Literary Classics Final Exam

Epic

A long narrative poem that tells the story of a larger than life hero written in high style

Bard

Someone who sing the story or accounts of gods and goddesses

Oral tradition

Passing down of works by word of mouth from Bard to Bard

Written tradition

When oral tradition is eventually put into writing

Epic hero

A main character in an epic whose legendary or heroic actions are central to his/her culture, race, or nation.

Epic conventions

Shared characteristics of epics writers drew upon to establish the epic quality of their poems

In medias res

"in the middle of things"; the story always begins in the middle of the story

Invocation of the Muse

Book one opens by calling upon the goddess Calliope for inspiration

Triads

groups of three

Patronymics

A character refers to themselves by their father's name [ ties into Kleos]

epic simile

A simile developed over several lines of verse

Hubris

Overconfidence, unjustified pride or arrogance; often seen as putting oneself on the same level as the gods

Xenia

The Greek concept of hospitality, the idea that all guests should be treated as gods themselves, and that hosts should be expected to treat their guests as gods

Nostos

Homecoming by the way of the sea; reaffirmation/ rediscovery of one's true self

Kleos

"What others tell of you", such as reputation based on one deed's on the battlefield (This image is passed down from father to son)

Eudaimonia

Fulfillment or contempt, not associated with the feeling of happiness but the feeling of doing as they are meant to do; fulfilling one's purpose

Tragedy

A form of drama in which there is a display of human suffering and often catharsis for the audience. The tragedy is deliberately emotional as they are trying to provoke a reaction for the audience

Catharsis

Purgation/purged or cleansed; form emotion

Tragic hero

A character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction

Hamartia

Flaw or error of judgment (fatal flaw/flaw in one's character that brings about their undoing and suffering )

Peripetia

A reversal of fortune brought about because of the hero's error in judgment

Anagnorisis

The discovery or recognition that the reversal was brought about by the heroes own actions

Dramatic irony

When the audience knows something that the characters do not

Foreshadwoing

A hint or sign about what is coming

Pietas

firm loyalty and devotion to one's country, gods, and family

Kenning

Derived from Norse and Anglo-Saxon poetry, a stylistic device defined as a two-word phrase that describes an object through metaphors; similar to traditional riddles.

Scop

An old English bard

Comitatus

A Germanic friendship structure, comprised of a body of wellborn men attached to a king or chieftain by the duty of military service.

Wyrd

A concept in Anglo-Saxon culture roughly corresponding to fate or personal destiny -- providence

Litotes

Ironic understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary; minimalization.

Wergild

The value set in Anglo-Saxon and Germanic law upon human life in accordance with rank and paid as compensation to the kindred or lord of a slain person; also known as man-price/blood-price

Allegory

Symbolic story, everything in the story is purposed to present something else

Vernacular

Common tongue

Terza rima

Rhythm and meter/rhyme scheme that Dante uses

Social Satire

Criticizes and attacks hypocrisy or problems that are present in society through the house of humor; erroneous things/actions of humans in a mocking way

Frame-tale poem

Consists of many different stories (episodic) that are unrelated to one another

Sovereignty

The supreme and absolute authority within territorial boundaries

Pilgrim

A person who makes a journey for religious reasons

Humanism

Every human life no matter how small or seemingly insignificant has value; it is the material world/life on this earth that matters

Soliloquy

A long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone on stage

Revenge Tragedy

A form of tragic drama in which someone rights a wrong.