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English > Literature Terms > Flashcards

Literature Terms Flashcards

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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
Q

comic relief

A

a scene inserted into a serious work that relieves the tension through comedy

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26
Q

conflict

A

a struggle between two forces in a literary work

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27
Q

internal

A

a struggle that takes place within a character

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28
Q

external

A

a struggle that takes place between a character and some outside force

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29
Q

connotation

A

an emotional association or implication attached to a word or expression

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30
Q

denotation

A

the literal and basic meaning of a word or expression

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31
Q

consonance

A

a kind of slant rhyme in which the ending consonant sounds of two or more words match, but the preceding vowel sounds do not

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32
Q

dialect

A

a version of a language spoken by the people of a particular place, time, or social group

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33
Q

regional

A

spoken by a particular place

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34
Q

social

A

spoken by members of a particular social group or class

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35
Q

social

A

spoken by members of a particular social group or class

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36
Q

dialogue

A

written conversation between two or more characters

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37
Q

drama

A

a story told through characters played by actors

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38
Q

epic

A

a long narrative poem set in a remote time and place about the adventures involving heroes and gods

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39
Q

epic convention

A

a traditional characteristic of epic poems

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40
Q

epic hero

A

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

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41
Q

epic similie

A

an elaborate, more involved version of a regular similar

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42
Q

epithet

A

a word of phrase used to describe a characteristic of a person, place, or thing

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42
Q

fantasy

A

highly imaginative fiction containing characters and settings that could never he found in the real world

43
Q

flashback

A

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
Q

folklore

A

a story that has no known author and was originally passed on from one generation to another by word of mouth

45
Q

foreshadowing

A

the use of clues to hint at what is going to happen later in the story

46
Q

genre

A

category that a work of literature is classified under

47
Q

idiom

A

an expression that has a meaning different from the meaning of its individual words

48
Q

imagery

A

descriptive words and phrases that a writer uses to recreate sensory experiences

49
Q

in medias res

A

in the middle of things

50
Q

inference

A

the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known one assumed to be true

51
Q

irony

A

a significant contrast or discrepancy between expectation and reality

52
Q

verbal irony

A

saying one thing but meaning something else or the opposite

53
Q

situational irony

A

when a situation that is expected to happen is the opposite of what actually does happen

54
Q

dramatic irony

A

when something is known by the reader or audience but is unknown to the characters

55
Q

limerick

A

a type of nonsense verse with a definite pattern

56
Q

memoir

A

an account of a single period in a writers life

57
Q

meter (iambic)

A

the fixed pattern of accented and unaccented syllables in the lines of a poem that produces its pervasive rhythm

58
Q

iambic pentameter

A

the most common meter in English poetry

59
Q

iambic (iamb)

A

each foot has one unstressed followed by one stressed syllable

60
Q

pentameter

A

five feet in a line

61
Q

monologue

A

a speech or performance given entirely by one person

62
Q

mood

A

the emotion created in the reader by the literary work

63
Q

moral

A

the lesson or principle contained in or taught by the story

64
Q

myth

A

a traditional story that is rooted in a particular culture and explains a phenomenon

65
Q

onomatopoeia

A

the use of words or phrases that sound like the thing to which they refer

66
Q

oxymoron

A

a statement or word that contradicts itself

67
Q

parallelism

A

a repetition of words, phrases, or sentences that have the same grammatical structure or that state a similar idea

68
Q

plot

A

a series of events relating to a central conflict or struggle

69
Q

exposition

A

sets the tone, introduces characters and setting, provides necessary background information

70
Q

inciting incident

A

the event that introduces the center conflict

71
Q

rising action

A

develops the conflict to a high point of intensity

72
Q

climax

A

the high point of interest or suspense and it decides what happens in the rest of the story

73
Q

falling action

A

events that follow the climax

74
Q

resolution

A

the point at which the conflict is ended

75
Q

denouement

A

any material following the resolution

76
Q

poetic license

A

the liberty poets and other literary artists have to depart from normal conventions in order to achieve certain affects

77
Q

poetry

A

a kind of rhythmic, compressed language that uses figures of speeches and imagery to appeal to our emotions

78
Q

prologue

A

the introductory part of a novel or long poem

79
Q

prose

A

all forms of ordinary writing and speech

80
Q

pun

A

a play on words that exploits a double meaning

81
Q

rhyme

A

the similarity of sound between two words

82
Q

end rhyme

A

the use rhyming words at the ends of lines

83
Q

internal rhyme

A

the use of rhyming words within lines

84
Q

rhyme scheme

A

a pattern of end rhymes, designated by letters, with matching letters signifying matching sounds

85
Q

rhythm

A

the pattern of beats or stresses in a line of verse or prose

86
Q

science fiction

A

highly imaginative fiction based on real or imagined science

87
Q

setting

A

the time and place of the action

88
Q

Shakespearean sonnet

A

a sonnet that is arranged into three four-line quatrains, rhyming abab cdcd efef gg

89
Q

soliloquy

A

the speech of a character who is alone on stage

90
Q

stanza

A

a section or division of a poem

91
Q

couplet

A

two lines

92
Q

quatrain

A

four lines

93
Q

sestet

A

six lines

94
Q

octave

A

eight lines

95
Q

stereotype

A

assumes that everyone in a certain group is alike

96
Q

style

A

the manner in which writers or speakers say what they wish to say

97
Q

diction

A

a writer or speakers choice of words

98
Q

syntax

A

the arrangement and grammatical relation of words, phrases, and clauses in sentences

99
Q

subplot

A

a secondary series of events subordinate to the main story in a work

100
Q

suspense

A

a feeling of expectation about what is going to happen next in a story

101
Q

suspension of disbelief

A

when we willingly set aside our skepticism in order to participate imaginatively in the story we are reading

102
Q

symbol/symbolism

A

something that has a concrete meaning in itself and also stands for something beyond itself such as an idea or feeling

103
Q

theme

A

the central idea in a literary work

104
Q

tragedy

A

a work depicting serious and important events that leads to the downfall of a noble person who has a tragic flaw

105
Q

elements of a Shakespearean tragedy

A 
act 1 - exposition 
act 2 - rising action 
act 3 - moment of crisis 
act 4 - falling action 
act 5 - climax, denouement
106
Q

verse

A

synonym of poetry

English (6 decks)

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