Literary Terms G-M Flashcards
Genre
The major category into which a literary work fits (e.g. Prose, poetry, and drama)
Generic conventions
Refers to traditions for each genre.
Homily
Literally “sermon”, or any serious talk, speech, or lecture, providing moral or spiritual advice.
Hyperbole
A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement.
Imagery
The sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions.
Infer (inference)
To draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented.
Invective
An emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong abusive language.
Irony
The contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant.
Verbal irony
Words literally state the opposite of speaker’s true meaning.
Situational irony
Event turn out the opposite of what was expected.
Dramatic irony
Facts or events are unknown to a character but know to the reader or audience or other characters in work.
Loose sentence
A type of sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units.
Metaphor
A figure of speech using implied comparison of seemingly unlike things or the substitution of one for the other, suggesting some similarity.
Metonymy
from the Greek “changed label”, the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it (e.g. “The White House” for the president.
Mood
Grammatically, the vertical units and a speakers attitude (indicative, subjunctive, imperative); literally, the prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a word.
