| Term | Definition |
|---|
| ode | a poem of varying line lengths and usually several stanzas, often addressed to someone; in classical literature, a poem to be sung, usually in praise of someone |
| pastoral | pertaining to country life |
| metaphor | a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance, as in “A mighty fortress is our God.” |
| simile | a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared, as in “she is like a rose.” |
| personification | a type of figurative language in which an object is given human qualities |
| symbolism | use of an object, character, or event to stand by itself and represent something else |
| personal symbol | symbols created by authors for use in particular works |
| traditional symbol | uses symbols that are part of our cultural inheritances |
| assonance | repition of vowel sounds in stressed syllables |
| consonance | repition of a final consonant sound in words or accented syllables |
| onomanopoeia | the formation of a word, as cuckoo or boom, by imitation of a sound made by or associated with its referent. |
| alliteration | repition of initial consonant sounds |
| figurative language | speech or writing that departs from literal meaning in order to achieve a special effect or meaning, speech or writing employing figures of speech |
| point of view | first person (I), third person (he/she), objective (camera), omniscient (all knowing) |
| tone | attitude that a writer has towards the subject and/or the reader |
| theme | statement about life indirectly expressed in a piece of literature/work, to arrive at what a theme is, you have to consider the whole story |
| diction | word choice, adds different connotations to the meaning of a passage |
| imagery | use of words and phrases to create vivid sensations that appeal to any of the five senses |
| mood | feeling created in the reader by a work or literary mood may be suggested by work choice, events, or physical setting |
| allusion | a passing or casual reference; an incidental mention of something, either directly or by implication: an allusion to Shakespeare. |
| satire | the use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc. |
| syntax | The study of the rules whereby words or other elements of sentence structure are combined to form grammatical sentences. |
| irony | discrepency between appearances and reality |
| verbal irony | occurs when someone says one thing but means something else |
| situational irony | takes place when there is discrepency between what is expected to happen, or what would be appropriate to happen, and what really does happen |
| dramatic irony | often used on stage; character in the play or story thinks one thing is true, but the audience of reader knows better |
| paradox | a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth. |
| ambiguity | any story or element in a story that can be interpreted in different ways; fault that obstructs clear communication |
| pun | play on words; may have two different meanings |
| denouement | conclusion (or resolution of a story); at this point, everything is unraveled and conflicts are resolved |
| motivation | reasons for a character's behavior. |
| pathos | pity roused by the situation or the misfortunes of the characters in a story |
| foreshadowing | the use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in a plot |
| flashback | scene that interrupts the normal chronological sequence of events in a story to depict something that happened at an earlier time |
| climax | outcome of the main action of a story |
| stereotype | fixed idea or conception of a character or an idea that does not allow for any individuality, and is often based on religious, social, or racial prejudices |
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