Semester 2 Final Exam Vocabulary

odysseus

Son of Laertes and Anticleia, husband of Penelope and father of Telemachus. Came up with the idea of the Trojan horse which led the Greeks to victory against Troy.; King of Ithica

cyclops

(Greek mythology) one of a race of giants having a single eye in the middle of their forehead

charybdis

enormous and dangerous whirlpool

scylla

6 headed monster

sirens

Creatures whose songs lure sailors to their deaths

tiresias

blind prophet who advised Odysseus

circe

The beautiful witch-goddess who transforms Odysseus's crew into swine when he lands on her island. With Hermes' help, Odysseus resists Circe's powers and then becomes her lover, living in luxury at her side for a year.

athena

Goddess of wisdom and war; helped guide Odysseus in his journey

Ithaca

Home of Odysseus

Penelope

Odysseus' wife

Telemachus

Odysseus and Penelope's son

adversary

an enemy, opponent

boisterous

(adj.) rough and noisy in a cheerful way; high-spirited

shroud

cloth used to wrap a body for burial

vile

extremely unpleasant

ambiguity

The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage.

banishment

the punishment of being sent away from a country or other place

fickle

changeable

bard

poet

dupe

to deceive; a person who is easily deceived

mortify

to humiliate

ruddy

(adj.) - having a healthy, reddish color

vengeance

revenge; the desire for revenge

immortal

living forever

cunning

Cleverness; slyness

lament

to mourn

ruthless

showing no mercy; pitiless

seethe

(v.) to boil or foam; to be excited or disturbed

peruse

(v.) to read thoroughly and carefully

predominant

(adj.) the greatest in strength or power; most common

lair

(n.) the home or den of a wild animal; any hideout

allusion

A reference to another work of literature, person, or event

conflict

A struggle between opposing forces

irony

A contrast between expectation and reality

personification

A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes

simile

A comparison using "like" or "as"

aside

a line spoken by an actor to the audience but not intended for others on the stage

haiku

3 unrhymed lines (5, 7, 5) usually focusing on nature

quatrain

A four line stanza

antagonist

A character or force in conflict with the main character

dialogue

Conversation between characters

metaphor

A comparison without using like or as

plot

Sequence of events in a story

suspense

a state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.

soliloquy

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

lyric poem

a poem that does not tell a story but expresses the personal feelings or thoughts of a speaker

rhyme scheme

A regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem

character

A person in a story

foreshadowing

A narrative device that hints at coming events; often builds suspense or anxiety in the reader.

monologue

(n.) a speech by one actor; a long talk by one person

protagonist

main character

symbol

A thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract.

blank verse

unrhymed iambic pentameter

meter

The measured arrangement of sounds/beats in a poem, including the poet's placement of emphasis and the number of syllables per line.

climax

Most exciting moment of the story; turning point

genre

a major category or type of literature

narrator

Person telling the story

setting

The time and place of a story

theme

Central idea of a work of literature

drama

a form of performance that involves conflicts, emotions,and the portrayal of human experiences through dialogue and action

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the sound it represents.