syntax & structure

Question 1

anachronism

Answer 1

Something that isn’t placed in its proper historical time period

Question 2

anaphora

Answer 2

Repetition of an opening word or phrase in a series of lines

Question 3

anecdote

Answer 3

A brief narrative that focuses on a particular incident or event; frequently reveals a character trait

Question 4

antecedent

Answer 4

The word, phrase, or clause to which a pronoun refers

Question 5

antithesis

Answer 5

Rhetorical figure in which two ideas are directly opposed; must be presented in grammatically parallel way

Question 6

asyndeton

Answer 6

A rhetorical figure involving the deliberate omission of conjunctions to create a concise, terse, and often memorable statement

Question 7

caesura

Answer 7

a speech pause occurring within a line

Question 8

chiasmus

Answer 8

A rhetorical figure consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed. (“Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”)

Question 9

climax

Answer 9

The point of greatest tension or emotional intensity in a plot; “turning point”

Question 10

conflict

Answer 10

A confrontation or struggle between opposing characters or forces from which the action emanates and around which it evolves

Question 11

physical conflict

Answer 11

man vs. man, man vs nature

Question 12

social conflict

Answer 12

man vs society

Question 13

internal conflict

Answer 13

man vs self

Question 14

denouement

Answer 14

Refers to events following the climax of a plot and implies some ingenious resolution of the dramatic conflict and explanation of the mysteries/misunderstandings of the plot

Question 15

deus ex machina

Answer 15

“God from the machine”, refers to the intervention of a nonhuman force to resolve a seemingly unresolvable conflict in a literary work; an improbable or artificial resolutions of conflict

Question 16

enjambment

Answer 16

A poetic expression that spans more than one line; do not end with grammatical breaks and a sense of incompleteness

Question 17

epigraph

Answer 17

A saying or statement on the title page of a work, or used as a heading for a chapter or other section of work

Question 18

flashback

Answer 18

The insertion of an earlier event into the normal chronological order of a narrative

Question 19

foreshadowing

Answer 19

The technique of introducing into a narrative material that prepares the reader or audience for future events, actions, or revelations

Question 20

in medias res

Answer 20

technique of beginning a narrative in the middle of the action

Question 21

juxtaposition

Answer 21

placing two elements side by side to present a comparison or contrast

Question 22

parallelism

Answer 22

A rhetorical figure to accentuate or emphasize ideas/images by using grammatically similar constructions

Question 23

polysyndeton

Answer 23

the use, for rhetorical effect, of more conjunctions than is necessary or natural

Question 24

style

Answer 24

An author’s choices and use of figurative language, diction, sound effects, syntax etc.; the combination of distinctive features of a literary work

Question 25

syntax

Answer 25

The arrangement–the ordering, grouping, and placement–of words within a sentence