Literary terms Flashcards
Allegory (Birdsong)
a story or situation with two different meanings, a straightforward meaning on the surface used to symbolise a deeper meaning underneath e.g. Stephen snipping dead flowers in the garden with Isabelle, doesn’t know what he’s doing, later symbolises not knowing what his is doing when they begin a sexual relationship
Allusion (Birdsong)
a passing reference in a work of literature to something outside the text e.g. Stephen’s vulnerability and confusion are made more evident through literal allusions of his childhood ‘ wood of confusion’
Characterisation (Birdsong)
the construction of a character brought about by means such as description, dialogue and background information
Dramatic irony (Birdsong)
when the implications of an episode or speech are better understood by the audience than the characters e.g. the reference to the next generation in Part four is an example of dramatic irony, Stephen in unaware at this point that he has a daughter.
Figurative language (Birdsong)
figurative language is distinguishable from literal language; it uses metaphors, similes and other such devices. e.g. Isabelle being buried, figuratively in her marriage to Azaire
Motif (Birdsong)
a small, recurring idea in a work, which is used to draw the reader’s attention to a particular theme or topic e.g. a motif of the red room occurs in the scene with Weir, Stephen and Prostitutes because it draws the reader’s attention back to Stephen’s affair with Isabelle; Birds are also a motif, Stephen’s first encounter with one was horrific/ hours of war
Narrative
a story or tale or any recital of events, and the manner in which the story is told. First person narratives from character perspective, require reader to judge carefully what is said; second person narratives suggests reader is part of the story; third person narrator may be intrusive (continually commenting on the story), impersonal or omniscient
Naturalism (Birdsong)
takes the depiction of the narrative further than realism in reflecting not just life as it is (realism) but the conditions which created it
Prolepsis (Birdsong)
the foreshadowing of events in the narrative ‘flash forwards’ e.g. Theipval and ‘backwaters of the Somme’ place setting foreshow the battles there later in war section
Realism
realist texts aim to be realistic rather than overly idealised
Tragedy (Birdsong)
in its original sense, a drama dealing with elevated actions and emotions and characters of high social standing in which a terrible outcome becomes inevitable, as a result of an unstoppable sequence of events and fatal flaw in the personality of the protagonist. Modern tragedy = course of events happening to ordinary individuals, that are inevitable due to social/ cultural conditions/ disasters
Authorial fallacy
when an author uses their own experiences from their own life to tell a story
Platonic
intimacy and affection that is not sexual, non physical love
Modification
when authors add descriptive words to drag out meanings
Palpable
able to be touched or felt OR so intense as to seem almost perceptible by touch (tangible)
