literary terms

Allegory

Narration/description that has a single meaning; characters, events, settings represent specific ideas.

Allusion

Brief reference to something in history or literature.

Ambiguity

Allows for two or more simultaneous interpretations of a word, phrase, action, or situation.

Anagram

Word or phrase made from letters of another word or phrase; used to conceal names or messages.

Archetype

Universal symbols that evoke deep and sometimes unconscious responses in a reader.

Cacophony

Bad sound; language that is discordant and difficult to pronounce.

Canon

Works considered most important to read and study.

Cliché

Idea or expression that becomes tired and trite from overuse.

Colloquial

Type of informal diction that reflects casual, conversational language.

Connotation

Associations and implications that go beyond the literal meaning of a word.

Convention

Characteristic of literary genre understood and accepted by audiences.

Denotation

Dictionary meaning of a word.

Denouement

French term meaning 'unraveling'; describes plot following climax.

Dialect

Type of informal diction spoken by definable groups of people.

Dialogue

Verbal exchanges between characters.

Diction

Writer's choice of words and phrases.

Formal Diction

Dignified, impersonal, and elevated use of language.

Informal Diction

Plain language of everyday use.

Middle Diction

Language that maintains correct usage but is less elevated than formal diction.

Doggerel

Derogatory term for poetry whose subject is trite and whose rhythm is heavy-handed.

Epiphany

Character suddenly experiences a deep realization about themselves.

Euphony

Means good sound; language that is smooth and musically pleasant.

Exposition

Narrative device at the beginning of a work that provides necessary background info.

Farce

Form of humor based on exaggerated improbable incongruities.

Figures of Speech

Ways of using language that deviate from literal meanings of words.

Flashback

Narrated scene that marks a break in the narrative to inform about past events.

Foreshadowing

Intro early in a story of hints that suggest what is to come later.

Form

Overall structure or shape of a work.

Formula Literature

Literature that follows a pattern of conventional reader expectation.

Genre

French word meaning kind or type; major genres in literature are poetry, fiction, drama.

Hyperbole

Boldly exaggerated statement that adds emphasis without intending literal truth.

Image

Word or phrase that addresses the senses to suggest mental pictures.

Melodrama

Literary work that relies on implausible events and sensational action.

Metafiction

Describes work that explores the nature and function of storytelling.

Metaphor

Makes a comparison between two unlike things.

Controlling Metaphor

Metaphor that runs through an entire work.

Extended Metaphor

Sustained comparison in which part or all of a poem consists of a series of related metaphors.

Implied Metaphor

Subtle comparison where terms compared are not explicitly explained.

Metonymy

Something closely associated with a subject is substituted for it.

Synecdoche

Part of something is used to signify the whole.

Narrator

Voice of the person telling the story.

Editorial Omniscience

Intrusion by the narrator in order to evaluate a character for a reader.

First-Person Narrator

The 'I' in the story presenting the point of view of one character.

Limited Omniscience

When author restricts narrator to a single perspective.

Naïve Narrator

Narrators characterized by youthful innocence.

Neutral Omniscience

Narration that allows characters' actions and thoughts to speak for themselves.

Omniscient Narrator

All-knowing narrator who can switch perspectives.

Unreliable Narrator

Narrator whose interpretation of events is different from the author's.

Onomatopoeia

Use of a word that resembles the sound it denotes.

Oxymoron

Condensed form of a paradox using contradictory words together.

Paradox

Statement that initially appears contradictory but makes sense upon closer inspection.

Parody

Humorous imitation of another serious work to make it seem absurd.

Persona

A mask or speaker created to tell a story, separate from the author.

Personification

Attribution of human characteristics to nonhuman things.

Point of View

Who tells the story and how it shapes events.

Objective Point of View

Third person narrator who does not see into the mind of any character.

Satire

Literary art of ridiculing a folly or vice to expose or correct it.

Sentimentality

Effort to induce emotional responses in a reader that exceed what situation warrants.

Setting

Physical and social context in which the action of a story occurs.

Simile

Comparison between two things using 'like' or 'as'.

Stream-of-Consciousness Technique

Takes readers inside a character's mind.

Style

Distinctive manner in which a writer arranges words.

Suspense

Anxious anticipation regarding the outcome of a story.

Symbol

Person, object, image, word, or event that evokes additional meaning.

Contextual/Literary Symbol

Maintains its literal significance while suggesting other meanings.

Conventional Symbol

Symbols that have meanings widely recognized by society or culture.

Syntax

Ordering of words into meaningful verbal patterns.

Theme

Central meaning or dominant idea in a literary work.

Thesis

Central idea of an essay.

Tone

Author's implied attitude toward the subject revealed by style.

Understatement

Figure of speech that says less than is intended; usually has an ironic effect.