ap lit terms

aliteration

aliteration

the repetition of sound, usually initial consonant sounds. ex: boiling bubbles

allusion

a indirect/direct reference to something commonly known. referencing romeo and juliet for example.

apostrophe

directly addressing something not there, sometimes human. ex: love why would you do this

Connotation

implied meaning, associative, nonliteral meaning of a word

denotation

literal meaning of the word with no underthoughts of emotion/color

extended metaphor

prolonged metaphor. ex In Emily Dickinson’s “Hope is the thing with feathers” the entire poem is a comparison between hope and a bird.

figurative language

language that varies from norms of literal langauge

genre

time or category of literature example comedy/lyrical

hyperbole

extravagant exaggeration. ex: im older than the hills

imagery

sensory details or descriptive language

Metaphor

a type of figurative language that states something as something else without using like or as

mood

the atmosphere of a work

narrative

a collection of events that tell a story, can be both non fiction and fiction

personification

inorganic objects, animals, and more are given to human characteristics

point of view

the perspective a story is told from

prose

one of the major divison of genres, fiction and nonfiction

sarcasm

bitter caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridcule someone or something

satire

a work that makes fun of people/issues and hopes for reform

symbolism

anything that represents its self but also stands for something else

natural symbol

things from nature that symbolize things associated with it

conventional symbol

symbols that get meaning from a group

literary symbol

a symbol specific to a work

syntax

sentence structure, how author formats words

theme

central idea or message of a work, universal truth

tone

authors/speaker attitfude towards something/someone/audience, contributes to mood

anecdote

a brief narrative story. example: the stories you tell in a casual convo

ellipsis

the omission (un-inclusion) of words, the meaning of which is provided through context of passage

parody

a work that imitates the style/content of another work for the purpose comic effect or ridicule

parallelism

a set of similarly structured words, phrases, or clauses that appear in a sentence or a paragraph. Purpose is to add balance and rhythm to sentences

asssonance

occurs when 2 or more words in proximity to another repeat the same vowel sound but diff. consonant sounds

consonance

repetitive sounds produced by consonants within a sentence/phrase. Based on sound instead of spelling.

end rhyme

rhymes every other line. Ex: abab cdcd

internal rhymes

rhymes happen with middle word and end work

slant rhyme

stressed syllables of the ending consonants match but not vowel sounds. near or close to being a rhyme. ex: bridge and grudge

antitthesis

2 opposite ideas are put in a sentence together. You are easy on the eyes, but hard on the heart

oxymoron

rhetorical device in which 2 opposite ideas are put together. Ex: jumbo shrimp, bittersweet

paradox

a statement that contradicts itself but makes sense. Ex: I am nobody

diction

word choicing

high formal diction

word tone evokes elegancy and contains elaborate vocab. does not contain slang, idioms, colloquialisms or contractions.

neutral diction

standard language with no elaborate words. Contains contractions. Ex: regular writing

low informal diction

relaxed and conversational langauge. contains common and simple words, colloquialisms, idioms, slang, jargon, and contractions.

shift/turn/reversal

the point at which poem’s tone changes

onomatopoeia

sound effect. ex: boom