nov lit terms (1/2) - how it's said

adage

a familiar proverb or saying

ambiguity

result of something being stated in such a way that its meaning cannot be definitely determined

colloquialism

informal words or expressions not usually acceptable in formal writing

comedic relief

a humorous scene or passage inserted into an otherwise serious work intended to provide an emotional outlet and change of pace; creates a contrast that further emphasizes the seriousness of the work

euphemism

an indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant

hyperbole

a figure of speech that uses deliberate exaggeration to achieve an effect; sometimes called an overstatement

idiom

an expression in a given language that cannot be understood from the literally meaning of the words in the expression; or a regional speech or dialect

interior monologue

a mode of narrative intended to reveal to the reader the subjective thoughts, emotions, and fleeting sensations experienced by a character

irony

a contradiction or incongruity between appearance or expectation and reality

verbal irony

a figure of speech in which what is said is the opposite of what is meant

situational irony

a discrepancy between expectation and reality

dramatic irony

an incongruity between what a character says/thinks and what the reader knows to be true

romantic irony

works whose authors/speakers at some point reveal their narration to be the fabrications of an idiosyncratic and highly self conscious creator; wreaks havoc with reader/audience as usual suspension of disbelief, debunking as illusion the normal operating assumption that the narration is a believable representation of reality

jargon

the specialized language or vocabulary of a particular group or profession

mood

the general feeling created in the reader at a given point

point of view

the vantage point from which a narrative is told

first person point of view

a narrator who is a characters in the story

third person limited point of view

a narrator who presents the story as it is seen and understood by a single character and restricts information to what is seen, heard, thought, or felt by that one character

third person omniscient point of view

a narrator who is able to know, see, and tell all, including the inter thoughts and feelings of the characters

pun

a play on words that capitalizes on a similarity of spelling and/or pronunciation between words that have different meanings; may also employ one word that has multiple meanings

rhetorical question

a question asked merely for rhetorical effect and not requiring an answer

sarcasm

bitter or cutting speech; Intended to insult the person addressed

stream of consciousness

a particular type of interior monologue, is an attempt to represent the inner workings of a character’s mind, to recreate the continuous, chaotic flow of half-formed and discontinuous thoughts, memories, sense impressions, random associations, images, feelings, and reflections

tone

the writer or speaker’s attitude towards the subject; the emotional coloring or meaning of a work

understatement

a figure of speech that consists of saying less than one means, or of saying what one means with less force than what the occasion warrants; often used for humorous, ironic, or even satiric effect

vernacular

the everyday speech of a particular country or region, often involving nonstandard usage