ELA - Othello Vocabs

Alliteration

a series of words all start with the same letter or sound

Ambiguity

a word or idea can be interpreted in different ways (2+ meanings)

Anaphora

repetition of a word or sequence of words at the beginning

Antagonist

opposition to the protagonist

Apostrophe

rhetorical device -→ speaker addresses an absent person/inanimate object

Aside

character speaks directly to the audience (-→ character’s thoughts)

Blank verse

unrhymed verse in iambic pentameter

Iambic pentameter

ten syllable lines with stressed and unstressed syllables

Caesura

pause in a line

Catharsis

purging of pity and fear at the end of a tragedy

Consonance

same consonant sound, different vowel sounds

Couplet

pair of lines that rhyme and have the same rhythm

Cuckold

man with unfaithful wife, but is last to find out

Deus ex machina

unrealistic plot device to solve problems

Domestic Tragedy

dramatic genre -→ everyday lives of middle and lower classes

Dramatic Irony

audience has knowledge of something that the characters don’t

Euphemism

substitute an offensive or distasteful word for another

Feminism

movement concerned with how women are presented by writers

Foils

character who contrasts with the protagonist

Form

features of a type of literature (ex. rhyme, rhythm, metre)

Genre

type of literature (ex. drama, tragedy)

Historicism

movement that believes historical context is vital for understanding

Homograph

same spelling, but different meaning (ex. bat)

Homophone

same sound, different meaning (canon, cannon)

Hyperbole

exaggeration —> dramatic effect

Imagery

creates a picture in the mind

Introspective

inwardly examine mental and emotional state

Irony

use words in a sarcastic or comic way

Juxtaposition

opposite meaning

Machiavellian

immoral behavior to gain power

Malignity

evil

Mercenary

soldier in a foreign army

Metaphor

comparing two things by saying that one is something else

Metre

create rhythm using stressed and unstressed syllables

Misogyny

hatred of women

Moor

people from North Africa

Morality plays

allegorical plays personifying sins and virtues

Neoclassicism

movement that compared modern drama with classics

Other

x fit in social norms

Oxymoron

opposite meaning, placed next to each other

Paradox

self-contradictory statement

Parody

mocks or exaggerates another speaker or style

Pathos

arouses feelings of pity

Patriarchy

men hold most of the power

Personification

object is given human-like qualities

Poetic Justice

characters get what they deserve

Protagonist

main character

Pun

word play to create humor

Renaissance

cultural movement from 14th to 17th centuries

Rhetoric

language techniques to make powerful

Rhetorical Question

question without a reply

Rhythm

pattern of sounds with stressed and unstressed syllables

Romanticism

18th c movement that valued beauty, nature, and the individual

Sibilance

repetition of s sound

Simile

like or as to describe smth

Soliloquy

reveals thoughts alone

Superlative

most, least, best, or worst

Symbol

stands for something

Tone

mood or feeling

Tragic Decorum

tragic genre - specific rules

Tragic Flaw

flaw of a tragic hero —> downfall

Vice character

personifies evil and immorality