Literary and Ethics Lecture Vocabulary

This set covers literary devices, rhetorical appeals, and ethical terms discussed in the lecture notes.

Soliloquy

A speech in a play where a character speaks their thoughts aloud while alone on stage, revealing their feelings or plans to the audience.

Meter

The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry.

Sonnet

A 14-line poem with a specific rhyme scheme.

Euthanasia

The act of intentionally ending a person's life to relieve suffering.

Flashback

A scene that shows events that happened before the current story.

Satire

The use of humor or exaggeration to criticize people or society.

Lou Gehrig

A famous baseball player known for his record streak of games played and for having ALS.

Quatrain

A stanza or poem with four lines.

Metaphor

A comparison that says one thing is another without using "like" or "as."

Static Character

A character who does not change throughout a story.

Characterization

The way an author reveals a character's personality.

Ethics

Moral principles that guide behavior and decisions.

Symbolism

Using objects, people, or events to represent deeper meanings.

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates a sound (e.g., buzz, bang).

Cinquain

A five-line poem with a specific structure.

Thesis Statement

The main argument or central idea of an essay.

Plot

The sequence of events in a story.

Four Humors

An ancient theory that personality and health are controlled by four bodily fluids: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile.

M.A.I.D.

Medical Assistance in Dying; a legal process where eligible patients receive medical help to end their life.

Foreshadowing

Hints or clues about future events in a story.

Simile

A comparison using "like" or "as."

Exposition

The beginning of a story where background information is given.

Dynamic Character

A character who changes or develops throughout a story.

Ethos

An appeal to credibility or trustworthiness.

Fake News

False or misleading information presented as real news.

Dramatic Irony

When the audience knows something that the characters do not.

Theme

The main message or underlying idea of a story.

Logos

An appeal to logic and reason.

Couplet

Two consecutive lines of poetry that usually rhyme.

Iambic Pentameter

A line of poetry with ten syllables in five unstressed-stressed pairs.

Aside

A brief remark spoken by a character that other characters on stage do not hear.

Pathos

An appeal to emotions.

Alliteration

Repetition of the same beginning consonant sound in nearby words.

Anecdote

A short personal story used to illustrate a point.

Colloquialism

Informal language used in everyday conversation.

Imagery

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses.

Pathetic Fallacy

Giving human emotions to nature or weather to reflect a mood.

Irony

A contrast between expectation and reality.

Situational Irony

When the opposite of what is expected happens.

Allegory

A story in which characters and events represent deeper moral, political, or social meanings.