lit terms

word, phrase, action, or text can be interpreted multiple ways (equally plausible, may conflict)

ambiguity

person or thing in wrong time period

anachronism

Universally recognizable (character, trope, etc)

archetype

denotation

literal definition of a word

emotional, cultural, or suggestive meaning

connotation

quote or phrase at beginning (book, chapter, etc) to hint at theme

epigraph

descriptive language related to sight

visual imagery

descriptive language related to sound

auditory imagery

descriptive language related to touch

tacile imagery

descriptive language related to smell

olfactory imagery

descriptive language related to taste

gustatory imagery

story starts in the middle of action

in media res

feeling to the reader

mood

the lesson the story teaches

moral

recurring element related to theme of work

motif

realistic story to teach one lesson (refers to the story as a whole not just the lesson)

parable

way author arranges words, phrases, punctuation for sentences

syntax

universal set message

theme

attitude of author in the work (what they are trying to show)

tone