literary terms Flashcards
alliteration
The repetition of initial consonant sounds
anecdote
A brief story about an interesting, amusing, or strange event
charater
A person or an animal who takes part in the action of a literary work
climax
The high point of interest or suspense
dialect
A form of language spoken by people in a particular region or group ‘a wee lad’
dialogue
A conversation between characters
FORESHADOWING
Clues in a literary work which suggest events that have yet to occur (hints)
genre
A category or type of literature
imagery
Discriptive or FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE used to create word pictures for the reader
irony
A figure of speech in which the intended meaning is the OPPOSITE of that expressed by the words used; usually taking the form of SARCASM or RIDICULE
metaphor
Figure of speech in which one thing is spoken of as though it were something else
monologue
Speech by one character in a play, story or poem
moral
Lesson taught by a literary work
motivation
reason
REASON that explains or partially explains why a character thinks, feels, acts or behaves in a certain way
narration
The action of narrating or recounting somthing
narrative poem
A poem that tells a story
narrator
One who tells or is assumed to be telling the story in a narrative
onomatopoeia
The use of words that imitate sounds
personification
Type of figurative language in which a non-human subject is given human characteristics
plot
Sequence of events in a literary work
sensory language
Writing or speech that appeals to one or more of the senses
simile
A figure of speech in which ‘like’ or ‘as’ is used to make a comparison between two ideas
soliloquy
A speech expressing the thaughts of a character ALONE ON STAGE
stanza
verse
Formal division of lines in a poem
