goes beyond denotation

33
Q

direct presentation

A

the narrator or the characters tell straight out what the characters are like

34
Q

indirect presentation

A

the writer reveals the characters through their actions, through what they say to one another, and/or through their thoughts

35
Q

flat characters

A

usually have only one or two predominant traits; they can be summed up in a sentence or two

36
Q

round characters

A

comprehensive and many-sided; they have the three- dimensional quality of real people

37
Q

stock characters

A

stereotypical figures who has recurred so often in fiction that we recognize them at once as a familiar type or role

38
Q

static characters

A

remain essentially the same person from the beginning of the story to the end; they do NOT grow

39
Q

dynamic characters

A

undergo some distinct change of character, personality, or outlook

40
Q

foil

A

minor character whose situation or actions parallel those of a major character, and thus by contrast sets off or illuminates the major character; most often the contrast is complimentary to the major character

41
Q

protagonist

A

central or main character, the character on whom the story focuses

42
Q

conflict

A 
a clash of actions, ideas, desires, or wills 
	 ● Physical
	 ● Mental
	 ● Emotion
	 ● Moral
43
Q

first-person point of view

A

● the narrator is a character speaking in the first person
● his/her knowledge is limited to what he/she can see, hear, smell, taste and touch
● what he/she thinks or feels
● what he/she can interpret behavior he/she cannot see inside the characters’ minds and hearts

44
Q

objective (or dramatic) point of view

A

● the narrator is a sort of “camera” speaking in the third person
● his/her knowledge is limited to what he/she can see and hear
● he/she cannot interpret behavior
● he/she can not see inside the characters’ minds and hearts

45
Q

omniscient point of view

A

● the narrator is a third person not involved in the story
● his/her knowledge is unlimited
● he/she can interpret behavior, and comment on the significance of the story
● he/she can see inside the characters’ minds and hearts

46
Q

third-person limited point of view

A

● a third person not involved in the story
● his/her knowledge is limited to what he/she can see, hear, smell, taste and touch; what he/she thinks or feels; and what he/she can interpret behavior
● he/she cannot see inside the characters’ minds and hearts

47
Q

imagery

A

the use of language to represent or evoke sensory experience

a. Visual (sight)
b. Auditory (sound)
c. Olfactory (smell)
d. Gustatory (taste)
e. Tactile (touch)
f. Organic (internal sensation)
g. Kinesthetic (motion)
48
Q

simile

A

explicit comparison that uses like, as, than, similar to, resembles, seems, and similar diction
Has two parts: literal and figurative

49
Q

metaphor

A

an implicit comparison between two things that are essentially unlike
Like the simile, the metaphor has a literal part and a figurative part

50
Q

The literal term is named directly, and the figurative term is named directly (metaphor)

A

EXAMPLE: “Sorrow is my own yard” – Sorrow the literal term is named, yard the figurative term is named {“The Widow’s Lament in Springtime” – William Carlos Williams}

51
Q

The literal term is named directly, but the figurative term is implied (metaphor)

A

EXAMPLE: “Leaves got up in a coil and hissed” – Leaves the literal term is named, snake the figurative term is implied by “got up in a coil and hissed” {“Bereft” – Robert Frost}

52
Q

The literal term is implied, but the figurative term is named directly (metaphor)

A

EXAMPLE: “It fills with Alabaster Wool/The Wrinkles of the Road—” – It the literal term is implied [snow], Wool the figurative term is named {“It Sifts from Leaden Sieves” – Emily Dickinson}

53
Q

The literal term is implied, and the figurative term is implied

A

EXAMPLE: “It sifts from Leaden Sieves—” – It the literal term is unnamed [snow], flour the figurative term is implied by “sifts” {“It Sifts from Leaden Sieves” – Emily Dickinson}

54
Q

personification

A

attributes human qualities to an animal, an object, or a concept A kind of metaphor that also has literal and figurative parts

55
Q

apostrophe

A

he speaker addresses someone absent or dead or something nonhuman as though it were alive and present and could reply
Closely associated with personification

56
Q

metonymy

A

EXAMPLES: “Friends, Romans, countrymen/Lend me your ears” – Antony uses ears to represent listening since ears are closely related to (essential to) listening. {Julius Caesar – William Shakespeare}
“The pen is mightier than the sword” – The speaker uses pen to stand for persuasive writing since the pen is the instrument of writing. He uses sword to represent the armed might of armies a sword is closely associated with an army.

57
Q

enjambment

A

the running on of the thought from one line, couplet, or stanza to the next without a syntactical break

58
Q

meter

A

regularized rhythm language in which the accents are arranged to occur at apparently equal intervals of time.

a. Metrical language is called verse or poetry 
b. Non-metrical language is called prose.
59
Q

metric foot

A

the basic metrical unit, normally consists of one accented syllable plus one or two unaccented syllables, though occasionally there may be no unaccented syllables, and very rarely there may be three

60
Q

iamb

A

unstressed-stressed

ta - DUH

61
Q

iambic pentameter

A

five feet of iambs in a line

ta - DUH ta - DUH ta - DUH ta - DUH ta - DUH

62
Q

stanza

A

the third unit of measurement, consists of a group of lines whose metrical pattern is repeated throughout the poet

63
Q

line

A

the secondary unit of measurement; it is measured by naming the number of feet in it

64
Q

couplet

A

two rhymed lines

65
Q

quatrain

A

four lines with a rhyme scheme

66
Q

sestet

A

six lines with a rhyme scheme

67
Q

octave

A

eight lines with a rhyme scheme

68
Q

Petrarchan (Italian) sonnet

A

an octave using two rhymes arranged abbaabba and a sestet using any arrangement of either two or three rimes; the division between the two usually indicates a division in thought and often is indicated with a space

69
Q

Spenserian sonnet

A

sonnet in which the lines are grouped into three interlocked quatrains and a couplet and the rhyme scheme is abab, bcbc, cdcd, ee

70
Q

Shakespearean (English) sonnet

A

three quatrains and a closing couplet, riming abab cdcd efef gg; the units frequently correspond to divisions of thought

71
Q

Miltonic sonnet

A

uses the Petrarchan (Italian) rhyme scheme for both octave and sestet but eliminates the division between the octave and sestet

72
Q

trochee

A

stressed-unstressed
DUH-ta
(opposite of an iamb)

73
Q

trochaic tetrameter

A

four feet of trochees in a line

DUH-ta DUH-ta DUH-ta DUH-ta

English Team (1 decks)

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