Final Exam Vocab - English

bildungsroman (n.)

a coming-of-age story (protagonist grows from innocence to adulthood).

• Both The Giver and A House on Mango Street are _______.

rigmarole (n.)

a lengthy and complicated procedure.

brooding (adj.)

showing deep unhappiness of thought; appearing dark or menacing.

• In classic romance novels, the lead male character was often _______.

governess (n.)

a women employed to teach children in a private household, usually also living in said household.

• Jane Eyre is the _______ of someone.

feminism (n.)

a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes.

• Shaquavia was a ________ who advocated for equality of genders.

bias (n.)

prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way considered to be unfair.

objective (adj.)

not influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering and representing facts.

Literary Criticism

the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature.

Lens

determines how you look at work. affects how you see your surroundings. _________ is analysing works from different viewpoints.

• A feminist ________ requires the user to find inequalities in gender in modern literature.

Jane Eyre

protagonist, intelligent and honest, orphan, oppressed.

Mr. Rochester

employer of the protagonist, owner of thornfield Hall, sympathetic and suffers consequences due to previous marriage.

Bertha Mason

Rochester’s wife, formerly beautiful, but became crazy and abusive, burns down Thornfield Hall supposedly; commits suicide.

St. John

takes in protagonist after they ran away; giving them food, shelter and a job; tries to marry protagonist but fails.

unreliable narrator

an untrustworthy storyteller, most often in narratives with a first person pov; either deliberately deceptive (liar, hiding something) or unintentionally misguided (mentally unstable, incapable of understanding); the reader is forced to question their credibility as a storyteller.

imperturbable (adj.)

unable to be upset or excited; calm.

transcendent (adj.)

beyond or above the range of normal or merely physical human experience.

ecstasy (n.)

an overwhelming feeling of great happiness or joyful excitement.

debased (adj.)

reduced in quality or value.

obstinate (adj.)

stubbornly adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion.

• we were frustrated by his ________ refusal to sign the contract even though it benefited him.

lamentations (n.)

the passionate expression of grief or sorrow; weeping.

• Bitter were the ___________ of the king for the friend of his childhood.

insolent (adj.)

disrespectful or rude in speech or conduct

• Bob was an _______ baby.

eschewed (v.)

deliberately avoid using; abstain

• We won't have discussions with this group unless they __________ violence.

curtailed (v.)

reduce in extent or quantity; impose a restriction on; deprive someone of

• Library services may be _________ or cancelled due to budget cuts

indominable (adj.)

impossible to subdue or defeat

• Bob had ________ spirit, he never gave up.

fragmented (v.)

break or cause to break into fragments.

disassociation (v.)

disconnect or separate (used especially in abstract contexts).

pagan (n.)

a person who has no religious beliefs

solemnity (n.)

the state or quality of being serious and dignified.

• Juan was buried with great _________.

coup (n.)

a sudden, violent, and unlawful seizure of power from a government.

• King Bob was overthrown in a military ________.

heathen (n.)

a person who doesn’t belong to the widely held religion of the area.

• David, a jew, was considered a _______ in Saudi Arabia.

flippant (adj.)

frivolously disrespectful, shallow, or lacking in seriousness; characterized by levity.

• Ruffs was very ________ when it came to discussing Black people.

presumptuous (adj.)

shows little respect for others by doing things they have no right to do; doing/assuming something.

• Being the __________ boy he was, he thought he would be coming inside my house.

placid (adj.)

calm, peaceful, quiet, and undisturbed

• the cows were quite _______ and didn't seem to mind us.

discernment (n.)

the ability to judge well.

rueful (adj.)

causing sorrow or pity; pitiable; deplorable

agitating (v.)

make (someone) troubled or nervous; stir or disturb.

commiserate (v.)

to feel or express sympathy for someone's suffering or unhappiness.

interim (adj.)

a temporary or provisional arrangement; stopgap; makeshift.

• Spike was signed as the ________ manager of Starr Park.

microcosm (n.)

a community, place, or situation regarded as encapsulating in miniature the characteristic qualities or features of something much larger.

• Brawl Stars is a __________ of racism in the world.

motif (n.)

a distinctive feature or dominant idea in an artistic or literary composition; repeated throughout the book to establish ideas.

irony (n.)

the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.

theme (n.)

central idea to the piece of literature, reoccurs throughout novel.

symbol (n.)

a thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract.

in medias res (adv)

into the middle of a narrative, in the midst of things