| Term | Definition |
|---|
| prose | real lines in a play for poor people, usually paragraph form |
| verse | writing in poetry |
| diction | choice of words |
| genre | the category, type or group a literary work belongs to |
| denotation | the actual, literal definition of a word |
| connotations | the meaning, associations and emotions that a word suggests |
| blank verse | unrhyming verse |
| couplet | two lines together that rhyme and are (usually) of about the same length |
| aside | lines said aloud that other characters cannot hear, intended to give the audience a better understanding of the characters thoughts |
| soliloquy | thoughts said aloud to anyone who will listen |
| monologue | any composition where a person speaks alone |
| alliteration | repitition of consonant sounds at the beginning of a word (more than two in a short space) |
| short story | piece of prose fiction less than 10000 words |
| hero | typically the main chara cter, later known as the protagonist, does not chnge throughout the piece |
| Christian hero | hero who demonstrates or developes Christian values or virtues |
| tone | writers attitude towards his/her piece of writing |
| antagonist | important opponent of the protagonist |
| anti-climax | dull, disappointing ending to a play after increasing excitement |
| syntax | studying rules for grammar sentences in a language |
| achronological narrative | out of time order |
| voice | who is doing the speaking |
| teasers | upcoming events that are not fully expressed |
| narrative | a story or account of events |
| coincidence | two or more events happening at the same time seemingly by chance |
| comedy | has a happy ending |
| tragic flaw | in a tragedy, a flaw in the character of the protagonist that brings the character to ruin or sorrow |
| minor character | a seemingly unimportant character who usually impacts the literary work in some way |
| audience | spectators, readers, listeners, etc. |
| third person omniscient | someone not involved in the story is telling it (can explain what people are thinking and feeling) |
| falling action | after the climax has been reached and the conflict has been resolved |
| stock character | characters that are easily recognized by the reader and are often recurring |
| figurative language | something not literal in poetry |
| metonymy | substituting an object related to the word you mean |
| dramatic irony | when the audience/reader knwos something the character doesn't know yet |
| major character | any character who contributes greatly to the plot of the story |
| situational irony | a difference in expected and actual results |
| psychological realism | realism based thoughs, all goes on in the characters head |
| imagery | language that evokes at least one of the five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch) |
| motif | reoccuring theme, dominant or central idea |
| essay | a speech/writing in praise of a person/thing |
| hyperbole | exaggeration or overstatement |
| foreshadowing | hinting to an upcoming event |
| assonance | the repitition of vowel sounds in the middle of words |
| understatement | underexaggeration, used to emphasize important things |
| iambic pentameter | lightly stressed syllable followed by a heavily stressed syllable |
| epic | long sotry (elevated style, vast setting, superhuman powers, supernatural beings, etc.) |
| epic hero | a larger than life hero, unrealistically perfect |
| classic hero | a well known hero, usually Greek or Latin |
| setting | time and place |
| climax | a decisive moment that is of maximum intensity or a major turning point in a plot |
| chronological narrative | narrative told in the order it happened |
| narrator | one who tells a narrative, a person not involved in the story tells it to the audience |
| point of view | the point of view from which a story is told |
| allusions | a reference to a well known thing from literature, popculture, history, religion, etc. |
| comic relief | a small break of seriousness to relieve tension felt by the audience during a serious time |
| foil | character who is similar to the protagonist but has a quality the protagonist is missing |
| rite of passage | an act or event marking a change in stages of life |
| existentialism | entirely free people, responsible for what they make of themselves |
| first person | told by a person in the story |
| euphemism | putting a less offensive phrase instead of the original one thought of as crude, harsh, blunt, etc. |
| dynamic character | a character that changes throughout the story |
| synecdoche | substituting a part for a whole |
| dramatic monologue | a poem that reveals "soul in action" as one character speaks to a known, silent character in a dramatic situation |
| satire | making fun of a serious subject in order to get a point across |
| realism | something that actually occurs/could occur in real life |
| social realism | comments on society, could happen (hookers, drug dealers, etc.) |
| symbol | something that goes beyond what the author has actually written, a further meaning |
| theme | a central idea in a piece of literature |
| apostrophe | address something that isn't or can't be present |
| omens | a sign that something will happen |
| personification | giving human traits and characteristics to non human things |
| consonance | the repitition of consonant sounds at the end of words |
| paradox | something that can't be true, but is |
| novel | any fictional narrative, usually in prose |
| play | literary composition meant to be performed |
| anti-hero | protagonist, has no "superhuman" qualities, tends to be more realistic |
| black humor | sick humor, something that shouldn't be funny but we laugh about anyway |
| protagonist | leading character, changes throughout the story |
| turning point | critical point in literature when things begin to change |
| flashback | going back to a previous time or event |
| speaker | the person who is talking |
| cliffhanger | open ending, not fully explaining what will happen, esp. in suspenseful situations |
| persona | an external representation of oneself, not always accurate |
| tragedy | unhappy ending, serious subject |
| archetype | original model that others are later based off of |
| play of manners | a play that demonstrates social behavior |
| rising action | series of incidents that lead to a point of great interest or lead to the climax |
| static character | character who remains basically unchanged throughout the story |
Combine with other sets
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