Freshman/ Sophomore Terms Review

Narrative Poem

a long story told in verse form

Example of Narrative Poem

an epic

Lyric Poem

a brief, personal poem that uses many sound devices, as well as rhythm and meter, and is filled with emotion,

Examples of Lyric Poems

sonnets, odes, elegies

Ballad Poem

a type of poem that is actually meant to be sung and is both lyric and narrative in nature

Simile

two similar things that are compared using words such as “like”, “than”, “as”, or “resembles”

Metaphor

makes a comparison between two unlike things

Direct Metaphor

the literal term and the figurative term are both named

Implied Metaphor

the literal term is named and the figurative term is implied

Extended Metaphor

a metaphor- direct or implied- that is developed over more than one line of poetry

Personification

giving human or animate objects to an animal, an object, or a concept

Apostrophe

addressing someone absent or dead or something nonhuman as if it were alive and present and could reply

Literary Allusion

a reference to a person, place, or thing from previous literature

Examples of Literary Allusion

the Bible, Greek and Roman mythology, Shakespeare’s works

Hyperbole

using exaggeration for emphasis, overstatement

Litotes

a special form of understatement, it affirms something by negating the opposite

Irony

states one thing when in fact the opposite meaning is intended

Antithesis

a strong contrast of words, clauses, sentences, or ideas that shows opposing ideas through opposing grammatical structures

Synecdoche

using a part of something to represent the whole thing

Metonymy

the substitution of one word for another closely associated word

Paradox

a statement that although seemingly contradictory or absurd may actually be well-founded or true

Symbol

something (object, person, situation, or action) that means more than what it is

Alliteration

the repetition at close intervals of the initial consonant sounds of certain words

Consonance

the repetition at close intervals of middle or end consonant sounds of certain words

Assonance

the similarity and repetition of vowel sounds of certain words at close intervals

Onomatopoeia

the use of words that mimic their meaning in their sound

Repetition

repeating a word or a phrase within a poem in order to make it easier to remember, emphasize an important idea, or give the poem structural integrity

Parallelism

the repetition of the structure of 2 or more lines in a peom

Cataloguing

the listing of words, images, or attributes

Refrain

the repetition of a word or phrase, or line (s) at definite intervals in a poem

Plot

a series of events in a narrative that is carefully constructed by the author for artistic purpose

Simple Narrative Account

chronological description of real events and is meant to tell what happened

Plotless Short Story

a very modern creation that is pleasurable to read and describes characters in a situation

In Media Ras

the story is opened in the middle of action and the past information is learned through flashbacks along the way

Frame Story

a story within a story

Exposition

background information on the characters, setting, and other events necessary for understanding the story are given

Complication

the conflict is developed

Suspense

anticipation as to the outcome of events is created

Foreshadowing

hints at later events

Conflict

the interplay between opposing elements; the plot of a story is produced by and propelled by the conflict

Protagonist vs Self

internal struggle

Protagonist vs Others

external struggle with people, society

Protagonist vs Environment

external struggle with nature

Technical Climax

the turning point in the plot at which the outcome of the action is determined, the protagonist changes or has an opportunity to change at this point, after this conflict comes to an end

Dramatic Climax

the point of greatest interest or intensity of the story

Resolution

the events following the technical climax in which the outcome is actually worked out

Conclusion

the final event of a story’s plot

Setting

the represented time and place of events in a literary work

Pathetic Fallacy

technique using setting or nature to parallel or mirror the mood of a character or of the story

Character

a fictional personality created by an author

Characterization

the technique a writer uses to create and reveal characters in a work of fiction

Expository Character Revelation

telling the reader about a character’s personality in a straightforward manner

Direct Character Revelation

showing the reader what a character is like through descriptions of thought, dialogue, action, etc.

Motivation

the reasons that cause characters to act the way they do

Protagonist

the central character in a work of fiction; the character who sets the action of the plot in motion

Antagonist

the principal opponent of the main character; the person or thing working against the protagonist

Round Character

a character who is well described and whose thoughts and actions are clearly revealed during the development of the story

Flat Character

a character who is not well developed in a story

Dynamic Character

a character who grows, learns, or changes in some significant way throughout the story; the character is different at the end of the story than he was at the beginning

Static Character

a character who resists change or refuses to change during the story

Foil Character

a character who contrasts in some important way with a more important character

Consistent Character

a character whose speech, thoughts, and actions are what the reader has been lead to expect from that particular character

Stock Character

a type of character that is always found “in stock” in a particular type of story

Stereotyped Character

a character created according to widely held, often narrow-minded, ideas

Point of View

the physical and psychological relationship between the narrator and the story’s characters and events

First Person

the narrator is a character in the story

Third Person Objective

the narrator is not a character in the story and reports only what can be seen and heard

Third Person Limited Omniscient

the narrator is not a character in the story and reports not only what can be seen and heard, but also the thoughts and feelings of one of the characters

Third Person Omniscient

the narrator is not a character in the story and reports only what can be seen and heard, but also the thoughts and feelings of all of the important characters

Theme

a controlling idea of a literary work that is a general truth or commentary about life, people, and the world that is brought out in a story

Mood

describes the reader’s state of mind after she finishes the story

Atmosphere

describes the general feeling of the story itself, usually established by the setting’s description

Style

the distinctive handling of language by a writer through the purposeful selection of words and sentence structure

Diction

the purposeful selection of words

Syntax

sentence structure

Tone

the author or speaker’s attitude toward the characters, events, or audience conveyed by details and descriptive words used by the author

Symbolism

the use of something concrete to represent something abstract; using a thing to represent an idea, concept, quality, or condition

Irony

contrast between the way things truly are and the way they appear to be

Verbal Irony

a discrepancy between the literal meaning of a word and the meaning actually conveyed; saying one thing but meaning another

Dramatic Irony

a discrepancy between knowledge held by a reader and a character’s ignorance of that knowledge; when the reader knows something the character doesn’t

Situational Irony

a discrepancy between the expected outcome of a situation and the actual outcome; twist in the plot