Literary terms - literary history English

Het Stedelijk

epic

a long, narrative poem on a great subject, told in a serious and devined way, centered round the deeds of a hero and often involving important stages in the history of a nation.

alliteration

the repetition of sounds at the beginning of words within one line of poetry.

courtly love

was one of the most pervasive themes in the literature of Chaucer’s time. According to this conception of love, romance is an ennobling force that can raise the male lover - usually a knight - to heights of bravery in the service of his lady. The beloved, in turn, is the epitomy of feminine perfection and often difficult, if not imposible, to attain as a romantic partner. Passion and devotion are emphisised throughout, and the spiritual dimension of love is valued above the physical.

frame story

a number of tales told within a story (the frame). The frame for the Canterbury Tales is provided by the journey of the pilgrims to Canterbury and the story-telling contest they agree to hold.

courtly love

a highly conventionalized mediaeval philosophy of love between a knight and a married noblewoman, first developed by the troubadours of southern France and extensively employed in European literature of the time. The love of the knight for his lady was regarded as an ennobling passion and the relationship was typically unconsummated.

chivalry

Chivalry is a mediaeval code of conduct emphasising honour, bravery and courtesy, particularly in relation to knightly virtues and behaviour.

churchyard plays

medieval dramas performed in churchyards, blending religious themes with entertainment for moral and educational purposes.

morality plays

allegorical dramas in the Middle Ages, teaching moral lessons through characters representing virtues and vices.

sonnet

a poem of fourteen lines, which are devided by a volta into an octave (8 lines) and a sestet (6 lines).

volta

a plot twist between the octave and sestet.

metaphor

a figure of speech that states one thing is another thing. It equates those two things not because they actually are the same, but for the sake of comparison or symbolism.

simile

figure of speech that directly compares two things. Similes differ from metaphors by making an explicit comparison using words such as “like” or “as”, while methapors create an implicit comparison.

personification

the attribution of a personal nature of human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

ballad

a simple, narrative poem originally intended to be sung. The oldest ballads date from the Middle Ages, and the authors are usually unknown.

ballad stanza

the type of four-line stanza commonly used in ballads, rhyming abcb; the first and third lines have eight sillables, the second and fourth have six sillables.

narrative verse

poems that tell a story; frequently used in contrat to lyrical poetry which expresses personal feelings.