Alliteration
The repetition of the same sound or letters at the start of a series of words in succession
Analogy
the extended comparison between two things usually thought of as unlike
Antagonist
The principal opponent of the main character, or protagonist, in a drama or narrative
Assonance
The repetition of similar of vowel sounds taking place in a series of words in a succession
Allusion
The reference of an object or circumstance, within a literary work, to a person, place, event, or to another word of literature
Aside
When a character in a work of fiction directly addresses the audience for a moment to provide a truth, reveal a feeling, or common on the events of the story
Blank verse
Poetry written in unrhymed but metered lines, almost always iambic pentameter
Comic relief
The relief of emotional tension especially of drama through the occurrence of a comic episode or element
Couplet
A pair of end-rhymed lines of poetry that are together
Dynamic character
A character that undergoes an important change in the course of the story
Epic
Or an epic poem, is a lengthy narrative poem generally about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters, like gods.
Epic simile
A long poetic comparison in an epic
External conflict
The type of conflict that places characters at odds with forces outside themselves
Flat character
A two-dimensional character as they are relatively uncomplicated and do not change throughout the course of a work
Iambic pentameter
A line of verse composed of ten syllables arranged in five metrical feet, consisting of an unstressed syllable by a stressed syllable
Internal conflict
The type of conflict when a character struggle with their own opposing desires or beliefs
Meter
The rhythmic pattern of a poetic line
Metaphor
Comparison between two things that are otherwise unrelated, without using like or as
Monologue
an extended speech by one person
Oxymoron
A rhetorical device that describes words or phrases despite creating paradoxs or contradictions, when places together
Paradox
A statement that appears to contradict itself but actually reveals a deeper truth or meaning
Personification
A type of metaphor that describes non-human looks, actions, and purposes with human qualities or language
Pun
A joke based on the play of words, using homophones or similar sounding words
Quatrain
A stanza of four lines, especially one having alternate rhymes
Rhyme scheme
The formal arrangement of rhymes of rhymes in a stanza or a poem
Simile
The comparison of two unlike things using the word “like” and “as”
Static character
A character that doesn’t change from the start of the story through to the end
Soliloquy
A monologue that is delivered when the character is alone
Sonnet
A 14-line poem with variable rhyme scheme, usually written by Shakespeare
Tragedy
A branch of drama that depicts the sorrowful or terrible events encountered or caused by a heroic individual, in a serious and dignified style
Tragic hero
A character in a dramatic tragedy who has likable traits but is ultimately defeated
Free verse
Poetry written in unrhymed and unmetered lines
Verbal irony
When the speaker says something different from what they mean (sarcasm)
Dramatic Irony
When the reader or audience knows something that the character does not.
Situational irony
When an event or outcome takes place that is the opposite of what a person expected