English Glossary of Literary, Language, Dramatic, Media, and Visual Terms

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key definitions from the literary, language, dramatic, media literacy, and visual arts glossary sections.

Allegory

A form of extended metaphor in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative are equated with meanings that lie outside the narrative itself, creating a story with both a literal and a symbolic meaning.

Allusion

A reference within a literary work to another work of fiction, a film, a piece of art, or a real event or person that draws on outside sources to provide greater context or meaning.

Apostrophe

A figure of speech in which someone absent, dead, or nonhuman is addressed as if it were alive, present, and capable of replying.

Direct Characterization

A method of character revelation that occurs when an author explicitly states information about a character.

Indirect Characterization

A method of revealing a character through what they say, what they do, what other characters say about them, and sometimes by a name or nickname.

Denotation

The exact dictionary meaning of a word, distinct from its implied associations.

Connotation

The attitudes and feelings associated with a word, which can be positive or negative and influence style and meaning.

Enjambment

A thought, sense, phrase, or clause in a line of poetry that does not end at the line break but carries over into the next line.

Foil

A character whose qualities or actions serve to emphasize those of another character (usually the protagonist) by providing a strong contrast.

Dramatic Irony

A type of irony that occurs when the audience or one or more characters are aware of crucial information that another character or characters do not know.

Situational Irony

A type of irony evident when an unexpected event occurs that is in absurd or mocking opposition to what would reasonably be expected.

Verbal Irony

Speech in which what is said is the opposite of what is meant; a form of sarcasm.

Juxtaposition

The arrangement of two or more ideas, characters, actions, settings, phrases, or words side-by-side or in similar narrative moments for comparison, contrast, or character development.

Oxymoron

A literary device that involves using contradiction in a manner that oddly makes sense on a deeper level (e.g., jumbo shrimp, loving hate).

Paradox

An apparent contradiction or absurdity that is somehow true upon closer examination.

Coherence

The quality that makes it easy for the reader to follow a writer's train of thought as it moves from sentence to sentence and paragraph to paragraph, ensuring the essay flows.

Thesis Statement

A sentence or two that summarizes the main point or central argument that an essay, research paper, or speech is making or intends to prove.

Process Analysis

A pattern of essay development in which the author explains step-by-step how to do something.

Closing by Return

A restatement in the closing sentence of a paragraph or conclusion of an essay of the main idea expressed in the topic sentence or opening thesis statement.

Aside

In drama, a speech directed to the audience that is supposedly inaudible to the other characters on stage at the time.

Soliloquy

The act of talking while or as if alone, used as a theatrical device to disclose a character's innermost thoughts.

Tragic Hero

A literary character of affluence who possesses a tragic flaw (hamartia) and makes an often fatal error in judgment that leads to downfall and destruction.

Product Placement

A form of advertisement where branded goods or services are placed in contexts usually devoid of ads (such as movies or television shows) without disclosure at the time of feature.

Propaganda

An attempt to sway popular opinion and beliefs through distortions of truth or outright lies, presenting an argument repeatedly while ignoring rebuttals to generate acceptance without regard to facts.

Bandwagon Appeal

An advertising technique claiming a product is desirable because it is being used by lots of desirable people, encouraging the consumer to join in.

Snob Appeal

An advertising technique that induces consumers to buy a product to stand out from the crowd by creating a sense of luxury, unaffordability, and exclusivity.

Subliminal Message

A signal or message embedded in another medium designed to pass below the normal limits of conscious human perception to influence thoughts, attitudes, or actions.

Focal Point

The part of a visual that is the main area of interest and importance, providing the visual with its ultimate meaning or message.

Perspective

In graphic arts, an approximate representation on a flat surface of an image as seen by the eye, wherein objects appear smaller with distance and are foreshortened along the line of sight.

Proportion

The relative size, scale, and harmonious relationship between two or more elements in a design with respect to size, color, quantity, degree, or setting.