English 2 - H Spring Finals Study Guide

Literary Terms, Psychology, Night, Schindler's List, The Kite Runner

Dramatic Irony

A situation in which the audience knows more about a character's situation than the character does, creating tension or humor.

Situational Irony

A situation where the outcome is incongruous with what was expected, often creating a surprise or a twist.

Ethos

Appeal to Authority

Logos

Appeal to logic and reason

Pathos

Appeal to emotion

Repetition

A rhetorical device used to emphasize a point by repeating words or phrases for effect.

Rhetorical question

A question posed for effect, rather than to elicit an answer, often used to encourage reflection or emphasize a point.

Pun

A form of wordplay that exploits multiple meanings of a term or similar-sounding words for humorous or rhetorical effect.

Foil

A character who contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist, to highlight particular qualities and traits. Ex: Hassan and Amir

Metaphor

A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things by stating that one is the other, often to highlight similarities.

Simile

A figure of speech that compares two unlike things using the words "like" or "as" to highlight similarities.

Hyperbole

An exaggerated statement not meant to be taken literally, used for emphasis or effect.

Protagonist

The main character in a story, often facing conflict and driving the plot forward.

Monologue

A long speech delivered by a single character in a play, film, or literature, often revealing their thoughts and feelings.

Antagonist

The character or force that opposes the protagonist, creating conflict in the story.

Allegory

A narrative that uses symbolic figures, events, or settings to convey a deeper moral or political meaning.

First Person

A narrative mode where the story is told from the perspective of a character using "I" or "we," allowing readers to experience their thoughts and feelings directly.

Third Person Omniscient

A narrative mode where the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all characters in the story, providing a comprehensive perspective.

Third Person Limited

A narrative mode where the narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of one character, providing a more focused perspective on the story.

Onomatopoeia

A figure of speech in which words imitate the natural sounds associated with them, such as "buzz" or "sizzle."

Internal Conflict

A struggle within a character's mind, often involving difficult choices or emotional turmoil.

External Conflict

A struggle between a character and an external force, like a character, society, force of nature, or situation

Anecdote

A short story about a real person or situation that drives plot forward or illustrates a point

Tragedy

A play dealing with tragic events and having an unhappy ending, especially one concerning the downfall of the main character

Prologue

A prologue is an introductory section that comes before the main body of a story, play, or other literary work. It establishes context, gives background details, and sets a tone for the piece.

Character

A person in a novel, play, or movie. Or, the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual.

Mood

The overall feeling or atmosphere created in a work, affecting the reader's emotions and how they perceive the story

Aside

A literary device, often used in dramatic works, where a character makes a remark or comment that is intended to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on stage

Shakespearean sonnet

A specific type of poem with 14 lines, divided into three quatrains (four-line stanzas) and a couplet (two-line stanza), using a specific rhyme scheme and meter

Imagery

The use of descriptive language that appeals to the senses, creating a vivid picture or image in the reader's mind

Diction

An author's word choice, specifically the selection of vocabulary that is most effective, appropriate, or clear for a given purpose. It helps create tone, style, and character development

Personification

A literary device that assigns human qualities, such as emotions, thoughts, or behaviors, to inanimate objects, animals, or abstract ideas

Plot

The sequence of events that make up a story, including the inciting incident, climax, and resolution; the sequence of interconnected events within the story

Theme

A central or underlying idea, message, or universal truth explored in a work; main topic, subject, or message within a narrative

Satire

Satire is a literary device that uses humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize others’ stupidity or vices

Tone

Expresses the writer's attitude toward or feelings about the subject matter and audience; the authors’ stance

Tragic hero

A character who experiences a downfall due to a combination of personal flaws and external circumstances, often culminating in death or a similar devastating outcome

Epilogue

A concluding section of a story or play that provides closure, ties up loose ends, and often reflects on the characters' fates or the story's themes

Tragic flaw (hamartia)

A character's inherent weakness or error in judgment that leads to their downfall in a tragic story

Assonance

A literary device where there's a repetition of similar vowel sounds in nearby words, creating a rhythmic or musical effect. Ex: “His tender heir might bear his memory”

Alliteration

A literary device that involves the repetition of the same or similar consonant sounds at the beginning of words in close proximity. Ex: “Picture Perfect”

Connotation

The secondary, implied meaning of a word or phrase, beyond its literal definition

Idiom

Phrases that are not meant to be taken literally but that have a widely understood meaning in a given language or culture. Ex: “It's raining cats and dogs”

Allusion

A reference, direct or indirect, to a person, place, event, or work of art that is assumed to be known by the reader or audience

Oxymoron

A figure of speech where seemingly contradictory terms are combined in a single phrase. Ex: “Jumbo Shrimp”

Flashback

A narrative technique where a character or narrator revisits an earlier event or series of events that occurred before the main storyline

Foreshadowing

A technique where an author hints at events that will occur later in the story, creating suspense and building anticipation

Scope

The boundaries and focus of a piece of writing, research, or study; relevance

Exposition

An element of literature that introduces the key background information of a narrative; biographical information about a main character or distinguishing features of a setting

Denouement

The point in a story in which the conflict is resolved; the final resolution, closure

Symbolism

Uses objects, characters, or events to represent abstract ideas or concepts beyond their literal meaning. Ex: Kite Running in The Kite Runner

Genre

A category that groups works sharing similar characteristics of form, content, and style