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A reference in a literary work to another event, place, person, or literary work that the reader is expected to recognize
Allusion
A person or force opposing the protagonist in a drama or a narrative.
Antagonist
A brief statement, often witty, that expresses a principle, truth, or observation about life
Aphorism
A detailed account of a person’s life and accomplishments, written by another person
Biography
The struggle between opposing characters, forces, or emotions
Conflict
Regional variations within the same language, as spoken in different areas of a country
Dialect
One’s choice of words in writing of speaking
Diction
A literary work designed for presentation by actors on a stage
Drama
A poem in which the main character addresses an identifiable but silent listener, at a time of crisis in speaker’s life
Dramatic Monologue
A line of verse that runs into the next line or lines without pause
Enjambment
A metaphor that extends throughout a stanza or an entire poem
Extended Metaphor
A literary form typically set in non-existent realms and often featuring supernatural beings
Fantasy
A technique in which words and phrases that have literary meanings are enhanced and given freshness of expression by means of figures of speech
Figurative Language
A ballad that is anonymously composed and passed down orally through the generations before it is committed to print
Folktale
A literary device that supplies clues that hint at later plot developments
Foreshadowing
The contrast between what is expected and what really happens, or what is said and what is really meant.
Irony
Originally devised by the 17th-century metaphysical poets, are especially striking and complex
Metaphysical conceit
A poem in which the author tells a story
Narrative poetry
An outcome in a literary work (not necessarily a poem) in which good is rewarded and evil is punished, especially in ways that particularly fir the virtue or the crime
Poetic Justice
The main character in fiction, drama, or narrative poetry. t is the protagonist’s conflict that sets the plot in motion
Protagonist
A phrase or sentence repeated at intervals throughout a poem, often at the end of a stanza.
Refrain
A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables
Rhythm
A style of narrative writing that records a character’s random flow of thoughts, emotions, and associations at the moment that they occur
Stream-of-Consciousness
The way in which grammatical structure is employed to combine words, phrases, and clauses into sentences
Syntax
