Psychoanalytic Criticism and Poetry Elements Lecture

Flashcards covering Psychoanalytic Criticism (Freudian theory) and the elements of poetry (sense, sound, and structure) based on the lecture notes.

Psychoanalytic Criticism

An approach to literature that explores the hidden motivations of characters and suggests that literature can be a window into the unconscious mind, drawing on theories by Sigmund Freud.

Tripartite psyche

The three-part structure of the human mind as observed by Sigmund Freud (1923), consisting of the id, ego, and the superego.

Id

The reservoir of libido described as an obscure, inaccessible, and unorganized part of the personality that seeks immediate satisfaction for instinctual needs.

Pleasure principle

The governing principle of the id which seeks the impulsion to obtain satisfaction for instinctual needs without regard for values, morality, or good and evil.

Ego

The rational governing agent of the psyche that regulates instinctual drives of the id to release them in non-destructive behavioral patterns; stands for good reason and good sense.

Reality principle

The governing principle of the ego.

Superego

The moral censoring agency and repository of conscience and pride that serves to repress or inhibit drives of the id that society regards as unacceptable.

Morality principle

The principle that governs the superego in harmonizing the psychic zones.

Guilt complex

A condition that may develop when unconscious guilt becomes overwhelming, potentially resulting in dissatisfaction and unhappiness.

Defense mechanisms

Methods characters use to cope with internal conflicts, such as repression and projection.

Poetry

A creative art form using condensed and evocative language, rhythmic patterns, vivid imagery, and figurative language to stir emotions and spark imagination.

Diction

An element of sense in poetry referring to the denotative and connotative meaning of words.

Images and Sense Impressions

Words used in poetry that appeal to the five senses: sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch.

Simile

A figurative comparison between unlike things using the words "like" or "as."

Metaphor

A type of comparison that prompts the reader to pretend that one thing actually is something totally different.

Personification

A form of metaphor where human characteristics are attributed to nonhuman things.

Hyperbole

An exaggerated or extravagant statement used to make a strong impression, not intended to be taken literally.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech involving the substitution of a part for the whole, a genus for a species, or vice versa.

Metonymy

The substitution of one word for another that it suggests, such as using "the British crown" to refer to the monarchy.

Oxymoron

A condensed paradox at the level of a phrase where two contradictory ideas are placed side by side.

Paradox

A seemingly self-contradictory statement which is yet shown to be true.

Rhythm

The ordered alternation of strong and weak elements in the flow of sound and silence in a poem.

Iamb

A rhythmic foot consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable ($da-DUM$).

Trochee

A rhythmic foot consisting of a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable ($DUM-da$).

Spondee

A rhythmic foot consisting of two stressed syllables ($DUM-DUM$).

Anapaest

A rhythmic foot consisting of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable ($da-da-DUM$).

Dactyl

A rhythmic foot consisting of one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables ($DUM-da-da$).

Meter

The duration, stress, or number of syllables per line, determined by the number of metrical feet.

Pentameter

A meter containing five metrical feet in a line.

Iambic pentameter

A frequently used poetic pattern consisting of five iambs ($5 \times da-DUM$) per line, commonly used in Shakespearean sonnets.

Rhyme Scheme

The formal arrangement of rhymes in a stanza or throughout a whole poem.

Ellipsis

A structural element in poetry involving the omission of some words for economy of effect.