AP Lit Terms Pg. 1-8

anecdote

a brief story about an interesting, amusing, or strange event. generally used in literature to entertain or make a point and reinforce the author’s purpose

aphorism

a statement of truth or opinion expressed in a concise/witty manner

often applied to philosophical, moral, and literary principles

“People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”

binary opposition

contrasting ideas like black/white, dark/light, good/bad

assumes there are no gray areas

irony

contrast between what is said and what is meant, what appears to be and what is actually true

verbal irony

words state the opposite of the writer or speaker’s true meaning

situational irony

events turn out the opposite of what was expected

dramatic irony

the audience knows info the character(s) don’t

juxtaposition

two or more ideas/places/characters are placed side-by-side in a narrative/poem to develop comparisons and contrasts

not necessarily thematic

paradox

a statement that seems to be self-contradcitory/silly, but can include a truth

used to illustrate an opinion or statement contrary to tradition, or to make a reader think over an idea in a new way

rhetorical question

a question asked only for effect. used in argument as a technique to motivate the audience to give the problem consideration

rhetoric

the principles that govern the art of writing effectively, eloquently, and persuasively

sarcasm

greek origin - “to tear flesh”

bitter, caustic language meant to hurt or ridicule someone or something. may use irony as a device, but not all ironic statements are this

shift

a change from one tone/attitude to the other

style

a writer’s way of writing determined by the choice of words/details/imagery/syntax/POV

theme

the general idea or message of a work, the insight it offers into life. unstated in fictional works, but can be directly stated in non-fiction, especially in exposition or argumentation

linking devices that hold a text together structurally

genre

the major category into which a literary work fits

includes prose, poetry, drama with their own subdivisions of this

allegory

a story with two levels of meaning: the surface meaning and the symbolic meaning; massive metaphors that come in narrative form

bildungsroman

a book that deals with formative years

epistolary

a novel where the narrative is carried forward by letters

frame story

a story that has a story within a story, with two or more narrators

parable

a short tale that has a moral lesson

parody

a work that imitates the style or content of another w/ the specific aim of comic effect or ridicule

as comedy, it exaggerates or distorts distinctive features of the original

as ridicule, it borrows words, phrases, or characteristics to show the weaknesses of the original

prose

a major division of literary genre. refers to fiction and nonfiction, written in ordinary language and closely resembling common speech

satire

a work that targets human vices and follies or social institutions/conventions for reform or ridicule

employs many literary devices such as irony, wit, parody, caricature, hyperbole, sarcasm, etc.

horatian satire

a satire where the subject is mildly made fun of with wit. tends to ask the audience to laugh at themselves as much as the players

juvenalian satire

harsh criticism of a society/people/individuals to affect change

tragedy

a work that addresses the sorrowful downfall of a protagonist in a serious manner. attempts to examine serious questions of existence, especially the relationship between man and the universe

characterization

how a character is revealed to the reader via description, dialogue, and behavior

creates certain expectations for that character’s behavior

how a character does or doesn’t meet those expectations then alters their view on that character. their choices in speech, action, and inaction, reveal what they value

perspective

how characters understand their circumstances

shaped and revealed by relationships w/ other characters, their diction, the events of the plot, and the ideas in the text

can also be shown by how they provide details and how they organize their thinking

motivation

a reason behind a character’s specific action or behavior

intrinsic motivation

motivation which is linked to personal pleasure or enjoyment

incentivized by knowledge, pride, peace, wellbeing, etc.

extrinsic motivation

motivation linked to some outside source like money, power, or lust

protagonist

the central character in a work

antagonist

the one who opposes the protagonist. can be another character, nature, conflicts, a collective

foil

a secondary character who contrasts with the main character to enhance that main character’s importance

minor character

unchanging characters who may only be a part of the plot to advance it or interact w/ major characters

note: a group or force can also act as a character

dynamic character

a character that undergoes changes throughout the narrative. their choices often directly/indirectly lead to the climax of the plot

static character

a character that does not undergo inner changes, or undergoes little change while remaining mostly unaffected by the events of the narrative

round character

a character with a complex personality, defined fully by the writer both physically and mentally

flat character

characters said not to have any emotional depth

archetypal character

a character who represents an idea or concept that they become symbolic of it

epiphany

a sudden change in a character’s perspective/values

dialogue

a convo between two characters

inner dialogue

characters speak to themselves

outer dialogue

a conversation between 2+ characters

aside

in plays, a cut-in that a character delivers directly to the audience while other actors pretend not to hear

used to convey the character’s thoughts

soliloquy

an extended speech delivered by a singular character

conflicting settings

settings that are placed against each other to establish a conflict of values/ideas associated with them

atmosphere/mood

the emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work, established both by the setting and the author’s choice of objects that are described

anachronism

greek for “against time”

an error of chronology/timeline in a literary piece. anything that is out of time/out of place in a setting

closed poetry

poems with a predictable pattern of line/stanza/meter/rhyme structure

open poetry

poems with broken patterns of structure within their lines or stanza

rhythm

the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables in a pattern

iamb

du-DUH; like aBOVE

meter

one regular pattern of stressed/unstressed syllables

feet

the individual blocks of meter

scansion

the process of determining the line length and type of feet

rhyme

the repetition of sounds in 2+ words/phrases that are close to each other in a poem

approximate/slant rhyme

two words are alike in some sounds but don’t fully rhyme

end rhyme

rhyme occuring @ the end of lines

internal rhyme

rhyme occurring within a line

eye rhyme

rhyme that occurs only when spelled, not when pronounced

rhyme scheme

the pattern of end rhymes, labeled with capital letters

masculine rhyme

rhyme between the last syllables of words

feminine rhyme

both syllables rhyme

forced rhyme

rhyme that is forced w/ spelling or pronunciation

ballad

a popular narrative song passed down orally; consists of quatrains with a refrain

dramatic monologue

a poem where an imagined speaker addresses a silent listener, usually not the reader

reveals more about the speaker

lyric

a poem that expresses emotion

elegy/lament

a lyric that expresses sad/lamenting emotions

epic

a long-form poem with a story where a heroic protagonist engages in an action of great mythical/historic significance

epitaph

a gravestone inscription; a poem written as if it were for that purpose

haiku

a Japanese verse form most often composed in English versions of three lines of five/seven/five syllables

hymn

a poem praising God or the divine

ode

a formal/ceremonial lyric poem that celebrates a particular person, place, thing, or idea

sonnet

a lyric poem written in rhymed iambic pentameter

Shakespearean sonnet

a sonnet of 3 quatrains and 1 couplet

Petrarchan sonnet

a sonnet of 1 octave and 1 sestet

blank verse

verse written in unrhymed iambic pentameter

couplet

two lines that rhyme

heroic couplet

a couplet in iambic pentameter

end-stopped lines

a metrical line ending at a grammatical boundary or break like a — or ) or other punctuation

also considered this if it contains a complete phrase

enjambment

when a sentence runs over from the end of one line to the start of another without punctuation

free verse

non-metrical and non-rhyming lines that follow the rhythm of speech

a pattern of sound/rhythm may appear, but the poet doesn’t adhere to a metrical plan in their composition

refrain

a word/phrase repeatedly regularly in a poem, usually @ the end of each stanza

stanza

a grouping of lines separated from others in a poem

can be used to mark a shift in mood/time/thought