english II literacy terms

foil

a character, who by contrast with the main character, serves to accentuate that character’s distinctive qualities or characteristics

stock

a type of character who regularly appears in certain literary forms; they are often stereotyped characters

external conflict

a struggle against an outside force

internal conflict

a struggle between opposing needs, desires, or emotions within a character

denotation

dictionary definition of a word

connotation

feelings and attitudes associated with a word

dialect

regional variety of a language distinguished by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary; language peculiar to a particular group or social class

dialogue

character’s voice; the conversation between two or more characters

euphemism

the use of a word or phrase that is less direct but is also less distasteful or less offensive than another

idiom

an expression that means something different from the literal meaning of the words (example: “raining cats and dogs”)

formal diction

polysyllabic, usually no contractions, scholarly

colloquial diction

conversational; informal language, use contractions

vernacular diction

language or dialect of a particular group or region

slang

language that is very informal; not standard

jargon

language that is specialized to a particular occupation or group

standard diction

language accepted as the norm; language used in most writing for school

mood

the atmosphere or predominant emotion in a literary work

tone

the attitude that a character or narrator or author takes towards a given subject.

synecdoche

when a part of something is used to signify the whole

metonymy

when the name of one thing is applied to another thing with which it is closely associated.

pun

a play on words that are identical or similar in sound but have sharply diverse meanings. puns can have serious as well as humorous uses.

alliteration

the practice of beginning several consecutive or neighboring words with the same sound

assonance

the repetition of vowel sounds in a series of words

consonance

the repetition of consonant sound within a series of words used to create a harmonious effect (not at beginning of words but in middle or end)

onomatopoeia

the use of words that mimic the sounds they describe

rhyme

the repetition of sounds in two more words or phrases starting with vowel sound and continuing to end of word

allegory

the presentation of an abstract idea through more concrete means; typically a narrative that has at least two levels of meaning

allusion

a reference to a mythological, literary, or historical person, place, or thing

hyperbole

a deliberate, extravagant, and often outrageous exaggeration. it may be used for either serious or comic effect.

verbal irony

occurs when a speaker or narrator says one thing while meaning the opposite

situational irony

occurs when a situation turns out differently from what one would normally expect--though often the twist is oddly appropriate

dramatic irony

occurs when a character or speaker says or does something that has different meanings from what he thinks it means, though the audience and other characters understand the full implications of the speech or action

sarcasm

the use of verbal irony in which a person appears to be praising something but is actually insulting it

personification

a kind of metaphor that gives inanimate objects or abstract ideas human characteristics

simile

a comparison of two different things or ideas through the use of the words “like” or “as”

apostrophe

a form of personification in which the absent or dead are spoken to as if present and the inanimate, as if animate

metaphor

a comparison of two unlike things not using “like” or “as”

oxymoron

a form of paradox that combines a pair of opposite terms into a single unusual expression

paradox

occurs when the elements of a statement contradict each other

sight

visual

touch

tactile

sound

auditory

taste

papillary

smell

olfactory

1st person

narrator is a character in the story

3rd person limited

narrator is not a character in the story but zooms in on the thoughts and feelings of one

3rd person omniscient

narrator is not a character in the story but can tell us what all (or many) of the characters are thinking and feeling as well as what is happening in other places

3rd person objective

narrator is not a character in the story but can only report what characters say and do, not what any of them are thinking or feeling

rhetorical shift

refers to a change or movement in a piece resulting from an epiphany, realization, or insight gained by the speaker, a character, or the reader

structure

the framework or organization of a literary selection

style

the writer’s characteristic manner of employing language

suspense

the quality of a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem that makes the reader or audience uncertain or tense about the outcome of events

syntax

the arrangement of words and the order of grammar in a sentence

rhyme scheme

the pattern of rhyme in the story (end rhyme)

meter

rhythm that continuously repeats a single basic pattern; a measure or unit of metrical verse

motif

pattern or strand of imagery or symbolism in a work of literature

symbolism

the use of any object, person, place, or action that both has a meaning in itself and that stands for something larger than itself, such as a quality, attitude, belief, or value

understatement

irony that deliberately represents something as being much less than it really is

logos

appeal to logic

pathos

appeal to emotion

ethos

appeal to credibility

anaphora

repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of sentences

antithesis

2 opposite statements that are put together

epanalepsis

words repeated at the beginning and end of a sentence

paralepsis

the lack of something is mentioned so that it has greater emphasis

tapinosis

repeated language to make something seem worse/disgrace something

tricolon

a phrase with 3 balanced parts