Lit Terms 3

alliteration

repetition of initial consonant sounds

analogy

comparison between two or more things that are similar in some ways

but other ways unalike

anecdote

brief story told to entertain or to make a point

aphorism

a short pointed statement that expresses a wise or clever observation

about human experience. (e.g. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.)

apostrophe

figure of speech that directly expresses an absent or imaginary

person or abstraction

argument

writing or speech that attempts to convince the reader to adopt a

particular opinion or course of action

aside

a character’s comment, in a play, that is directed to the audience or

another character

assonance

repetition of same or similar vowel sounds in stressed syllables that

end with different consonant sounds (e.g. low, tow, given, distance)

broad generalization

a statement mostly based on limited knowledge about a

large group of things, places, or people (e.g. All women like to shop.)

consonance

repetition of consonant sounds before and after different vowels

fable

a short tale to tell a moral lesson often with animals or inanimate objects

as characters (e.g. Aesop’s fables)

fallacy

erroneous reasoning that renders arguments logically unsound

figurative language

a phrase that stands for something other than its literal

meaning, used for descriptive effect. (e.g. simile, metaphor, hyperbole)

foil

a character who provides a strong contrast to another character (e.g. Shrek

to the donkey)

juxtaposition

an act or instance of placing close together or side by side,

especially for comparison or contrast

memoir

an account of one’s personal life or experiences

meter

rhythmical pattern determined by the number and types of stresses, or

beats in each line

monologue

a speech by one character, unlike a soliloquy, that is addressed to

another character or characters

mood/atmosphere

the feeling or created by a literary work or passage

motif

recurring subject, theme, idea, etc

onomatopoeia

use of words that imitate sounds (e.g. hiss, barking)

oversimplification

description of something in a way that does not include all

the facts or details (and that causes misunderstanding)

oxymoron

combination of contradictory terms or words (e.g. cruel kindness,

jumbo shrimp)

paradox

statement that seems to say two opposite things, but that may be true

parallelism

parallel structure) – two or more words, phrases, or clauses, that are

similar in length and grammatical form

pun

play on words involving two words that sound alike or have different

meanings

rhetoric

(rhetorical question, rhetorical device) – persuasive writing

sarcasm

caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule someone or

something

sonnet

14-line poem, usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter

soliloquy

a long speech delivered by a character, alone on stage

tragedy

a work of literature that tells of a catastrophe or great misfortune

tragic flaw

hero’s weakness which causes a downfall

tragic hero

main character who experiences a downfall