AP English Literature & Composition Key Terms
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46 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 allegory | a work that functions on a symbolic level |
| alliteration | the repetition of initial consonant sounds |
| allusion | a reference contained in a work |
| anapest | a metrical pattern of two unaccented syllables followed by an accented syllable |
| antagonist | the force or character that opposes the main character, the protagonist |
| apostrophe | direct address in poetry |
| aside | words spoken by an actor intended to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on stage |
| aubade | a love poem set at dawn which bids farewell to the beloved |
| ballad | a simple narrative poem, often incorporating dialogue that is written in quatrains, generally with a rhyme scheme of ABCD |
| blank verse | unrhymed iambic pentameter |
| cacophony | harsh and discordant sounds in a line or passage of a literary work |
| caesura | a break or pause within a line of poetry indicated by punctuation and used to emphasize meaning |
| catharsis | the release of emotion that the audience of a tragedy experiences |
| character | one who carries out the action of the plot in literature; can be major, minor, static, or dynamic |
| climax | the turning point of action or character in a literally work, usually the highest moment of tension |
| comic relief | the inclusion of a humorous character or scene to contrast with the tragic elements of a work, thereby intensifying the next tragic event |
| conflict | a clash between opposing forces in a literary work; can be man vs. man, man vs. nature, man. vs God, or man vs. self |
| connotation | the interpretive level of a word based on its associated images rather than its literal meaning |
| convention | a traditional aspect of a literary works such as a soliloquy in a Shakespearean play or a tragic hero in a Greek tragedy |
| couplet | two lines of rhyming poetry |
| dactyl | a foot of poetry consisting of a stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables |
| denotation | the literal or dictionary meaning of a word |
| denouement | the conclusion or tying up of loose ends in a literary work; the resolution of the conflict and plot |
| deus ex machina | a Greek invention, literally "the god from the machine" who appears at the last moment and resolves the loose ends of a play; anyone, usually of some stature, who resolves or reveals the key to the plot of a work |
| diction | the author's choice of words |
| dramatic monologue | a type of poem that presents a conversation between a speaker and an implied listener |
| elegy | a poem that laments the dead or a loss |
| enjambment | a technique in poetry that involves the running on of a line or stanza; enables the poem to move and to develop coherence as well as directing the reader with regard to form and meaning |
| epic | a lengthy, elevated poem that celebrates the exploits of a hero |
| epigram | a brief witty poem |
| euphony | the pleasant, mellifluous presentation of sounds in a literary work |
| exposition | background information presented in a literary work |
| fable | a simple, symbolic story usually employing animals as characters |
| figurative language | the body of devices that enables the writer to operate on levels other than the literal one; includes metaphor, simile, symbol, motif, hyperbole, etc. |
| flashback | a device that enables a writer to refer to past thoughts, events, episodes |
| foot | a metrical unit in poetry; a syllabic measure of a line: iamb, trochee, anapest, dactyl, spondee |
| foreshadowing | hints of future events in a literary work |
| form | the shape or structure of a literary work |
| free verse | poetry without a defined form, meter, or rhyme scheme |
| hyperbole | extreme exaggeration |
| iamb | a metrical foot consisting of an unaccented syllable followed by an accented one; the most common poetic foot in the English language |
| idyll | a type of lyric poem which extols the virtues of an ideal place or time |
| image | a verbal approximation of a sensory impression, concept, or emotion |
| imagery | the total effect of related sensory images in a work of literature |
| impressionism | writing that reflects a personal image of a character, event, or concept |
| irony | an unexpected twist or contrast between what happens and what was intended to or expected to happen; involves dialogue and situation; can be intentional or unplanned; dramatic _____ centers around the ignorance of those involved while the audience is aware of the circumstance |
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