AP Literature Vocabulary Notes

Figurative Language

• Language that uses words or expressions with meanings different from the literal interpretation.

Conflict

• A struggle between opposing forces that can be internal (within a character) or external (against outside forces).

Simile

• A figure of speech comparing two different things using 'like' or 'as'.

Metaphor

• A figure of speech that directly refers to one thing by mentioning another, creating a rhetorical effect.

Types of Conflict

• Categories include:
  • Internal conflict
  • Person vs. Nature
  • Person vs. Society
  • Person vs. Machine
  • Person vs. God

Implied Metaphor

• A metaphor that is suggested through context rather than explicitly stated.

Denotation

• The literal or primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feelings it evokes.

Personification

• Attributing human traits to non-human things or inanimate objects.

Connotation

• The ideas or feelings a word invokes in addition to its literal meaning.

Symbol

• An object, character, figure, or color used to represent abstract ideas or themes.

Motif

• A recurring element with symbolic significance in a narrative.

Theme

• The central topic, subject, or message contained within a narrative.

Prose

• Ordinary written or spoken language without metrical structure.

Mood

• The emotional atmosphere of a literary piece.

Poetry

• A form of literary art that utilizes the aesthetic qualities of language to evoke meanings.

Tone

• The attitude of the writer towards the subject or audience.

Novel

• A long work of fiction that tells a story about human experiences.

Imagery

• Descriptive language that creates visual representations in the reader's mind.

Nonfiction

• Prose writing based on factual events and actual people.

Foreshadowing

• A literary device indicating or hinting at what is to come later in the narrative.

Fiction

• Literature stemming from imagination and is not presented as fact.

Repetition

• The repeated use of sounds, words, or ideas for emphasis.

Speaker

• The voice representing the author, speaker, or perspective in writing or speech.

Narrator

• The individual telling the story.

Characterization

• Indirect Characterization: Revealed through actions/interactions.
• Direct Characterization: Explicit description by the author.

Protagonist

• The main character in a story.

Antagonist

• A character or force opposing the protagonist.

Heroine

• A female protagonist or a woman noted for courage.

Diction

• The choice and use of words in writing or speech.

Dialect

• A regional variety of language distinguished by unique vocabulary, spelling, and pronunciation.

Syntax

• The arrangement of words and phrases to create well-structured sentences.

Structure

• The arrangement or framework of sentences, paragraphs, or whole works.

Allusion

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

Literary Devices

• Alliteration: Repeated sounds at the beginning of adjacent words.
• Assonance: Repetition of vowel sounds in close proximity.
• Consonance: Repetition of consonant sounds in close proximity.
• Onomatopoeia: A word that imitates the sound it represents.

Hyperbole

• Exaggerated claims not meant to be taken literally.

Poetic Forms

• Free Verse: Poetry without a regular meter or rhyme scheme.
• Blank Verse: Unrhymed iambic pentameter.
• End-Stopped Lines: Lines where grammatical structure and sense complete at the end.
• Enjambment: Continuation of a sentence without pause beyond the end of a line.
• Rhyme Scheme: Regular pattern of rhyming words in poetry.

Meter

• A consistent pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry.
• Iambic Pentameter: Five stressed syllables followed by unstressed ones.

Stanzas

• Couplet: Two lines of verse, usually rhymed.
• Tercet: A three-line stanza.
• Quatrain: A four-line stanza.
• Sestet: A six-line stanza.
• Octave: An eight-line stanza.

Turning Point

• A significant shift in thought or emotion within a poem (volta).

Rhyme Variations

• Slant Rhyme: Vowel sounds are nearly the same.
• Approximate Rhyme: Similar but not identical final sounds.
• Internal Rhyme: Rhyming a word in the middle of a line with another at the end or in the middle of the next line.

Sonnet Forms

• Shakespearean Sonnet: 14 lines, iambic pentameter, rhyme scheme abab cdcd efef gg.
• Petrarchan Sonnet (Italian): Structure of 8 lines (abba abba) followed by 6 lines (cde cde).
• Spenserian Sonnet: Rhyme scheme abab bcbc cdcd ee.

Complex Forms

• Villanelle: 19 lines with 2 repeating lines following a set pattern.
• Sestina: 6 six-line stanzas and a triplet using the same six words in varying sequences.
• Haiku: 3 unrhymed lines (5-7-5 syllable structure).
• Cinquain: A five-line stanza.

Characters and Setting

• Foil: A contrast character to another.
• Setting: Time and place of the narrative.
• Apostrophe: Directly addresses an absent or imaginary person.
• Flashback: A scene from the past in the narrative.

Literary Techniques

• Synecdoche: A part used to represent a whole or vice versa.
• Metonymy: Referring to something by using the name of something closely associated.
• Archetype: Commonly recurring image or character that appeals universally.
• Paradox: A self-contradictory statement that reveals a truth.
• Parody: A work imitating another in a comical way.
• Satire: Critiques human folly through humor.

Writing Structure

• Paragraph: A writing section with a topic and concluding sentence.
• Epigram: A witty observation or thought.
• Epigraph: A quotation at the beginning that hints at the work's theme.
• Epitaph: A phrase or statement honoring a deceased individual.

Hook

• The opening sentence or question aimed to capture attention.

Abstract vs. Concrete

• Abstract Terms: Concepts without physical form (e.g., freedom).
• Concrete Terms: Sensory-related terms (e.g., a specific location).

Syntax Variations

• Inverted Syntax: Changing standard word order.

Clauses

• Independent Clause: A complete thought that can stand alone.
• Dependent Clause: Cannot stand alone and functions as part of a sentence.

Punctuation Marks

• Colon: Indicates that what follows is related to the prior statement.
• Semicolon: Connects independent clauses.