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American Literature > Midterm Literary Terms > Flashcards

Midterm Literary Terms Flashcards

1
Q

Allegory

A

extended metaphor in which people and things are not only represented on the literal level but they also stand for something on the symbolic level

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2
Q

Alliteration

A

Repeating a consonant sound in close proximity to others

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3
Q

Allusion

A

A historical reference to a well known other event in literature

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4
Q

Archetype

A

An original pattern from which copies are made

A literary element that has common meaning in an entire culture or the entire human race

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5
Q

Assonance

A

Repeating identical or similar vowels in nearby words

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6
Q

Connotation

A

The feelings that are associated with a word

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7
Q

Consonance

A

Alliteration that also involves changes in the intervening vowels between repeated consonants

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8
Q

Denotation

A

The dictionary definition of a word

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9
Q

Dramatic Irony

A

Audience knows more than the characters

Often very frustrating to watch

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10
Q

Hyperbole

A

An extreme metaphor

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11
Q

Imagery

A

Vivid description that adds depth to a work

Use figurative language to appeal to senses

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12
Q

Juxtaposition

A

two or more ideas, places, characters and their actions are placed side by side in a narrative or a poem for the purpose of developing comparisons and contrasts.

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13
Q

Metaphor

A

comparing two or more things without using like or as

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14
Q

Mood

A

evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and descriptions

the atmosphere

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15
Q

Motif

A

A reoccurring element in a work of literature

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16
Q

Onomatopoeia

A

The use of sounds that are similar to the noise they represent for a rhetorical or artistic effect.

Ex; buzz, crash, pop

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17
Q

Oxymoron

A

Using contradiction that oddly makes sense on a deeper level

Ex: jumbo shrimp

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18
Q

Paradox

A

Using contradiction that oddly makes sense on a deeper level

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19
Q

Personification

A

giving human qualities to unhuman things

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20
Q

Rhetorical Modes (List)

A

Explanation

Persuasion

Narrative

Desciption

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21
Q

Rhetorical Techniques (List)

A

Rhetorical question

Parallel structure

Restatement of ideas

Repetition

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22
Q

Simile

A

using like or as to compare two or more things

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23
Q

Situational Irony

A

it’s like rain on your wedding day

a free ride but you already paid

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24
Q

Symbolism

A

A word, place, character, or object that means something beyond what it is on a literal level

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25
Rhetorical Techniques (List) **** Need to make flashcards for these ********
Rhetorical question Parallel structure Restatement of ideas Repetition
26
Theme
A central idea or statement that unifies and controls an entire literary work
27
Tone
The means of creating a relationship or conveying an attitude or mood underlying attitudes Ex: playful, ironic, pessimistic
28
Plot
the structure of a story (sequence of events) rising action, climax, resolution, etc.
29
Rising action
the part of the story where the plot becomes increasingly complex
30
Exposition
A form of writing that explains, defines, instructs, or clarifies information background information
31
Climax
the turning point of the story the moment when the conflict is at its most intense
32
Resolution
the portion of the story following the climax where the conflict is resolved
33
Falling Action
diminishing tensions after the climax
34
Setting
the time and place of a story
35
Characterization
the method an author uses to reveal their characters' traits and personalities can be direct or indirect
36
Protagonist
the leading "good guy" in the story
37
Antagonist
the "bad guy" in the story. Opposes the protagonist
38
Conflict
A struggle or clash between two characters or forces (sometimes can be internal)
39
External conflict
man vs. man man vs. nature man vs. society
40
Internal conflict
man vs. self
41
1st person narrator
the story is told from a character in the story's point of view uses words like "I, we, us"
42
3rd person omniscient
the narrator can oversee everyone
43
3rd person limited
the narrator can only follow one character
44
Pun
a play on words in which the humor is created because a word has two meanings
45
Foil
a character who contrasts another character, thus exaggerating the contrasting characteristic
46
Flashback
presents action that occurred before the current time that the story takes place
47
Foreshadowing
a literary device that sets up expectations for what is to later come
48
Microcosm
a representation of something on a much smaller level Ex: the battle of the ants in Walden representing the Concord Fight
49
Satire
a literary approach that ridicules human weakness or vice
50
Myth
a traditional story that usually contains an event or hero is not based upon facts
51
Coming of Age/ Rite of Passage/ Bildungsroman
a literary genre that focuses on the psychological growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood
52
Stream of cousciousness
getting characters thoughts and style with a realistic tone it feels like you are in the head of a character fragments of random disconnected thoughts
53
Aphorism
a statement of truth or opinion expressed in a concise or witty manner Ex: I’d rather die on my feet, than live on my knees Those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind
54
Syntax
the ordering of words into verbal patterns such as phrases, clauses, and sentences
55
Ambiguity
word, phrase, or statement that contains more than one meaning
56
Sermon
a lecture, speech, or talk about moral or spiritual issues
57
Picaresque
It has a low-born adventurer who would rather live by wits than honorable work Adventures among people of all social classes, often barely escaping punishment Irony or Satire: corruptions of society, while also offering the reader a rich mine of observations concerning people in low or humble works of life.
58
Explication
the close analysis of an excerpt from a longer work of text critical analysis
59
Lyric
a fairly short poem which is the expression of a single speaker in a mediative manner
60
Verse
a single line of poetry
61
Imagery
descriptive or figurative language to create sensory images
62
Idiom
Set expression or phrase comparing two or more words "graveyard shift" "a piece of cake"
63
Literal
means exactly what is said uses words according to definiton
64
Rhyme
repetition of similar sounding words at the end of lines
65
End rhyme
last syllables or words in two or more lines rhyme with each other
66
Slant rhyme
rhyme in which the stressed syllables of ending consonants match, however the preceding vowel sounds do not match ex: If love is like a bridge or maybe like a grudge Kinda "half" rhymes
67
Rhyme scheme
the ordered pattern of rhymes
68
Stanza
similar to paragraphs a set of four or more lines
69
Dramatic dialogue
A dialogue is a literary technique in which writers employ two or more characters to be engaged in conversation with each other
70
Poetic drama
category of plays written in verse Shakespeare wrote this way
71
Structure
The rhyming pattern, meter, grammar, and imagery used by a poet to convey meaning

American Literature (16 decks)

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