Unit 1 Lit terms

allegory

a tale in prose or verse in which characters, actions, or settings represent abstract ideas or moral qualities

alliteration

the repetition of consonant sounds

allusion

a reference to a person, place, or event in a literary work that the writer expects the reader to recognize

almanac

a book of months and days for one year, containing weather predictions, a wide variety of miscellaneous information, and often proverbs

analogy

a comparison made between two things that show the similarities between them

anapest

a poetic foot consisting of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable (uu')

anecdote

a very short story that is told to make a point

antagonist

a person or force opposing the protagonist in a drama or narrative

aphorism

a terse, pointed statement expressing some wise or clever observation about life

apostrophe

a figure of speech in which an absent or dead person, an abstract quality, or something inanimate or non human is addressed directly

aside

in drama, a short speech spoken by a character in an undertone or directly to the audience

assonance

the repetition of vowel sounds

autobiography

a person's account of his or her own life

ballad

a story told in verse and usually meant to be sung, often about great deeds or important moments

biography

a detailed account of a person's life written by someone else

blank verse

verse (poetry) written in unrhymed iambic pentameter

caesura

a break or pause in a line of poetry

catalog

a long list of things, people, or events

character

any person, animal, thing, or force presented as a person and in a story

characterization

revealing the personality of the character to the audience or reader

chorus

in drama, one or more characters who comments on the action

classicism

a movement or tendency in art, literature, and music reflecting the principles manifested in the art of ancient Greece and Rome

climax

the decisive point in a narrative or drama; the point of greatest intensity or interest

comedy

a literary work that ends happily and is usally funny or light-hearted

conceit

a kind of metaphor that make a comparison between two startlingly different things

conflict

a struggle between two opposing forces or characters in a short story, novel, play, or poem

consonance

the repetition of sounds in groups of words

couplet

two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme

dactyl

a poetic foot consisting of a stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables ('uu)

denouement

the outcome or resolution of the plot

description

detailing a person or place and their visible features

dialect

the characteristic speech of a particular region or social group

diction

the writer's choice of words, particularly for clarity, effectiveness, and precision

dramatic irony

when the audience knows more about events or what will happen than the characters in the story

dramatic monologue

a narrative poem in which one character speaks to one or more listeners whose replies are not given in the poem