TWHS-9 Unit 6 - Poetry Literary Terms

Prosody

the study of meter, intonation, and rhythm of a poetic work for conveying information about the meanings and structure of an utterance

Prose

a literary device referring to writing that is structured in a grammatical way, with words and phrases that build sentences and paragraphs

Verse

denotes a single line of poetry, can also be used to refer to a stanza or other parts of poetry

Sonnet (Shakespearean)

a poem generally structured in the form of 14 lines, usually iambic pentameter, that expresses a thought or idea and utilizes an established rhyme scheme

Iambic Pentameter

a metrical foot in poetry in which an unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed syllable, is a beat or foot that uses 10 syllables in each line (Rhythmic pattern comprising five iambs in each line, like five heartbeats)

Quatrain

a series of four poetic lines that make up a verse of a poem known as a stanza, which can function as a poem on its own or as an individual stanza within a larger poem

Couplet

a literary device featuring two consecutive lines of poetry that typically rhyme and have the same meter

Volta

A turn of thought or argument in poetry, a rhetorical, a dramatic change in emotions or thoughts that the poet is expressing in the poem

Stanza

a division of four or more lines having a fixed length, meter, or rhyming scheme

Rhyme Scheme

the pattern of rhyme that comes at the end of each verse or line in poetry / the structure of end words of a verse or line that a poet needs to create when writing a poem

Monologue

a literary device featuring a "speech" made by a single character in a work of literature or dramatic work (for theater or film)

Soliloquy

a literary device in the form of a speech or monologue spoken by a single character in a theatrical play or drama

Aside

a short comment or speech that a character delivers directly to the audience, or to himself, while other actors on the stage appear not to hear, only the audience knows that the character has said something to them

Dramatic Irony

an important stylistic device that is commonly found in plays, movies, theaters, and sometimes in poetry, a useful plot device for creating situations in which the audience knows more about the situations, the causes of conflicts, and their resolutions before the leading characters or actors

Scene

a division of an act into smaller parts (Not literarydevices.net definition)

Act

A major division of a play (Not literarydevices.net definition)

Tragedy

a literary device signifying a story or drama that presents an admirable or courageous character that confronts powerful forces inside and/or outside of themselves, a protagonist is undone or brought to ruin by a critical character flaw or by the cruelty of fate

Hamartia

a literary device that reflects a character's tragic or fatal flaw, or mistake in judgment, that ultimately leads to their downfall

Pun

a literary device that is also known as a "play on words."

Situational Irony

a form of irony in which something takes place that is different or the opposite of what is expected to happen

Verbal Irony

occurs when a speaker speaks something contradictory to what he intends to say

Paradox

a statement that appears at first to be contradictory, but upon reflection then makes sense

Oxymoron

a figure of speech pairing two words together that are opposing and/or contradictory

Synecdoche

a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to signify the whole, or vice-versa

Motif

an object or idea that repeats itself throughout a literary work

Tone

a literary device that reflects the writer's attitude toward the subject matter or audience of a literary work

Theme

refers to the central, deeper meaning of a written work

Characterization

a literary device that is used step-by-step in literature to highlight and explain the details of a character in a story

Foil

a literary device designed to illustrate or reveal information, traits, values, or motivations of one character through the comparison and contrast of another character

Allusion

a reference, typically brief, to a person, place, thing, event, or other literary work with which the reader is presumably familiar

Conflict

a literary element that involves a struggle between two opposing forces, usually a protagonist and an antagonist

Foreshadowing

a literary device that writers utilize as a means to indicate or hint to readers something that is to follow or appear later in a story

Imagery

a literary device that refers to the use of figurative language to evoke a sensory experience or create a picture with words for a reader

Hyperbole

a figure of speech and literary device that creates heightened effect through deliberate exaggeration

Personification

a figure of speech in which an idea or thing is given human attributes and/or feelings or is spoken of as if it were human

Metaphor

a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two non-similar things

Simile

a figure of speech in which two essentially dissimilar objects or concepts are expressly compared with one another through the use of "like" or "as."