Literature Terminology Flashcards
genres
a category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter
in me·di·as res
into the middle of a narrative; without preamble
metaphor
a figure of speech in which 2 things are compared implicitly; without the use of a signal (ex. like)
similes
a figure of speech involving direct, explicit comparison of one thing to another (usually using words such as “like”)
novel
a long work of fiction (about 40,000+ words), typically published as a stand-alone book
novella
a work of prose fiction that falls somewhere in between a short story and a novel in terms of length scope and complexity
bildungsroman
literally “education novel” (german), a novel that depicts the intellectual, emotional, and moral development of its protagonist from childhood to adulthood
short story
anywhere from 1,000 to 20,000 words
short-short story
less than 1,000 words
theme
the topic explored in a literary work
action
events that occur in a literary work
plot
the way an author sequences and paces the events so as to shape our response and interpretation
discriminated occasion
a specific, discrete moment portrayed in a fictional work, often signaled with phrases like “it’s wow 5 in the morning” “it was about dusk”
exposition
the first phase or part of a plot, sets the scene, characters, situation
epilogue
ties up loose ends after the conclusion