Semester 1 Final- Literature Terms

Question 0

Exposition

Answer 0

The background information in a story - setting, characters, conflicts - that helps set up the storyline

Question 1

Plot

Answer 1

The structure of the story; the sequence in which the author arranges events in a story

Question 2

Setting

Answer 2

The time and place of a story

Question 3

Rising action

Answer 3

Follows the exposition; the events leading to the climax that builds suspense

Question 4

Climax

Answer 4

He point at which the conflict solves, the ending becomes clear; the turning point in the story.
OR
The point at which the character completes their change in their story arch

Question 5

Falling action

Answer 5

The events after the climax which lead to the end/resolution

Question 6

Resolution

Answer 6

The part of the story which establishes the new way things will be - life after the conflict is solved

Question 7

Flashback

Answer 7

A reference to an event which took place prior to the beginning of the story

Question 8

Foreshadowing

Answer 8

Hints/clues in the story/from the author about what will happen next

Question 9

Genre

Answer 9

A literary type or form

Question 10

Conflict

Answer 10

A problem faced in the story

Question 11

Point of view

Answer 11

Who the story is told from

Question 12

Characterization

Answer 12

How the author introduces and describes a character

Question 13

Protagonist

Answer 13

The main character of the story; who the story follows

Question 14

Antagonist

Answer 14

Character who opposes

Question 15

Stereotype

Answer 15

Idea or particular type of person or thing

Question 16

Foil

Answer 16

Character who contrasts the main character

Question 17

Soliloquy

Answer 17

Speaking ones thoughts aloud in which the audience can only hear but not any of the characters

Question 18

Aside

Answer 18

Remark made by characters to be heard by audience not by other characters

Question 19

Archetype

Answer 19

Typical example of a particular person or thing

Question 20

Inference

Answer 20

A judgment based on reasoning rather than on direct or explicit evidence (educated guess)

Question 21

Hyperbole

Answer 21

An exaggeration or overstatement

Question 22

Understatement

Answer 22

A statement which lessens or minimizes the importance of what is meant

Question 23

Tone

Answer 23

The author’s attitude toward the subject

Question 24

Mood

Answer 24

The atmosphere created or emotions a reader feels in a literary work

Question 25

Theme

Answer 25

An essential understanding; lesson to be learned; view/opinion of life; what the author wants you to take away after you read

Question 26

Verbal irony

Answer 26

The contrast between what is said and what is meant

Question 27

Dramatic irony

Answer 27

A contrast between what the character thinks and what that reader knows

Question 28

Situational irony

Answer 28

The contrast between what happens and what is expected to happen

Question 29

Rhyme scheme

Answer 29

The order in which rhyming words occur in a poem

Question 30

Style

Answer 30

How authors create meaning using figurative language, diction, sound effects and literary devices

Question 31

Syntax

Answer 31

The way words are structured together to make meaning

Question 32

Diction

Answer 32

The authors choice of words to create tone

Question 33

Denotation

Answer 33

The literal meaning of something - the dictionary definition; the most direct and specific meaning of a word

Question 34

Connotation

Answer 34

The unspoken, emotional meaning of a word, or the associations that are implied by the words

Question 35

Ambiguity

Answer 35

A statement which can have two or more meanings

Question 36

Alliteration

Answer 36

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in a group of words

Question 37

Consonance

Answer 37

The repetition of final consonant sounds within the words

Question 38

Assonance

Answer 38

The deletion of vowel sounds in a group of words

Question 39

Imagery

Answer 39

A group of words which appeal to one or more of the senses - sound, smell, touch, see, taste

Question 40

Symbolism

Answer 40

A device in literature in which an object represents and idea

Question 41

Allusion

Answer 41

A reference in one literary work to another literary work/event

Question 42

Personification

Answer 42

A figure of speech in which something nonhuman is given human characteristics

Question 43

Simile

Answer 43

A comparison between two things using the word “like” or “as”

Question 44

Metaphor

Answer 44

A comparison is made without using “like” or “as”

Question 45

Oxymoron

Answer 45

A figure of speech in which two opposing ideas are paired together