English Literature - A Level Unseen Prose Techniques

Allegory

A story with a double meaning: primary and secondary

Allusion

(Language Technique) - subtle or indirect reference to another thing, a text, historical period or religious belief

Alliteration

Repetition of initial consonant sounds

Bildungsroman

a novel dealing with one person's formative years or spiritual education.

Climax - structure

Turning point / height of action

Conflict

A struggle between opposing forces

Consonance

Repetition of consonant sounds within a phrase

Contrast

paradox, antithesis, oxymoron, juxtaposition

didactic

intended to teach; morally instructive

disjunction

A conjunction that dramatically interrupts rhythm of sentence

Ellipsis

three periods (...) indicating the omission of words in a thought or quotation

Emotive language

Deliberate use of language by a writer to instill a feeling or visual.

Foil

A character who acts as a contrast to another character

Fractured syntax

Incomplete sentences - used to convey tension and urgency

heterodiegetic narrator

the narrator is not a character in the story

homodiegetic narrator

A narrator who is an active participant in the story.

humour

Incongruity, parody, satire, exaggeration, irony, puns etc. used to lighten the overall tone.

Imagery

visually descriptive or figurative language, especially in a literary work.

interior monologue

writing expressing a character's inner thoughts

Irony

the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning

Metaphor

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Motif

(n.) a principal idea, feature, theme, or element; a repeated or dominant figure in a design

non-linear

Non-sequential narrative, events do not occur in chronological order

Parody

conscious imitation for a satiric purpose

Tone

Attitude a writer takes toward the audience, a subject, or a character