LIT VOCAB

Adage

A saying or proverb containing a truth based on experience, often metaphorical.

Allegory

A story where the narrative or characters carry an underlying symbolic or ethical meaning.

Alliteration

The repetition of one or more initial consonants in a group of words or lines.

Allusion

A reference to a person, place, or event meant to create an effect or enhance meaning.

Ambiguity

A vagueness of meaning; a lack of clarity meant to evoke multiple interpretations.

Anastrophe

The inversion of the usual order of words or clauses.

Antithesis

A rhetorical opposition or contrast of ideas through grammatical arrangement.

Apollonian

Referring to the noble, godlike qualities of human nature.

Apostrophe

A rhetorical device where a speaker addresses a person or personified thing not present.

Archetype

An abstract or ideal conception of a type; a typical example.

Assonance

The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a group of words or lines.

Ballad

A simple narrative verse that tells a story sung or recited.

Bathos

The use of insincere or overdone sentimentality.

Blank Verse

Poetry written in iambic pentameter without rhyme.

Bombast

Inflated, pretentious language used for trivial subjects.

Burlesque

A literary work meant to ridicule a subject; a grotesque imitation.

Cacophony

Grating, inharmonious sounds.

Caesura

A pause somewhere in the middle of a verse, often marked by punctuation.

Classicism

Deriving from the qualities of ancient Greek and Roman culture; implies formality and restraint.

Coming-of-age story

A tale where a young protagonist experiences an introduction to adulthood.

Conceit

A witty or ingenious thought; a highly fanciful idea in figurative language.

Couplet

A pair of rhyming lines in a poem.

Dénouement

The resolution at the end of a play or fictional work.

Deus ex machina

The use of an artificial device or gimmick to solve a problem in literature.

Diction

The choice of words in speech and writing, creating meaning and conveying tone.

Dionysian

Referring to sensual, pleasure-seeking impulses.

Elegy

A poem or prose that laments or meditates on death or loss.

Elliptical Construction

A sentence with a deliberate omission of words.

End-stopped

A term for a line of poetry ending with a natural pause indicated by punctuation.

Enjambment

The use of successive lines in poetry with no punctuation or pause between them.

Epic

An extended narrative poem telling the adventures of a larger-than-life hero.

Epigram

A concise but ingenious, witty, and thoughtful statement.

Epithet

An adjective or phrase expressing a striking quality of a person or thing.

Euphemism

A mild or less negative term used for a harsh or blunt expression.

Exposition

The background and events leading to the main idea of a work.

Fable

A short tale often featuring nonhuman characters to highlight human behavior.

Farce

A comedy with extravagant and nonsensical disregard for seriousness.

Flashback

A return to an earlier time in a story to clarify current action or circumstances.

Foil

A minor character whose personality contrasts with that of the main character.

Foot

A unit of stressed and unstressed syllables used to determine the meter of poetry.

Foreshadowing

Providing hints of future events in a story or play.

Frame

A structure that provides a premise or setting for a narrative.

Free Verse

A form of poetry without rhymed lines or a fixed metrical pattern.

Gothic Novel

A novel with supernatural horrors and an atmosphere of unknown terrors.

Harangue

A forceful sermon, lecture, or tirade.

Hubris

Excessive pride leading tragic heroes to their downfall.

Humanism

A belief emphasizing faith in human potential and creativity.

Hyperbole

Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect.

Image

A word or phrase that represents something that can be perceived by the senses.

In medias res

A narrative technique starting in the middle of events.

Irony

An expression where the language signifies the opposite of what is expected.

Juxtaposition

The placement of two or more things side by side to highlight differences.

Kenning

A poetic device replacing the name of a thing with its function or quality.

Lampoon

A mocking, satirical attack on a person or situation.

Litotes

Understatement achieved by negating the contrary.

Lyric Poetry

Personal, reflective poetry revealing the speaker's thoughts and feelings.

Melodrama

A literary form with exaggerated events to evoke extreme emotions.

Metaphor

A figure of speech comparing unlike objects.

Metaphysical Poetry

Poetry using elaborate conceits to express complexities of love and life.

Meter

The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry.

Metonymy

A figure of speech using the name of one thing to represent something else associated.

Mode

The general form, pattern, and manner of expression in literature.

Montage

A quick succession of images used to express an idea.

Mood

The emotional tone evoked through the author's choices in a work.

Motif

A recurring phrase, idea, or event that serves to unify a theme.

Myth

An imaginary story accepted within a cultural or religious tradition.

Naturalism

A view of experience characterized as bleak and pessimistic, often synonymous with realism.

Non sequitur

A statement or idea that fails to logically follow from the one before.

Novella

A work of fiction between 20,000 to 50,000 words.

Ode

A lyric poem marked by serious and exalted feelings towards a subject.

Onomatopoeia

The use of words whose sounds suggest their meanings.

Oxymoron

A term composed of contradictory elements to create a paradoxical effect.

Parable

A story illustrating a moral or spiritual truth.

Paradox

A self-contradictory statement that reveals a truth.

Parody

An imitation meant to ridicule a work's style and subject.

Personification

A figure of speech where objects or animals are given human traits.

Point of View

The relation in which a narrator stands to the story or subject matter.

Pun

A humorous play on words suggesting different meanings.

Quatrain

A four-line poem or unit within a longer poem.

Realism

Depiction of events as they really are without idealization.

Rhyme

A lyrical device using sound repetition to attract attention.

Rhythm

The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry.

Satire

A literary style used to attack or ridicule ideas for change.

Setting

The environment for action in a novel or play, including time and place.

Simile

A figurative comparison using the words 'like' or 'as'.

Slant Rhyme

An imperfect rhyme with slight variations in sound.

Sonnet

A popular verse form consisting of fourteen lines with a prescribed rhyme scheme.

Stanza

A group of two or more lines in poetry combined by subject matter or rhyme.

Stream of Consciousness

A writing style reproducing the flow of thoughts in the mind.

Style

The manner in which an author uses and arranges words and ideas.

Symbolism

Using one object to evoke associations not part of the object's literal meaning.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech where a part signifies the whole.

Syntax

The arrangement of words in a sentence affecting meaning and reader effect.

Title Character

A character whose name appears in the title of the work.

Tone

The author’s attitude toward the subject in their writing.

Tragedy

A literary form where the hero is destroyed by a character flaw and external forces.

Verisimilitude

The quality of realism in literature that persuades readers of life depiction.

Verse

A synonym for poetry or a group of lines in a poem.

Villanelle

A French verse form consisting of nineteen lines with a prescribed rhyme pattern.

Volta

A shift or turning point in a work of prose or poetry.