ELA terms

Soliloquy

A long speech by an actor delivered alone onstage. Meant to show a character's thoughts or feelings — the audience hears it but other characters do not.

Monologue

A long speech by an actor delivered onstage in front of other actors. Meant to give information or plot details.

Aside

A quick comment meant for the audience — other characters onstage cannot hear it. What are three details the reader can take away from the prologue that starts the play?

Foil

Characters with opposite character traits. Foils are meant to highlight ideas in the play through the characters' contrasting behavior.

Dramatic Irony

When the audience knows information (about something happening in the play) that certain characters in the play do not.

Foreshadowing

When the author hints at what will happen later in the story.

Tragedy

A specific type of play where a high ranking or noble character (the Tragic Hero) experiences a reversal of fortune or faces downfall/demise as a result of his/her Tragic Flaw.

Tragic Flaw

A personality trait or characteristic that causes the Tragic Hero to behave or make choices that lead to his/her downfall/demise.

Blank Verse

Lines of text (poetry) written in unrhymed iambic pentameter.

Free Verse

Lines of text (poetry) written with no specific structure.

Iambic Pentameter

Verse written in five-foot lines (a foot has two syllables: first is unstressed, second is stressed — think of the word "again"). Ten syllables per line total.

Prologue

An introduction before the play begins — sets up the story's context, conflict, and themes. In Romeo and Juliet, the prologue is a 14-line sonnet that tells us the lovers are doomed from the start.

Climax

The turning point of the play where tension is at its highest — the moment everything changes.

Alliteration

Repetition of the same initial consonant sound in two or more words in a line of verse. Ex: "Peter Piper picked a peck."

Onomatopoeia

Use of a word whose sound imitates its meaning or natural sound. Ex: "buzz," "crash," "sizzle."

Assonance

Repetition of similar vowel sounds in a line of verse. Ex: "the rain in Spain stays mainly on the plain."

Consonance

Repetition of similar consonant sounds in a line of verse (not just at the beginning). Ex: "the lumpy, bumpy road."

Refrain

Repetition of a word, phrase, or line (for emphasis or meaning) usually at the end of a stanza — like a chorus in a song.

Simile

A direct comparison between two unrelated things using "like" or "as." Ex: "She runs like the wind."

Metaphor

An implied comparison between two unrelated things using a linking verb — does NOT use like or as. Ex: "Life is a roller coaster."

Extended Metaphor

A device that develops a single, detailed comparison between two unlike entities over multiple lines, stanzas, or an entire work.

Personification

Giving human qualities to inanimate objects, ideas, or animals. Ex: "The wind whispered through the trees."

Hyperbole

Exaggeration for the sake of emphasis. Ex: "I've told you a million times."

Apostrophe

Addressing someone (dead) or an idea that is not present, as if they were present. Ex: "O Death, where is thy sting?"

Symbol

A word or image that signifies something other than its literal meaning. Ex: Mama's plant in A Raisin in the Sun symbolizes the family's dreams.

Pun

A play on words that are identical or similar but have diverse meanings. Often used for humor.

Allusion

A reference to a famous person, place, event, or piece of literature. Makes connections across time and place.

Couplet

A pair of rhyming lines, usually the same length and meter. Shakespeare often ends scenes with a couplet.

Connotation

The ideas, emotions, or associations connected to a specific word beyond its dictionary definition. Ex: "home" connotes warmth and safety.

Denotation

The dictionary definition of a word — its literal, straightforward meaning.

Diction

Word choice in a poem or piece of writing — the specific words an author selects and why.

Enjambment

When a line of poetry continues into the next line without punctuation or a pause — the sentence runs on.

Imagery

Words or phrases that appeal to the five senses (sight, hearing, taste, smell, touch) to create a vivid picture.

Speaker

The narrator of the poem — the voice speaking, which may or may not be the author.

End Rhyme

When words at the END of two or more lines of verse share the same sound. Ex: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? / Thou art more lovely and more temperate."

Internal Rhyme

When two or more words in the SAME line of verse rhyme, usually at the middle and end of the line.

Rhyme Scheme

The pattern of end rhymes in a poem, labeled with letters. Ex: ABAB or AABB or ABCABC.

Stanza

A grouped set of lines in a poem — functions like a paragraph. Ex: a quatrain is a 4-line stanza.

Meter

The rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry.

Sonnet

A 14-line poem, usually written in iambic pentameter. Shakespeare wrote both the Romeo and Juliet prologue and many scenes as sonnets. Romeo and Juliet even share a sonnet when they first meet.

Theme

The central message or insight about life that a work explores — NOT just the topic, but what the work is SAYING about it. Ex: theme of Romeo and Juliet is not "love" but "love can survive anything — but fate may not allow it."

Tone

The author's attitude toward the subject or audience. Ex: sarcastic, mournful, hopeful, bitter, celebratory.

Mood

The feeling or atmosphere the reader gets from a piece of writing — the emotional effect on the audience.

Irony (verbal)

Saying the opposite of what you actually mean — often sarcastic. Ex: "Oh great, another Monday."

Irony (situational)

When what actually happens is the opposite of what was expected. Ex: Romeo and Juliet — Friar Lawrence's peace plan leads directly to both their deaths.

Irony (dramatic)

When the audience knows information that the characters do not — creates tension and suspense. Ex: we watch Romeo drink the poison knowing Juliet is just asleep.

Oxymoron

Two contradictory terms placed directly together to create a new meaning. Ex: "sweet sorrow," "living death," "cold fire" — all used in Romeo and Juliet.

Paradox

A statement that seems self-contradictory or impossible but reveals a deeper truth upon reflection. Ex: "I must be cruel only to be kind." (Hamlet)

Tone vs. Mood

TONE = the AUTHOR's attitude (how the writer feels). MOOD = the READER's feeling (the atmosphere the writing creates). Trick: Tone is the writer's, Mood is mine.

Connotation vs. Denotation

DENOTATION = dictionary definition (literal). CONNOTATION = emotional/cultural associations (implied). Ex: "snake" denotes a reptile but connotes danger and deception.

Simile vs. Metaphor

SIMILE uses "like" or "as" to compare. METAPHOR uses a linking verb and states the comparison directly. Ex: "She is LIKE a rose" (simile) vs. "She IS a rose" (metaphor).

Dramatic Irony vs. Situational Irony

DRAMATIC IRONY = audience knows something the character doesn't (creates suspense). SITUATIONAL IRONY = outcome is the opposite of what was expected (creates shock or dark humor).

Soliloquy vs. Monologue vs. Aside

SOLILOQUY = alone onstage, thinking aloud (audience hears, no one else does). MONOLOGUE = long speech to other characters onstage. ASIDE = quick comment to audience only, mid-scene.