Macbeth Vocab

Anachronism

An error in chronology in a literary. Derived from a Greek word “anachronous” meaning “against time.”

Archetype

A typical character that seems to represent universal human patterns.

Foil

A character in a play who sets off the main character or other characters. In Shakespeare, it is generally two characters who act very differently.

Verisimilitude

The likeness to the truth or resemblance of a fictitious work to a real event. It is usually found amid satire to ground the story.

Memento Mori

Latin phrase that translates to “Remember you death/Remember you will die.” This is directed towards those with great wealth who life lives with ease compared to those who don’t. “Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.”

Blank Verse

Set meter is present, but there is no rhyme scheme. Most Shakespeare plays are in blank verse.

Conceit

Far-fetched simile or metaphor. Occurs when the speaker compares two highly dissimilar things.

End-stopped

A line with a pause at the end. Lines that end with puncuation.

Enjambment

The continuation of the sense and grammatical construction from one line to the next.

Heroic Couplet

Two end-stopped iambic pentameter lines rhymed aa, bb, cc, and so on.

Meter

A regular pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables.

Aside

When a character in a play makes a short speech which is heard by the audience but not the other characters.

Situational Irony

The result of an action is the reverse of what the actor expected.

Dramatic Irony

The audience knows something the characters do not.

Soliloquy

A moment when a character is alone and speaks their thoughts aloud. Type of monologue. Monologue - One is talking, Soliloquy - One is alone talking.

Allusion

A reference to a character or theme from another literary work.

Apostrophe

A figure of speech where the speakers speaks directly to something nonhuman.

Double Entendre

A literary device that can be defined as a phrase or figure of speech that might have multiple meanings.

Juxtaposition

Two or more words placed close together with a contrasting effect.

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which a word represents something else which it suggests.

Onomatopoeia

A literary device where the sound of a word echoes the sound.

Oxymoron

A combination of contradictory terms.

Pun

A play on words where a word is used to convey two meanings at the same time.

Circumlocuation

Speaking more than necessary in an attempt to be vague or evasive.