ap lit exam review

tragic hero elements

catharsis, anagnorisis, hamartia, hubris, peripeteia, nemesis

hamartia

fatal flaw leading to downfall of tragic hero

hubris

extreme pride/arrogance shown by tragic hero

peripeteia

sudden reversal in fortune/change in circumstance

anagnorisis

moment in plot where character recognizes their true identity/fatal flaw

nemesis

inevitable event that befalls tragic hero + is brought on by own actions

catharsis

emotional discharge where the character can break the cycle and overcome flaw

unreliable narrator

influence bias, uninformed, dishonest / used because multiple perspectives complicate the text

situational irony

incongruity between what was expected/what happened

dramatic irony

the audience knows more about what's going to happen than the characters do

verbal irony

person says/writes one thing and means another

tenets of modernism

rejection of traditional subjects/themes, focus on alienated individuals, frequent themes of impermanence/change, use of irony to reveal important ideas, use of symbols/images that suggest other meanings, and use of stream of consciousness

modernist literature time frame

1900-1940's

importance of text structure

it's how the information is organized and anticipates what's coming next in the work of literature

imagery

visual symbolism that evokes a mental image

symbolism

the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities

allusion

implied or indirect reference to another person, event, or thing from another text

word choice/diction

purposeful choice of words/phrases

transcendentalism

literary movement of the 1820s-1830s where idealistic beliefs were popular and personal understandings of things were more important than logic

characterization

description of the distinctive traits of a character

antagonist

rival to the protagonist

protagonist

the leading/main character in a story

figurative language

type of communication that does not use a word's strict or realistic meaning

allegory

a narrative or visual representation that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning

foreshadowing

a narrative device where the author gives a hint of what is to come later in the story

personification

the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristic to something unhuman

oxymoron

a figure of speech where contradictory terms appear together

motif

a distinctive feature that recurs across a story

parallelism

a literary device where parts of the sentence are grammatically the same/similar

theme

a central topic, subject, or message in a narrative

point of view

who is telling/narrating the story

romanticism

literary movement in the late 1700's that had an emphasis on emotion and individualism/glorification of the past and nature

stream of consiousness

narrative method that depicts the thoughts and feelings that pass through the mind

first person narrator

storyteller recounts events from ones own personal point of view

second person narrator

the reader is part of the story and is addressed as 'you'

third person omniscient narrator

the speaker of the story is all knowing

third person limited narrator

tells the story from the perspective of a single protagonist and refers to them from the third person

third person objective narrator

describes what is happening in the story but does not give any thoughts or feelings of the characters (unbiased)

euphemism

word or expression used in place of something that is deemed offensive or considered unpleasant

colloquialism

a word of phrase that is not formal or literary

caesura

a pause in a verse

enjambment

the continuation of a sentence throughout lines

bob and wheel

one short line with a single stress (bob), followed by four three-stress lines (wheel) of which the second and fourth lines rhyme with the bob

end rhyme

when the last syllables within a verse rhyme

alliteration

the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words

assonance

the repetition sound of a vowel near enough for the echoes to be discernible

consonance

the recurrence of similar sounds (consonants) in close proximity

reptition

the action of repeating something that has already been said or written

refrain

a verse of phrase that is repeated in intervals throughout the workof literature

metaphor

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

simile

a figure of speech comparing two things using 'like' or 'as'

hyperbole

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken seriously

paradox

a self-contradictory statement

couplet

two lines of a verse, usually in the same meter and joined by rhyme, that form a unit

iambic pentameter

type of metric rhyme line used in traditional English poetry and verse drama

onomatopoeia

a word that represents the sound it describes

sir gawain

sir gawain and the green knight, nobility + honesty, protagonist

the green knight

sir gawain and the green knight, ambiguous + strong, antagonist

lord bertilak

sir gawain and the green knight, generous + hospitable, foil character to king arthur + is green knight

king arthur

sir gawain and the green knight, brave + respected, model of a good knight

hamlet

hamlet, melancholy + cynical, protagonist

uchendu

things fall apart, nobility + wisdom, support character for okonkwo

ophelia

hamlet, naive + loyal, weak femininity

claudius

hamlet, morally weak + cunning, represents corruption

gertrude

hamlet, ignorant + selfish, represents view of women in society

rosencrantz + Guildenstern

hamlet, silly + unintelligent, childhood friends of hamlet

polonius

hamlet, hypocritical + proud, untrustworthy spy

laertes

hamlet, headstrong + possessive, revenger like hamlet (but his enemy)

first wife

things fall apart, child-bearer + household maintainer, gives children to okonkwo

ekwefi

things fall apart, strong + intelligent, redefining traditional woman boundaries (okonkwo’s second wife)

ojiugo

things fall apart, scatterbrained + junior, one of the reasons okonkwo is banished from the village (third wife)

fortinbras

hamlet, impulsive + hot-headed, foil of hamlet to better reveal his true character

hamlet sr.

hamlet, sorrowful + treacherous, initiates main plot that leads hamlet to insanity

hester prynne

the scarlet letter, strong + humble, protagonist

reverend arthur dimmesdale

the scarlet letter, shy + sensitive, symbolizes the pain of secret sin

pearl prynne

the scarlet letter, stubborn + imaginative, represents both her parents sin and love

roger chillingworth

the scarlet letter, manipulative + intelligent, main antagonist

okonkwo

things fall apart, productive + violent, protagonist

unoka

things fall apart, poor + lazy, negative reputation drives okonkwo to be different

obierika

things fall apart, thoughtful + wise, foil to okonkwo

the district commisioner

things fall apart, presumptuous + lack of understanding, represents european colonialism

mr. brown

things fall apart, patient + understanding, rejected portion of the colonialists

reverend james smith

things fall apart, strict + uncompromising, replaces mr. brown and negatively impacts the village

ikemefuna

things fall apart, talented + hardworking, role model for nwoye

nwoye

things fall apart, sensitive + timid, feels out of place in his own community (nobody is the same everywhere)

ezinma

things fall apart, smart + determined, the son that okonkwo always wanted

jay gatsby

the great gatsby, grandiose + mysterious, symbolizes the american dream of the 1920s

nick carraway

the great gatsby, tolerant + good listener, protagonist

daisy buchanan

the great gatsby, shallow + amoral, stereotype of high-society women in the 1920s

tom buchanan

the great gatsby, arrogant + hypocritical, stereotype of the worst aspects of the rich society

jordan baker

the great gatsby, cynical + careless, represents liberated women of the 1920s

meyer wolfshiem

the great gatsby, shady + ominous, represents the link between gatsby’s two different personalities

mrytle wilson

the great gatsby, ambitious + greedy, represents the lower class that gets societal pressure

george wilson

the great gatsby, weak + spiritless, represents working class chasing after american dream

akunna

things fall apart, well-respected + forward thinker, represents bridge between people of umofia and the white missionaries

yorick

hamlet, imaginative + affectionate, represents inevitability of death and meaningless of life

governor bellingham

the scarlet letter, aristocrat + luxorious, highlights hypocrisy of puritanical culture

dr. t.j. eckleburg

the great gatsby, observant + mysterious, symbol of great moral authority

morgan la fey

sir gawain and the green knight, malicious + cruel, instigates the plot and tests king arthur’s men

mr. kiaga

things fall apart, respectful + welcome, interprets to the village without overstepping