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Literature Terms Flashcards

1
Q

Adaption (relate to relevant lit.)

A

a re-rendering of a work originally written in one genre or medium into another genre or medium

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2
Q

allegory

A

a story in which the characters, setting and action stand for something beyond themselves

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3
Q

alliteration

A

the repetition of initial consonant sounds

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4
Q

allusion

A

a rhetorical technique in which reference is made to a person, event, object, or work from history or literature

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5
Q

anecdote

A

a brief narrative of an entertaining and presumably true incident

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6
Q

aside

A

a statement made by a character in a play intended to be heard by the audience but not by the other characters on stage

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7
Q

assonance

A

the repetition of vowel sounds in stressed syllables that end with different consonant sounds

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8
Q

atmosphere

A

the pervasive mood or tone of a literary work

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9
Q

ballad

A

a simple narrative poem meant to be sung

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10
Q

blank verse

A

poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter

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11
Q

carpe diem

A

a Latin phrase meaning “seize the day”

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12
Q

characters

A

individuals in a story or a play, always with human traits

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13
Q

protagonist

A

central figure

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14
Q

antagonist

A

pitted against the protagonist

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15
Q

static

A

character who doesn’t change much

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16
Q

dynamic

A

character who changes in someway as a result of the stories action

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17
Q

round

A

One who has many dimensions to his or her personality

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18
Q

flat

A

character with only a few traits

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19
Q

stock

A

a character found in many different literary works (stereotypes)

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20
Q

foil

A

a character whose traits contrast with those of another character

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21
Q

characterization

A

the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character

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22
Q

direct

A

the author tells us directly what the character is like

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23
Q

indirect

A

the author lets the characters nature be revealed through appearance, speech, private thoughts, actions, the response of other characters

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24
Q

cliche

A

an overused or unoriginal expression

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25
comic relief
a scene inserted into a serious work that relieves the tension through comedy
26
conflict
a struggle between two forces in a literary work
27
internal
a struggle that takes place within a character
28
external
a struggle that takes place between a character and some outside force
29
connotation
an emotional association or implication attached to a word or expression
30
denotation
the literal and basic meaning of a word or expression
31
consonance
a kind of slant rhyme in which the ending consonant sounds of two or more words match, but the preceding vowel sounds do not
32
dialect
a version of a language spoken by the people of a particular place, time, or social group
33
regional
spoken by a particular place
34
social
spoken by members of a particular social group or class
35
social
spoken by members of a particular social group or class
36
dialogue
written conversation between two or more characters
37
drama
a story told through characters played by actors
38
epic
a long narrative poem set in a remote time and place about the adventures involving heroes and gods
39
epic convention
a traditional characteristic of epic poems
40
epic hero
a hero whose action consists of courageous, even superhuman deeds, which often represent the ideals and values of a group, of a nation, or a race
41
epic similie
an elaborate, more involved version of a regular similar
42
epithet
a word of phrase used to describe a characteristic of a person, place, or thing
42
fantasy
highly imaginative fiction containing characters and settings that could never he found in the real world
43
flashback
a section of a literary work that presents an event or series of events that occurred earlier than the current time in the work
44
folklore
a story that has no known author and was originally passed on from one generation to another by word of mouth
45
foreshadowing
the use of clues to hint at what is going to happen later in the story
46
genre
category that a work of literature is classified under
47
idiom
an expression that has a meaning different from the meaning of its individual words
48
imagery
descriptive words and phrases that a writer uses to recreate sensory experiences
49
in medias res
in the middle of things
50
inference
the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known one assumed to be true
51
irony
a significant contrast or discrepancy between expectation and reality
52
verbal irony
saying one thing but meaning something else or the opposite
53
situational irony
when a situation that is expected to happen is the opposite of what actually does happen
54
dramatic irony
when something is known by the reader or audience but is unknown to the characters
55
limerick
a type of nonsense verse with a definite pattern
56
memoir
an account of a single period in a writers life
57
meter (iambic)
the fixed pattern of accented and unaccented syllables in the lines of a poem that produces its pervasive rhythm
58
iambic pentameter
the most common meter in English poetry
59
iambic (iamb)
each foot has one unstressed followed by one stressed syllable
60
pentameter
five feet in a line
61
monologue
a speech or performance given entirely by one person
62
mood
the emotion created in the reader by the literary work
63
moral
the lesson or principle contained in or taught by the story
64
myth
a traditional story that is rooted in a particular culture and explains a phenomenon
65
onomatopoeia
the use of words or phrases that sound like the thing to which they refer
66
oxymoron
a statement or word that contradicts itself
67
parallelism
a repetition of words, phrases, or sentences that have the same grammatical structure or that state a similar idea
68
plot
a series of events relating to a central conflict or struggle
69
exposition
sets the tone, introduces characters and setting, provides necessary background information
70
inciting incident
the event that introduces the center conflict
71
rising action
develops the conflict to a high point of intensity
72
climax
the high point of interest or suspense and it decides what happens in the rest of the story
73
falling action
events that follow the climax
74
resolution
the point at which the conflict is ended
75
denouement
any material following the resolution
76
poetic license
the liberty poets and other literary artists have to depart from normal conventions in order to achieve certain affects
77
poetry
a kind of rhythmic, compressed language that uses figures of speeches and imagery to appeal to our emotions
78
prologue
the introductory part of a novel or long poem
79
prose
all forms of ordinary writing and speech
80
pun
a play on words that exploits a double meaning
81
rhyme
the similarity of sound between two words
82
end rhyme
the use rhyming words at the ends of lines
83
internal rhyme
the use of rhyming words within lines
84
rhyme scheme
a pattern of end rhymes, designated by letters, with matching letters signifying matching sounds
85
rhythm
the pattern of beats or stresses in a line of verse or prose
86
science fiction
highly imaginative fiction based on real or imagined science
87
setting
the time and place of the action
88
Shakespearean sonnet
a sonnet that is arranged into three four-line quatrains, rhyming abab cdcd efef gg
89
soliloquy
the speech of a character who is alone on stage
90
stanza
a section or division of a poem
91
couplet
two lines
92
quatrain
four lines
93
sestet
six lines
94
octave
eight lines
95
stereotype
assumes that everyone in a certain group is alike
96
style
the manner in which writers or speakers say what they wish to say
97
diction
a writer or speakers choice of words
98
syntax
the arrangement and grammatical relation of words, phrases, and clauses in sentences
99
subplot
a secondary series of events subordinate to the main story in a work
100
suspense
a feeling of expectation about what is going to happen next in a story
101
suspension of disbelief
when we willingly set aside our skepticism in order to participate imaginatively in the story we are reading
102
symbol/symbolism
something that has a concrete meaning in itself and also stands for something beyond itself such as an idea or feeling
103
theme
the central idea in a literary work
104
tragedy
a work depicting serious and important events that leads to the downfall of a noble person who has a tragic flaw
105
elements of a Shakespearean tragedy
``` act 1 - exposition act 2 - rising action act 3 - moment of crisis act 4 - falling action act 5 - climax, denouement ```
106
verse
synonym of poetry

English (6 decks)

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