English 9 2nd Semester Study Guide

xenia

ancient Greek concept of hospitality towards strangers

hubris

extreme arrogance

epic poetry

a long, narrative poem that tells the story of a heroic figure’s adventures

in media res

in the midst of things

flashback

a narrative device that interrupts the chronological order to show a past event

iambic pentameter

poetic meter consisting of lines with five iambs (pairs of unstressed and stressed syllables)

dramatic irony

a literary device where the audience knows crucial information that the characters do not

Shakespearean/Elizabethan sonnet

a 14-line poem written in iambic pentameter, composed of three quatrains and a final rhyming couplet

aside

a short commentary spoken by a character directly to the audience, unheard by other characters in the scene

imagery

the use of descriptive language or figurative language in literature to appeal to the reader’s five senses

simile

a figure of speech that directly compares two things using words “like” or “as”

metaphor

a figure of speech that directly compares two unrelated things by stating one is the other

motif

a recurring element that holds symbolic significance in a literary work

symbol

a concrete things that represents an abstract idea beyond its literal interpretation

personification

a literary device where human qualities are attributed to inanimate objects

rhymed couplet

a pair of successive lines that rhyme

prose

the most common form of wirtten or spoken language

classical allusion

a brief, indirect reference in literature from ancient Greek or Roman mythology

rhyme scheme

the pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of a poem or song

oxymoron

a figure of speech that mobines two contradictory words together

foreshadowing

a literary device to plant subtle clues about future plot

alliteration

the repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of closely connected words

MLA heading example:

Maisie Bill

Mrs. McDonald

English 9

14 May 2026

MLA citation example:

“…” (Wordsworth 263).

impetuous

actions of people that are sudden and impulsive

ephemeral

something that lasts for a very short time and is fleeting

rancorous

someone characterized by deep resentment

venerable

someone or something that commands respect

vindictive

a person that is strongly motivated by a desire for revenge

catalyst

a incident that sets the story’s main conflict into motion, acting as the spark that triggers the plot

inauspicious

something that seems unpromising or suggests future failure

capricious

a person governed by sudden, unpredictable changes in behavior rather reason or consistency