Tier 2 Vocabulary Flashcards
Asserts, Posits,
Reasons, Argues
(verb) put forward as fact or as a basis for argument
Dyson asserts that “Gatsby is the apotheosis of his rootless society…he really believes in himself and his illusions.”
Smith posits that Paradise Lost is a “veiled critique of the heavenly hierarchy, and Satan’s charisma and plausibility a result of Milton’s sympathy for his plights.’
Employs, Utilises,
Applies, Devotes
(verb) to put into action
When the Duchess is ‘long used to’ imprisonment, Ferdinand decides to employ more desperate measures to reduce her to despair.
Gatsby amasses a great deal of wealth at a relatively young age and devotes himself to acquiring possessions and throwing parties that he believes will enable him to win Daisy’s love.
Ostensibly, Apparently, Allegedly
Presumably
(adverb) as appears or stated to be true, though not necessarily
What follows is one of the most celebrated speeches in Shakespeare, ostensibly about racial and religious equality.
Apparently taken aback by the critical reception of this novel, and the critical outcry when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962, Steinbeck published no more fiction in the remaining six years before his death.
Eponymous
(adjective) named after a particular person
- Prince Hamlet is the eponymous protagonist of the Shakespearian tragedy ‘Hamlet’.
- “You can’t repeat the past,” notes Gatsby narrator Nick Carraway in one of the novel’s most famous scenes. To which the eponymous billionaire responds, “Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can!”
Ostentatious
(adjective) pretentious or showy display; designed to impress
- Ostentatious self-promoters, fickle friends, and opportunistic family members surround the enigmatic Hamlet, who finds himself caught between the dogmatic Medieval world and the doubting Renaissance world.
- Fitzgerald portrays the newly rich as being vulgar, gaudy, ostentatious, and lacking in social graces and taste. Gatsby, for example, lives in a monstrously ornate mansion, wears a pink suit, drives a Rolls-Royce.
Decadent
(noun) a person who is luxuriously self-indulgent
- The 1920s is often depicted as a time of economic prosperity, social optimism, and lavish decadence.
- The ideas that Elsinore has become decadent is developed by news that the actors whose endeavour keeps in the wonted pace are on the road, forced to make way for an eyrie of children.
Hedonism
(noun) the pursuit of pleasure; sensual self-indulgence
- Gatsby’s hedonism is seen in the extravagance of his parties, house, clothes, and cars – all ways of him trying to win Daisy with his wealth.
- Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet precisely depicts the negative effects of hedonism on the prosperity of a society: “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.”
Microcosm
Macrocosm
(noun) a place regarded as encapsulating in miniature something much larger
OR the opposite
- In Chapter 15, Steinbeck uses this inter chapter as a microcosm of the book as a whole.
- Eve’s eating of the fruit has macrocosmic consequences: ‘she plucked, she ate, earth felt the wound.’
Ennui
(noun) a feeling of listlessness/ dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occupation or excitement.
- Claudius and Gertrude are both concerned about Hamlet’s deep sadness and ennui.
Conspicuous
Consumption
(noun) expenditure
on luxuries on a lavish scale in an attempt to enhance one’s prestige
- Gatsby is a conspicuous consumer in that he flaunts his riches, his home, and his grandiose parties – especially Daisy – so others would take note of his success.
Enigmatic
(adjective) perplexing or mysterious
- Hamlet’s enigmatic aura is what draws the audience to his character. He is practical and emotional, thoughtful and impulsive, and insane and intelligent all at the same time.
Ephemeral
(adjective) Lasting for a very short time
- Gatsby’s quest is toward something ephemeral. He disappears into an unquiet darkness” – foreshadowing his disappearance into death at the end of the novel.
Materialism
(noun) a tendency to consider material possessions and physical comfort as more important than spiritual values.
- Some examples of materialism in The Great Gatsby are Myrtle wanting a dog for her apartment as an ornament and Gatsby’s mansion and lavish parties to attract Daisy’s attention.
Nouveau riche
(noun) people who have recently acquired wealth, typically perceived as ostentatious or lacking in good taste.
- East Egg and West Egg symbolise the established wealthy class and the nouveau riche.
- Nouveau riche or newly rich during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era in America indicate that the nouveau riche were indeed a social figure that could easily be decoded by readers because they knew what appearance, behaviour, language, and interest were to be expected from such people.
Periphery/Marginalised
(noun) the outer limits or edge of an area
- In American literature, the marginalised are symbolic of a community of people who have historically been removed from engaging in mass society, either politically, socially, culturally, economically or in any other way. They are on the periphery of society.
