English Poetic Terms

Personification

Innate item given lively, human description

Similie

Use of "like" or "as" to compare 2 things

Metaphor

Direct comparison of 2 thing

Allegory

Subtle, hidden message in a storyline

Allusion

Hint/reference toward something

Hyperbole

Exaggeration

Symbol

Something w/ deep meaning

Synecdoche

A word/part that is used for the whole or the whole for a part (ie. "You like my new WHEELS?" = "You like my new CAR?")

Metonymy

The substitution of the name of an attribute for that of the thing meant (i.e. "suit" for "business executive")

Epithet

Adjective or phrase used to describe the characteristic of someone/something

Foreshadowing

Hinting @ something in the future, a warning

Harbinger

Anything that foreshadows a future event

Irony

Something said/done ≠ actually happened

Paradox

Statement seemingly saying the opposite things but is probably true

Bildungsroman

Novel exploring manner of protagonist's growth morally & psychologically

Catharsis

Purification/purgation of emotion (fear/pity) through art

Tercet

A set or group of 3 lines of verse rhyming together or connected by rhyme w an adjacent tercet

Aside

When a character in a work of fiction addresses the audience directly for a moment to reveal, comment or express something.

\

When a character in a work of fiction addresses the audience directly for a moment to reveal, comment or express something.

Soliloquy

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

Monologue

Long speech made by an actor/character in the program

Foil Character

A character who is used as a contrast because of their similarities to another character to highlight their qualities

Dramatic Irony

When a reader/viewer is aware of something that a character isn't for humorous/dramatic effect

Blocking

Part of a narrative telling the reader where the characters are, where the scenery is & how they're interacting

Iambic Pentameter

a poetic meter that is made up of 5 stressed syllables each followed by an unstressed syllable

Antithesis

Parallel structure that contrasts an idea

Antimetabole

Parallel structure in reverse WORD order

Chiasmus

Parallel structure in reverse PHRASE order

Equivocation

Word that has a double meaning but using it to deceive