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Aesthetic

Concerned with beauty or artistic expression; the principles guiding an artist or movement.

Awe

A feeling of wonder mixed with reverence or fear.

Ballad

A narrative poem, often meant to be sung, that tells a story in short stanzas.

Elegy

A mournful poem written to lament the dead or reflect on loss.

Epigraph

A short quotation placed at the beginning of a work to suggest its theme.

Extended Metaphor

A metaphor developed over several lines or throughout an entire work.

Gothic

Relating to dark, mysterious, or supernatural elements in literature.

Idealism

Belief in high principles or the pursuit of noble, often unrealistic, ideals.

Immanent

Existing or remaining within; inherent in the natural world.

Individualism

Belief in the importance of individual rights and independence.

Introspection

The examination of one’s own thoughts and feelings.

Intuition

Immediate understanding without conscious reasoning.

Liminal

Occupying a position on both sides of a boundary or threshold.

Lyric

A poem expressing personal emotion or feeling in a musical way.

Macabre

Gruesome, disturbing, or dealing with death.

Melancholy

Deep sadness or gloom; sorrowful.

Mysticism

Belief in direct, personal communion with the divine or ultimate reality.

Pastoral

Relating to the countryside or idealized rural life.

Romanticism

A movement emphasizing emotion, nature, and imagination over reason.

Sentimentality

Excessive emotion or tenderness in expression.

Sublime

Inspiring awe through grandeur, beauty, or terror.

Supernatural

Beyond natural laws; not explainable by science.

Transcendence

Rising above normal limits; spiritual elevation beyond the physical world.