Data

Copy and paste the text below. It is read-only. Select All

allegory A literary work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions alliteration the repetition of initial consonant sounds allusion a reference to something literary, mythological, or historical that the author assumes the reader will recognize ambiguity The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage. analogy drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity in some respect anaphora repetition of a word or phrase as the beginning of successive clauses anastrophe inversion of the usual, normal, or logical order of the parts of a sentence. purpose is rhythm or emphasis or euphony. it is a fancy word for inversion. anecdote short account of an incident (especially a biographical one) antagonist the character who works against the protagonist in the story antimetabole The repetition of words in successive clauses in reverse grammatical order antithesis the juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas to give a feeling of balance antihero a protagonist who lacks the characteristics that would make him a hero (or her a heroine) anthropomorphism the attribution of human characteristics to animals or inanimate objects aphorism a short pithy instructive saying apostrophe address to an absent or imaginary person apposition the act of positioning close together (or side by side) assonance the repetition of similar vowels in the stressed syllables of successive words asyndeton a construction in which elements are presented in a series without conjunctions balance a situation in which all parts of the presentation are equal, whether in sentences or paragraphs or sections of a longer work. indirect characterization the character is revealed through their personality, appearance, words, actions, and effect on others direct characterization the writer tells us directly what a character's personality is like static character a character that does not change from the beginning of the story to the end dynamic character one whose character changes in the course of the play or story flat character this character seems to possess only one or two personality traits - little or no background is revealed round character this character is fully developed - the writer reveals good and bad traits as well as background chiasmus a statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed cliche a worn-out idea or overused expression colloquialism informal words or expressions not usually acceptable in formal writing comedy In general, a story that ends with a happy resolution of the conflicts faced by the main character or characters. conceit a fanciful, particularly clever extended metaphor connotation the feelings or emotions surrounding/associated with a word, beyond its literal meaning. Generally positive or negative in nature. couplet a stanza consisting of two successive lines of verse dialect the usage or vocabulary that is characteristic of a specific group of people diction a writer's or speaker's choice of words didactic instructive (especially excessively) elegy a mournful poem eulogy a formal speech praising a person who has died epanalepsis repetition at the end of a clause of the word that occurred at the beginning epic a long narrative poem telling of a hero's deeds epigraph The use of a quotation at the beginning of a work that hints at its theme. epistrophe repetition of a word or expression at the end of successive phrases, clauses, sentences, or verses especially for rhetorical or poetic effect (as Lincoln's "of the people, by the people, for the people") Compare to anaphora. Ex: "When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child." (Corinthians) Ex: I'll have my bond!/ Speak not against my bond!/ I have sworn an oath that I will have my bond.---The Merchant of Venice epithet a term used to point out a characteristic of a person. Homeric epithets are often compound adjectives ("swift-footed Achilles") that become an almost formulaic part of a name. Epithets can be abusive or offensive but are not so by definition. For example, athletes may be proud of given epithets ("The Rocket"). explication a detailed explanation of the meaning of something foil a character whose personality and attitude contrast sharply with those of another hyperbole a figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor imagery The use of language to evoke a picture or a concrete sensation of a person, thing, place, or experience hypotactic sentence marked by the use of connecting words between clauses or sentences, explicitly showing the logical or other relationships between them. (Use of such syntactic subordination of just one clause to another is known as hypotaxis). (Ex.: I am tired because it is hot.) inversion the reversal of the normal order of words juxtaposition placing two elements side by side to present a comparison or contrast litiotes a form of understatement in which the negative of the contrary is used to achieve emphasis or intensity. Eg: he is not a bad dancer loose sentence a type of sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses lyric poem a poem that does not tell a story but expresses the personal feelings or thoughts of a speaker metaphor a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity implied metaphor Implies or suggests the comparison between the two thing without stating it directly dead metaphor a metaphor that has occurred so often that it has become a new meaning of the expression (e.g., 'he is a snake' may once have been a metaphor but after years of use it has died and become a new sense of the word 'snake') mixed metaphor a combination of two or more metaphors that together produce a ridiculous effect metonymy A figure of speech in which something is referred to by using the name of something that is associated with it mood the emotional atmosphere of a work motif A recurring theme, subject or idea onomatopoeia using words that imitate the sound they denote oxymoron conjoining contradictory terms (as in 'deafening silence') paradox a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth. koan a paradoxical annecdote or a riddle that has no solution parallel structure the repetition of words or phrases that have similar grammatical structures paratactic sentence simply juxtaposes clauses or sentences. (Ex.: "I am tired: it is hot.") parody humorous or satirical mimicry periodic sentence Presents the main clause at the end of the sentence, for emphasis polysyndeton using several conjunctions in close succession, especially where some might be omitted (as in 'he ran and jumped and laughed for joy') protagonist the principal character in a work of fiction pun a humorous play on words quatrain a stanza of four lines refrain a regularly repeated line or group of lines in a poem or song rhythm A musical quality produced by the repetition of stressed and unstressed syllables or by the repetition of other sound patterns. rhetoric study of the technique and rules for using language effectively (especially in public speaking) rhetorical question a statement that is formulated as a question but that is not supposed to be answered romance in general, a story in which an idealized hero or heroine undertakes a quest and is successful. satire form of literature in which irony, sarcasm, and ridicule are employed to attack human vice and folly symbol something visible that by association or convention represents something else that is invisible simile a figure of speech that expresses a resemblance between things of different kinds (usually formed with 'like' or 'as') style the choices a writer makes; the combination of distinctive features of a literary work stream of consciousness a literary genre that reveals a character's thoughts and feeling as they develop by means of a long soliloquy synecdoche using a part of something to represent the whole thing syntactic permutation Sentence structures that are extraordinarily complex and involved. They are often difficult for a reader to follow. telegraphic sentence a sentence shorter than five words in length. theme The main idea or meaning of a text. Often, this is an insight about human life revealed in a literary work tone the author's attitude toward the subject matter tragedy drama in which the protagonist is overcome by some superior force or circumstance tricolon Sentence consisting of three parts of equal importance and length, usually three independent clauses. vernacular the everyday speech of the people (as distinguished from literary language) hamartia the character flaw or error of a tragic hero that leads to his downfall