English Semester 2 Final

Adversary

an enemy, opponent

Boisterous

noisy and rowdy

Shroud

cloth used to wrap a body for burial

Vile

extremely unpleasant

Ambiguity

Statement or event that meaning is unclear

Banishment

Sent away, not allowed back

Fickle

Changing frequently

Bard

A person who composed and recited epic or heroic poems

Dupe

Deceived or fooled; gullible

Mortify

To humiliate or shame, as by injury to one's pride or self-respect

Ruddy

Of having a fresh, healthy red color

Vengeance

Infliction of injury, harm, or the like, on a person by another who has been harmed by that person

Immortal

Undying, Not liable or subject to death

Cunning

Cleverness; slyness

Lament

Expression of grief or sorrow

Ruthless

having no compassion or pity

Seethe

To surge or foam as if boiling

Peruse

Look over

Predominant

Power or control

Lair

a secluded or hidden place, especially a secret retreat or base of operations; a hideout or hideaway

Odysseus

main character; king of Ithaca, Wonders for 10 years after the Trojan War trying to get home to his wife Penelope

Cyclops

One eyed monster, son of Poseidon

Charybdis

Mythical water creature, created whirlpools, sent to the bottom of the sea by Zeus

Scylla

A 6 (snake) headed monster with 12 feet, ate 6 of Odysseus's men

Sirens

Body of a bird head of a human, lured sailors to their deaths in dangerous waters with their irresistible song

Tiresias

A blind prophet who advised Odysseus from the underworld

Circe

Daughter of Helios, a sorceress who changed humans into wolves, lions, and swines

Athena

Goddess of wisdom, warfare, and handcraft; daughter of Zeus

Ithaca

Home of Odysseus

Penelope

Wife of Odysseus, reason Odysseus is trying to get home

Telemmachus

Son of Odysseus and Penelope, holds his fathers throne so no one can marry Penelope while he is gone

Allusion

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

Conflict

A struggle between opposing forces

Irony

Using language that signifies the opposite

Personification

Giving non-human things human characteristics

Simile

A comparison using "like" or "as"

Aside

A short speech delivered by an actor in a play, expressing the characters thoughts

Haiku

A Japanese 3 lines unrhymed (5, 7, 5)

Quatrain

A stanza or poem made up of four lines, usually with a definite rhythm and rhyme scheme

Antagonist

Character opposing the protagonist

Dialogue

Conversation between characters

Metaphor

A comparison without using like or as

Plot

Sequence of events in a story

Suspense

A feeling of uncertainty and curiosity about what will happen next in a story

Soliloquy

A long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone onstage

Lyric poem

A highly musical verse that expresses the observations and feelings of a single speaker

Rhyme scheme

A regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem

Character

A person in a story

Foreshadowing

the use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in a plot

Monologue

A long speech made by one performer or by one person in a group

Protagonist

Main character in a story

Symbol

something that stands for something else

Blank verse

Poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter

Meter

A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry

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 story written to be performed by actors

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the sound it represents