AP LITERARY TERMS (1)

Allegory

A story or poem where characters, settings, and events symbolize other people, events, or abstract ideas.

Alliteration

Repetition of similar consonant sounds in close proximity.

Allusion

Reference to a known person, event, or element from history, literature, etc.

Ambiguity

Intentionally suggesting multiple conflicting meanings in a work.

Analogy

Comparison between two things to show their similarities.

Anaphora

Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of consecutive sentences.

Anastrophe

Inversion of the usual sentence order for emphasis or rhythm.

Anecdote

Brief story used to illustrate a point or character.

Antagonist

Character opposing the hero in a story.

Antimetabole

Repetition of words in reverse order for effect.

Antithesis

Balancing contrasting words or ideas.

Antihero

Central character lacking traditional heroic qualities.

Anthropomorphism

Attributing human traits to animals or objects.

Aphorism

Brief, wise statement about life or truth.

Apostrophe

Addressing an absent person, idea, or object.

Apposition

Placing coordinate elements in immediate succession.

Assonance

Repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words.

Asyndeton

Using commas to separate words without conjunctions.

Balance

Constructing sentences with equal importance and length.

Characterization

Process of revealing a character's personality.

Indirect Characterization

Revealing character traits through actions, thoughts, and interactions.

Direct Characterization

Explicitly stating a character's traits.

Static Character

Character that remains unchanged in a story.

Dynamic Character

Character that undergoes significant change.

Flat Character

One-dimensional character with few traits.

Round Character

Complex character with multiple dimensions.

Dead Metaphor

A metaphor that has been overused to the point where the comparison is no longer vivid.

Mixed Metaphor

A metaphor that mixes terms in a way that is visually or imaginatively incompatible.

Metonymy

Referring to a person, place, or thing by something closely associated with it.

Mood

The atmosphere created by a writer's diction and selected details.

Motif

A recurring image, word, phrase, or idea that unifies a work by connecting situations or themes.

Motivation

The reasons behind a character's behavior.

Onomatopoeia

The use of words that echo their sense, like "pop" or "zap."

Oxymoron

A figure of speech combining contradictory terms in a brief phrase.

Parable

A short story teaching a moral lesson.

Paradox

A statement that appears self-contradictory but reveals a deeper truth.

Koan

A paradox used in Zen Buddhism to gain intuitive knowledge.

Parallel Structure

The repetition of words or phrases with similar grammatical structures.

Paratactic Sentence

Juxtaposing clauses or sentences without conjunctions.

Parody

A work that imitates another to make fun of it.

Periodic Sentence

A sentence where the main idea comes at the end after introductory elements.

Personification

Giving human attributes to objects or animals.

Plot

The series of related events in a story or play.

Exposition

Introducing characters, situations, and settings in a story.

Rising Action

Complications in conflicts and situations leading to the climax.

Climax

The point of greatest intensity in a plot.

Resolution

The conclusion of a story where conflicts are settled.

Point of View

The perspective from which a story is told.

First Person Point of View

A character narrates the story.

Third Person Point of View

An unknown narrator focuses on one character's thoughts and feelings.

Omniscient Point of View

An all-knowing narrator tells the story.

Objective Point of View

An impersonal narrator with no comments on characters or events.