Literary Terms 9HN

Lit Terms 23-24 9HN Civs CHS

Allegory

Allegory

A story that can stand on its own merits but also illustrating an idea or a moral principle in which objects and/or characters take on symbolic meanings

Alliteration

The use in close succession of repeated (two or more) initial consonant sounds, creating a literary effect, such as mood, foreshadowing, or imagery

Allusion

Reference to something in history; the author expects the reader will know the reference

Anaphora

A device that utilizes repetition of a word or phrase at the BEGINNING of successive sentences, clauses, or phrases; used to emphasize an idea 

Anthropomorphism

The literal attribution of human characteristics to animals and other non-human things (or deities) for the purpose of characterization; the non-human entities actually do human things, such as talking, or falling in love

Archetype

In a literary context, characters (and sometimes images, symbols, for themes) that symbolically embody the universal meanings and basic human experiences, independent of time or place, can be classified by this term

Direct Characterization

the information about a character that the author reveals in a straightforward manner; uses another character, narrator, or the protagonist himself to tell the readers or audience about the character

Indirect Characterization

information about a character that the audience must deduce or infer for themselves by observing the character’s thought process, behavior, speech, way of talking, appearance, and manner of communication with other characters, as well as by discerning the response of other characters towards the character

Round Character

layers of personality; writers describe these physically and mentally; audiences can sympathize, associate with, or relate to this kind of character, as they seem real 

Flat Character

does not change much from the start of the narrative to its end; often said not to have any emotional depth

Dynamic Character

face trials and learn (CHANGE) from experiences

Static Character

do not undergo inner changes, or undergo little change

Protagonist

central character or leading figure; sometimes a hero to the audience or readers; a dynamic character; drives and interacts with the (central) conflict most

Antagonist

a character, or a group of characters, which stands in opposition to the protagonist; the word itself means rival or opponent; often called the villain; often a foil to the protagonist

Couplet

two lines of verse that present a thought; usually rhyming but not always; can be a single poem or stanza (often a final stanza with concluding thought)

End-Stopped Line

a poetic device that creates in a line of poetry a pause at the end of a unit of thought; it is sometimes expressed by punctuation mark

Enjambment

a poetic device that preserves the flow of a complete thought from one line of poetry into the next without pause before reaching completion

Epic

a long narrative poem with the following characteristics:

• hero vs. villain

• hero performs valiant acts

• vast setting

• supernatural forces

• verse (not prose)

• extensive character list

• call to a muse (invocation)

• in medias res

Epithet

a word or phrase that describes a place, a thing, or a person in such a way that it helps in making its characteristics more prominent; also known as a “by-name” or “descriptive title”; when misused, racial or ethnic slurs become examples

Eponym

a word derived from a name, or a name that becomes a word

Figurative Language

language that relies on figures of speech (such as simile, personification, imagery, and others) and is not understood literally; must be interpreted for intended effect;

FOIL

character who sets off the main character or other characters by comparison; much can be learned about each by comparing and contrasting the actions of the two

Foreshadowing

the use of words, phrases, conditions, and events which function as hints as the work unfolds; hints often refer to something that will happen without revealing the details or spoiling the suspense; often noticed by strong readers but sometimes not realized until later in the text as the reader thinks back

Free Verse

poetry that is not controlled by patterns, such as meter or rhythm and does not rhyme in fixed form; has rhythm but not rhyme

Hamartia

this literary device reflects the fatal flaw that leads to a character’s downfall; hamartia can connect to a characteristic, such as greed or hubris, or it can relate to a single error or misjudgment a character makes

Hubris

extreme pride and arrogance shown by a character, which ultimately brings about his downfall

Imagery

groups of words (both literal and figurative) used by authors to create a sensory recognition (see, smell, hear, taste, touch) by the reader

In Medias Res

“in the midst of things” and refers to an author’s choice to narrate a story from the middle after supposing that the audience are aware of past events

Invocation

a request or appeal for help from someone, especially a god, sometimes as part of a religious ceremony; a common element of epic poetry as the writer calls to a muse for assistance in telling the tale

Situational Irony

an event or condition in which incongruity exists between actual circumstances and those that would seem appropriate, or between what is anticipated and what actually comes to pass

Literal Language

language that can be understood in its actual sense

Metaphor

a comparison of two unlike things that share some common characteristics, created by substituting a figurative term for the literal term

Mood

the emotional response of a reader to a piece of text; writers create this through description, setting, character reactions, and conflict resolution, among others; described with adjectives, such as peaceful, pensive, lonely, or hopeful;

Myth

a traditional story whose
author is unknown and one that
exhibits the follow characteristics:

• Narrative (story elements)

• Imaginative, Clever, Inventive 

• Supernatural Beings

• Explains Natural Events and/or Implies Moral

• Often Improbable, Even Absurd

• Originates from Past Culture, preScience

• Evolves

Narrative

=story;  report or tale of related events presented to listeners or readers, in words arranged in a logical sequence

Onomatopoeia

A literary device wherein the sound of a word echoes the sound it represents. The words "splash," "knock," and "roar" are examples.

Personification

The term itself refers to an umbrella of devices, all of which attribute to non-human things the characteristics of humans; refers to the author’s use of figurative language to attribute to non-human things attributes that are human for the purpose of sensory imagery (rather than characterization or emotion).

Perspective

relates to a person’s view on a topic

Quatrain

four lines of verse that function either as a poem or as a stanza within a larger poem; can feature rhyme scheme or be free verse

Rhetorical Question

authors use these for effect with no answer expected

Simile

a figure of speech in which two essentially dissimilar objects or concepts are expressly compared with one another through the use of like or as

Epic Simile

this extended comparison – often 4 to 6 lines – of two unlike things using like or as works as an analogy, helping the reader better understand or imagine a character or action by comparing it to a natural event

Theme

the author’s central message about life in a piece of literary fiction; usually implied rather than directly stated; should be expressed academically as a complete sentence

Theodicy

an attempt to vindicate (or explain or defend) divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil

Thesis

a statement in a nonfiction work that a writer intends to support and prove

Tone

the author’s perspective or attitude towards the topic being written about; by analyzing word choices (primarily, but also through punctuation and sentence structures), readers can infer and describe this