Literary Terms Flashcards
Sermon
Oration, lecture, or talk by a member of a religious institution
Ex: Sinners in the hand of an angry God is written as a sermon
Narrator
Someone who relates the story to the audience
Ex: Jonathan Edwards narrates the Sinners in the hand of an Angry God
Symbol
Something used to represent something else
Ex: The Black veil is a symbol of sin
Dramatic Monologue
A speech delivered by one person to the audience of an imaginary character
Ex: Proctor at the end of the story delivers a speech about who is responsible for his death
Climax
The turning point of a story
Ex: The Story of an Hour- Mrs. Mallard has the feeling of freedom, but then her husband appears again
Parable
Simple story to illustrate a moral lesson
Ex: The minister’s black veil story
Dialogue
The words spoken throughout a story (two or more characters)
Ex: John Proctor and Abigail talk about their relationship
Conflict
A problem which occurs in a story
Ex: Elizabeth accuses John of adultery
Metaphor
A direct comparison of two things without using like or as
Ex: Sinners- walking on a slippery slope, which he likens to human existence as sinners
Stage Directions
Part of the script that tells the actors how they move or speak
Ex: Crucible
Stream of Consciousness
A person’s thoughts and conscious reactions to events
Ex: Mrs. Mallard sees her husband, so she is devastated
Extended Metaphor
Metaphor that continues throughout a paragraph or story
Ex: in the sinners in the hands of an angry God, there is a paragraph comparing the people to sinners.
Dramatic exposition
Information at the beginning that gives us background information
Ex: At the beginning of the Crucible, we get background information on the characters before the act starts
Style
The way an author writes
Ex: Arthur Miller writes simple and old-fashioned
Allusion
A reference to something famous or pre-historic in a story
Ex: The character Fredrick Douglas
Oratory
A speech that is meant to inspire
Ex:
Theme
An underlying message that the writer wants the reader to understand
Ex: The Minister’s Black Veil- Don’t judge others because you have also sinned.
Verbal Irony
Saying one thing and meaning another
Ex: John Proctor said do what is good, and no harm will come to you. In this case the good thing to do is lie, but to lying is usually a bad thing.
Situational Irony
When the expected outcome doesn’t actually really happen
Ex: John Proctor is asked to recite the 10 Commandments, but forgets one and its adultery
Dramatic Irony
Something that the characters in the story doesn’t know, but the reader does
Ex: We know that John confesses of adultery, but Elizabeth doesn’t know, so she lies to protect his rep.
