AP Lit Terms II
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Created by:
Jrunkel on October 25, 2010
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Classes:
US History Fall Final Review, GACS lclab Español 1, GACS AP Lit and Comp
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44 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Inference | a conclusion one can draw from the presented details. |
| Interior monologue | a literary technique used in poetry and prose that reveals a character's unspoken thoughts and feelings. May be used by the character or presented by the narrator. |
| Invective | a verbally abusive attack. |
| Inversion | a switch in the normal word order. |
| Irony | an unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended or expected to happen. It involves dialog and situation, and can be intentional or unplanned. |
| Metaphor | a direct comparison between dissimilar things. "Your eyes are stars" is an example. |
| Metonymy | a figure of speech that replaces the name of something with a word or phrase closely associated with it. (suits = management). |
| Monologue | a speech given by one character (Hamlet's "To be or not to be..."). |
| Mood | the prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work. Setting, tone, and events can affect this. |
| Motif | the repetition or variations of an image or idea in a work used to develop theme or characters. |
| Narrator | the speaker of a literary work. |
| Onomatopoeia | words that sound like the sound they represent (hiss, gurgle, pop). |
| Oxymoron | an image of contradictory term (bittersweet, pretty ugly, jumbo shrimp). |
| Parable | a story that operates on more than one level and usually teaches a moral lesson. (The Pearl by John Steinbeck is a fine example.). |
| Paradox | A statement that appears to be self-contradictory or opposed to common sense, but upon closer inspection contains some degree of truth or validity. The first scene of Macbeth, for example, closes with the witches' cryptic remark "Fair is foul, and foul is fair...." |
| Parallelism | This refers to the grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity. The effects are numerous, but frequently, they act as an organizing force to attract the reader's attention, add emphasis and organization, or simply provide a musical rhythm. |
| Parody | a comic imitation of a work that ridicules the original. It can be utterly mocking or gently humorous. It depends on allusion and exaggerates and distorts the original style and content. |
| Pathos | the aspects of a literary work that elicit pity from the audience. An appeal to emotion that can be used as a means to persuade. |
| Pedantic | a term used to describe writing that borders on lecturing. It is scholarly and academic and often overly difficult and distant. |
| Periodic Sentence | places the main idea or central complete thought at the end of the complete thought, after all introductory elements. The effect of this is to add emphasis and structural variety. |
| Personification | the assigning of human qualities to inanimate objects or concepts. |
| Plot | a sequence of events in a literary work. |
| Point-of-View | the method of narration in a literary work. |
| Pun | a play on words that often has a comic effect. Associated with wit and cleverness. A writer who speaks of the "grave topic of American funerals" employs this. AKA "The Henderson" |
| Purpose | involves intent, the reason why a writer writes. The fundamentals: to entertain, to inform, or to persuade. These are not necessarily separate or discrete; they can be combined. |
| Repetition | the duplication, either exact or approximate, of any element of language, such as a sound, word, phrase, clause, sentence, or grammatical pattern. When this is poorly done, it bores, but when it's well done, it links and emphasizes ideas while allowing the reader the comfort of recognizing something familiar. |
| Rhetorical Question | one that does not expect an explicit answer. It is used to pose an idea to be considered by the speaker or audience. (Ernest Dowson asks, "Where are they now, the days of wine and roses?") |
| Sarcasm | a comic technique that ridicules through caustic language. Tone and attitude may both be described as this in a given text if the writer employs language, irony, and wit to mock or scorn. |
| Satire | a mode of writing based on ridicule, that criticizes the foibles and follies of society without necessarily offering a solution. |
| Sentence structure | the different types of these are simple, compound, and complex. Also consider variation or lack of it along with any unusual devices, such as repetition or inverted word order, and any unusual word or phrase placement. |
| Setting | the time and place of a literary work. |
| Shift | in writing, a movement from one thought or idea to another; a change. |
| Simile | an indirect comparison that uses the words like or as to link the differing items in the comparison. ("Your eyes are like the stars.") |
| Structure | the organization and form of a work. |
| Style | the unique way an author presents his ideas. Diction, syntax, imagery, structure, and content all contribute. |
| Symbol | something in a literary work that stands for something else. (Plato has the light of the sun represent truth in "The Allegory of the Cave.") |
| Synecdoche | a figure of speech that utilizes a part as representative of the whole. ("All hands on deck" is an example.) |
| Syntax | the grammatical structure of prose and poetry. |
| Theme | the underlying ideas the author illustrates through characterization, motifs, language, plot, etc. |
| Thesis | simply, the main idea of a piece of writing. It presents the author's assertion or claim. The effectiveness of a presentation is often based on how well the writer presents, develops, and supports this. |
| Tone | refers to the author's attitude toward his subject, and often sets the mood of the piece. |
| Understatement | is the opposite of hyperbole; it is a deliberate minimizing done to provide emphasis or humor. In William Least Heat Moon's "Nameless, Tennessee" (p. 164), Miss Ginny Watts explains how she asked her husband to call the doctor unless he wanted to be "shut of" (rid of) her. Her husband, Thurmond, humorously replies: "I studied on it." |
| Voice | the total "sound" of a writer's style. |
| Wit | Historically, it originally meant basic understanding. Its meaning evolved to include speed of understanding, and finally (in the early seventeenth century), it grew to mean quick perception including creative fancy. |
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