Antiquity and Literature Vocabulary

Antiquity

The ancient past, especially the period before the Middle Ages. Great age.

Oration

A formal speech, especially one given on a ceremonial occasion.

Orator

A public speaker, especially one who is eloquent or skilled.

Empirical

Based on, concerned with, or verifiable by observation or experience rather than theory or pure logic.

Human condition

The characteristics, key events, and situations which compose the essentials of human existence, such as birth, growth, emotionality, aspiration, conflict, and mortality.

Paideia

System of broad cultural education in ancient Greece.

Polytheistic

Relating to or characterized by belief in or worship of more than one god.

Pantheon

All the gods of a people or religion collectively.

Mythos

A traditional or recurrent narrative theme or plot structure of a story or myth.

Epic

A long poem, typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the deeds and adventures of heroic or legendary figures or the history of a nation.

Legacy

An amount of money or property left to someone in a will; or, a long-lasting impact of particular events or actions from the past.

Stela

An upright stone slab or column typically bearing a commemorative inscription or relief design, often serving as a gravestone.

Commemorate

Recall and show respect for (someone or something) in a ceremony.

Toil

Work extremely hard or incessantly.

Simile

A figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion).

Caesura

A break between words within a metrical foot, or a pause near the middle of a line in poetry.

Sage

A profoundly wise man, especially one featured in ancient history or legend.

Alliteration

The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

Epithet

An adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned.

Parallelism

The state of being parallel or corresponding in some way; in literature, the use of successive verbal constructions that correspond in grammatical structure, sound, or meaning.

Oral tradition

The information, customs, or story passed down through generations by word of mouth that is not written down.

Supplication

The action of asking or begging for something humbly or earnestly.

Dissuade

Persuade (someone) not to take a particular course of action.

Utterance

A spoken word, statement, or vocal sound.

Carnelian

A semiprecious stone consisting of an orange or orange-red variety of chalcedony.

In medias res

Into the middle of a narrative or plot without preamble.

Emaciated

Abnormally thin or weak, especially because of illness or a lack of food.

Haggard

Looking exhausted and unwell, especially from fatigue, worry, or suffering.

Transitory

Not permanent; temporary.

Allusion

An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.

Soliloquy

An act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers, especially by a character in a play.

Traverse

Travel across or through.

Personification

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

Symbol

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

Slough

(Pronounced /slaʊ/) A swamp, bog, or side channel of a river. (Pronounced /slʌf/) The cast-off skin of a snake or other reptile; or, to shed or remove (skin or dead tissue).