English Literature Flashcards

Flashcards for English Literature Review

Thanes

Noble warriors serving a lord in Anglo-Saxon culture.

Scop

Poet or storyteller in Anglo-Saxon culture.

Meadhall

Central gathering place for storytelling in Anglo-Saxon culture.

Kenning

Metaphorical compound phrase in Old English poetry.

Beowulf

Most important Old English epic, tells the story of a hero battling monsters.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

Collection of annals written in Old English by various monks.

Fabliaux

Humorous, bawdy tales, for example, “The Miller’s Tale” by Geoffrey Chaucer

Chivalric romance

Stories of knights

Allegory

Symbolic narrative.

Alliterative romance

Poems using alliteration.

Excalibur

King Arthur’s magical sword.

Avalon

Mythical island where Arthur is taken after his death.

Quest of Holy Grail

The knights’ search for the sacred cup used by Christ

The Canterbury Tales

Frame narrative of pilgrims telling stories; includes fabliaux, romances, allegories, and moral tales.

The Faerie Queene

Great example of alliterative romance about knights representing virtues with moral, religious, and political allegories.

Utopian literature

Describes an ideal society.

Euphuistic romance

Elaborate, artificial prose.

Pastoral romance

Idealizes rural life.

Picaresque romance

Follows a rogue’s adventures.

Conceits

Extended metaphor.

Poet Laureate

Official poet appointed by the monarchy.

Comedy of manners

Satire of high society with witty dialogue, focus on love/marriage, and exaggerated characters.

Heroic drama

Grand themes, noble heroes, rhymed verse, and conflicts between love and honor.

Enlightenment

Emphasized reason while neoclassicism imitated classical forms.

Mock-heroic epic

Satirizes classical epics.

Epistolary novel

Allowed intimate, subjective storytelling.

Sentimental novel

Breaks conventions with digressions, nonlinear plot, and metafiction.

A Dictionary of the English Language

Standardized English lexicography.

Pre-Romanticism

Emphasized emotion, nature, and individualism, opposing Neoclassical rigidity.

Graveyard school

Reflects on morality and melancholy.

Antiquarian Movement

Revived interest in medieval history and folklore.

Gothic romance

Combines horror and romance.

Byronic hero

Charismatic but flawed figure, rebellious, brooding, and isolated.

Victorian novel

Realism, social critique, moral themes, and complex plots.

Bildungsroman

The novel about growing up and gaining maturity

Kunstlerroman

The novel about development of an artist.

The novel of social intervention

Novels addressing social issues.

Medievalism

Revival of medieval themes.

Hellenism

Interest in Greek culture.

Dramatic monologue

A poem spoken by a character.

Exotic novel of adventure

Features distant lands. promotes imperial ideas

Stream of consciousness

Mimics uninterrupted thought.

Dystopian literature

Depicts oppressive futures.