Vocab Quiz- Literary Terms Flashcards
Action
The series of events and episodes that form the plot of a story or play
Allegory
Literary work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions
Allusion
Reference to literary, mythological, or historical person, place, thing, or event
Anaphora
Deliberate repetition of word or phrase at the beginning of each one of a sequence of lines
Antagonist
Any force in opposition to the main character, or protagonist
Anecdote
Brief personal narrative which focuses on particular incident or event
Antihero
Chief character in modern literature who is the opposite of what is often associated with the hero; anti heroes are powerless, petty, foolish, passive, dishonest, and the like.
Archetype
Recurrent, universal narrative designs, patterns of action, character-types, themes, and images
Atmosphere
Emotional tone pervading a literary work or section of a work; sometimes called mood or ambiance
Bildungsroman
Novel of formation l; coming of age novel; childhood to adulthood
Catharsis
Purging of the feelings of pity and fear that, according to Aristotle, occur I the audience of tragic drama.
Protagonist
The chief character in the plot, often opposed by the antagonist
Flat character
A character built around a single quality
Round character
A more complex character
Stock characters
Are types of characters recognizable as stereotypical or conventional characters that reoccur
Climax
The turning point in a narrative, when the conflict is at its most intense
Close reading
Detailed analysis of complex interrelationships and multiple meanings of the verbal and figurative components within a work
Complication
An intensification of the conflict in a story or play
Conflict
The issue to be solved in the story
Denouement
Action of “untying,” final outcome of main complication in story
Dialect
Regional or social variety of language distinguished by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, especially a variety of speech differing from the standard literary language or speech pattern of the culture in which it exists
Dialogue
Literary work written in the form of conversation
Diction
Words phrases chosen by author, often categorized as abstract, concrete, Anglo-Saxon or Latinate, colloquial, technical, formal, common.
Epistolary novel
Narrative conveyed through letters
Exposition
Introductory material that presents characters, setting, tone
Falling action
Action following the climax of a story that moves it toward resolution
Figurative language
A departure from standard meaning of words to achieve special meaning or effect
Flashback
Interpolated narrative or scenes representing events that happened before the time at which the work opened
Foil
Character in a work who, by sharp contrast, serves to stress and highlight characteristics of the protagonist
Foreshadowing
Device used to create expectation or to set up an explanation of later developments
Frame story
Preliminary narrative in which a character tells another or a series of other stories
Freytag’s pyramid
Gustav Freytag’s description of a typical plot of five act play as a pyramid with rising action, climax, and falling action
