IB Lang and Lit Vocab

figurative language

language that is meant to be taken imaginatively rather than literally. Examples include devices such as simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, and others

analogy

a comparison that uses something familiar to explain something unfamiliar. Similes and metaphors are types of analogies

aphorism

a short statement that expresses a general truth or moral principal. ("It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt."- Mark Twain)

cliché

an expression used so often it has become stale; often an overused simile or metaphor. (EX: As sharp as a tack, blind as a bat.) Basically, if you've heard a simile or metaphor before, it's a cliché

Conceit

a REALLY long extended metaphor between two very dissimilar objects

Hyperbole

a figure of speech using deliberate overstatement to make a point (EX: "The Tremblemakers. The rock stars of acappella, the messiahs of Barden... Organized nerd singing? This is great!"- Pitch Perfect)

Litotes

an ironical understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary; it will take the form of a double negative (EX: "Good" would become "It's not bad"; "He's handsome" would become "He's not unattractive.")

Metaphor

a direct comparison between two unlike things made without using "like", "as" or "than" (EX: All the world's a stage/ And all the men and women merely players- Shakespeare)

Metonymy

when the name of one subject is substituted for another closely associated with it (From the Greek, meaning "substitute name") (EX: using "White House" instead of "The President")

Apostrophe

speaking directly or calling out to an imaginary, dead or absent person OR speaking to a place, a thing or a personified abstraction (for example, death). It is often used as a dramatic opening or to relate a powerful emotion or thought

mixed metaphor

a metaphor that combines two (or more) incompatible images (ex. "These people are the glue that hold together the gears of our society."- Homer Simpson)

oxymoron

a figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory ideas. An oxymoron will be a two word phrase. (ex. living dead, jumbo shrimp, dry ice, virtual reality)

paradox

a figure of speech that presents an apparent contradiction that is actually true (ex. the pen is mightier than the sword.)

pathetic fallacy

a type of personification giving human emotions to nature (ex. "The seas was angry that day")

personification

giving human OR lifelike characteristics to any inhuman or inanimate thing

simile

a direct comparison between two dissimilar things using "like", "as", or "than" (ex. My love is like a red, red, rose)

Synesthesia

mingling two senses in a metaphor (ex. "The lilacs have a purple smell"- The Crucible)

Synecdoche

the use of part of something to represent the whole thing

understatement

a statement where less is said than is actually meant. (ex. "It's just a flesh wound."- Black Knight, after having both of his arms cut off)

extended metaphor

a metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work (ex: To Kill a Mockingbird)

allusion

a reference to literature, history, events, mythology, art, individuals or places that the reader is expected to recognize. These references evoke emotions, establish character and mood, assist in the setting and convey information not directly explained by the author

atmosphere

the emotional situation created by the entirety of a literary work, established through setting and details (a synonym for MOOD)

crisis (climax)

the point of greatest emotional intensity or suspense in a plot

narrator

one who tells the story. Is not necessarily the author!

point of view

the position from which a situation is observed

first person

the narrator is a character in the story and tells the story using "i"

third person

the narrator relates events through third person pronouns (he,she, it). The narrator is outside the story

omniscient

the narrator is all knowing about all of the characters

limited omniscience

the narrator knows all about the emotions, thoughts and actions of one character, and only the actions of the rest

second person

the narrator tells the story to another character using "you"; the story is being told through the addressee's POV. Second person is the least commonly used POV in fiction

mood

the readers emotional response to the writing

juxtaposition

placing two things side by side for comparison/ contrast

motif

an image, word, phrase, action, idea, object or situation that appears repeatedly throughout various works or within the same work (This may also be referred to as an archetype or trope)

setting

the time and location of a narrative

theme

the general idea or insight about life that a writer wishes to express in a literary work