English Literary Terms

The Scoch Empire's torture method (if you get it, you get it #chs2027 #civsblock)

Allegory

A story that can stand on its own merits but also illustrates an idea or moral principle through symbolic meanings of objects and/or characters.

Alliteration

The use of repeated initial consonant sounds in close succession to create a literary effect, such as mood, foreshadowing, or imagery.

Allusion

A reference, explicit or implicit, to something in literature or history that the author expects the reader to know.

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive sentences, clauses, or phrases to emphasize an idea.

Characterization

The process by which the writer creates and reveals the unique characteristics of each character.

Direct Characterization

When the author straightforwardly tells the characteristics of a character.

Indirect Characterization

Information about a character that the reader must deduce or infer by observing the character's thoughts, behavior, speech, appearance, and interactions with other characters.

Round Character

A character that exhibits layers of personality and is described physically and mentally, allowing the audience to sympathize or relate to them.

Flat Character

A character that does not change much throughout the narrative, often lacking emotional depth and sometimes portrayed as a stereotype.

Dynamic Character

A character that undergoes inner changes and learns from experiences.

Static Character

A character that does not undergo significant inner changes.

Protagonist

The central character or leading figure in a story, often seen as the hero and driving force behind the conflict.

Antagonist

A character or group of characters that stand in opposition to the protagonist, often acting as a rival or opponent.

Colloquialism

A word or phrase derived from informal or everyday language usage.

Couplet

Two lines of verse that present a thought, usually rhyming but not always, often used as a concluding thought in a poem or stanza.

End-stopped Line

A poetic device that creates a pause at the end of a line, often expressed by punctuation marks.

Enjambment

A poetic device that allows a complete thought to flow from one line of poetry into the next without pause before reaching completion.

Epic

A long narrative poem with characteristics such as a hero vs. villain conflict, valiant acts by the hero, a vast setting, supernatural forces, verse format, an extensive character list, a call to a muse, and a narrative that starts in the middle of events (in medias res).

Eponym

A word derived from a name or a name that becomes a word, often capitalized.

Figurative Language

Language that relies on figures of speech and is not understood literally, requiring interpretation for its intended effect.

Foil

A character who sets off the main character or other characters by comparison, allowing for a deeper understanding of each character.

Foreshadowing

The use of words, phrases, conditions, or events that function as hints in a work, often referring to something that will happen without revealing the details or spoiling the suspense.

Free Verse

Poetry that is not controlled by patterns such as meter or rhythm and does not rhyme in a fixed form.

Hubris

Extreme pride and arrogance shown by a character, which ultimately leads to their downfall.

Imagery

Groups of words, both literal and figurative, used by authors to create sensory recognition and evoke the reader's senses.

In Medias Res

The narrative technique of starting a story from the middle, assuming that the audience is aware of past events.

Irony

A literary device that involves a contrast between expectations and reality.

Situational Irony

An event or condition in which there is an incongruity between actual circumstances and those that would seem appropriate or between what is anticipated and what actually happens.

Verbal Irony

A figure of speech in which what is meant is the opposite of what is said; the speaker says one thing but means the opposite (ex: sarcasm)

Literal Language

Language that can be understood in its actual sense, opposite of figurative language.

Narrative

A report or tale of related events presented in a logical sequence, often told by a narrator.

Perspective

Relates to a person's view on a topic, particularly in literature, where each author has their own perspective that shapes how they present characters and events.

Quatrain

A stanza or poem consisting of four lines.

Stanza

Sometimes four lines of verse that function either as a poem or as a ___ within a larger poem; can feature a rhyme scheme or be free verse. Basically a paragraph in a poem.

Rhetorical question

Authors use these for effect with no answer expected.

Simile

A figure of speech in which two essentially dissimilar objects or concepts are expressly compared with one another through the use of "like" or "as".

Theme

The author's central message about life in a piece of literary fiction; usually implied rather than directly stated; should be expressed academically as a complete sentence.

Thesis

A statement in a nonfiction work that a writer intends to support and prove.

Tone

The author's perspective or attitude towards the topic being written about; by analyzing word choices, readers can infer and describe ___.

hamartia

this literary device reflects the fatal flaw that leads to a character’s downfall; can connect to a characteristic, such as greed or hubris, or it can relate to a single error or misjudgment a character makes

invocation

a request or appeal for help from someone, especially a god, sometimes as part of a religious ceremony; a common element of epic poetry as the writer calls to a muse for assistance in telling the tale

mood

the emotional response of a reader to a piece of text; writers create ___ through description, setting, character reactions, and conflict resolution, among others; mood is described with adjectives, such as peaceful, pensive, lonely, or hopeful;

___ = me, the reader VS tone = author’s perspective

personification

__ is the author’s use of figurative language to give non-human things attributes that are human for the purpose of sensory imagery (rather than characterization or emotion), it is also an umbrella for other devices.  When Wordsworth uses this device to say that the tulips are “Tossing their heads and sprightly dance,” he does so to help the reader imagine what their movement looks like, not to create a character.

epic simile

this extended comparison – often 4 to 6 lines – of two unlike things using like or as works as an analogy, helping the reader better understand or imagine a character or action by comparing it to a natural event

theodicy

the explanation of why a perfectly, almighty, and all-knowing God allows evil. The term directly means “justifying God.”

archetype

characters (and sometimes images, symbols, for themes) that symbolically embody the universal meanings and basic human experiences, independent of time or place, can be classified by this term

Epithet

a word or phrase that describes a place, a thing, or a person in such a way that it helps in making its characteristics more prominent; also known as a “by-name” or “descriptive title”; when misused, racial or ethnic slurs become examples

anthropomorphism

the literal attribution of human characteristics to animals and other non-human things (or deities) for the purpose of characterization; the non-human entities actually do human things, such as talking, or falling in love

onomatopoeia

A literary device wherein the sound of a word echoes the sound it represents. The words "splash," "knock," and "roar" are examples.

anachronism

word means “against time” and refers to an error of chronology within a piece of literature

Aside

a short comment/speech that a character gives to the audience, or to himself, while other actors on the stage appear not to hear. Only the audience knows that the character has said something to them

blank verse

does not rhyme, but has a rhythm (it is the same as iambic pentameter VS rhyming iambic pentameter is this but w rhyming)
Note: free verse also is unrhyming, but it DOES NOT include a pattern of rhythm; ____ DOES

epistrophe

a stylistic device that can be defined as the repetition of phrases or words at the ends of clauses or sentences.

(It is the opposite of anaphora.)

For a hint read this: It is also called epiphora. 

hyperbole

extreme exaggeration of ideas for the sake of emphasis; is best recognized by implausibility

iambic pentameter

metrical pattern of rhythmic verse
Text written in ___ sounds similar to a heartbeat and includes 10 syllables in each line.

Dramatic irony

a device by which the author implies a different meaning from that intended/spoken by the speaker; e.g.  the characters are oblivious of the situation, but the audience is not.

monologue

It is a literary device that is the speech or verbal presentation given by a character to express his/her collection of thoughts and ideas aloud. Often they speak directly to the audience, or to another character. often used to update the actions of the plot, to bring up to speed, and bring audience up to date. Greek roots of this word mean which means alone, and speech.

soliloquy

reveals the innermost thoughts/struggles of a character

pathetic fallacy

attributing human qualities and emotions to inanimate objects of nature; often used to make the environment reflect the inner experience of a narrator or other characters
(can be used to foreshadow or show reactions)

tragedy

a type of drama that presents a serious subject matter about human suffering and corresponding terrible events in a dignified manner

Cacophony

Harsh, discordant mixture of sounds

Cliche

Overused expression or idea

Epic

Long narrative poem celebrating the deeds of a legendary hero

Eponymous

Title character of a work is named after the work itself

Figurative Language

Language using figures of speech to convey meanings beyond the literal interpretation

apostrophe

a speech is addressed to a subject that is dead, absent, an inanimate object, or even an abstract idea.

Frame tale

a story within a story

Satire

A literary work that criticizes but softens it. (the one we learned is feudalistic)

stereotype

A generalized belief about a group of people

Vernacular

the language or everyday ordinary people for that time.