AP LIT - VOCAB

anaphora

(Hamilton-Figure of Speech [scheme "organization/arrangement"]) intentional repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive lines, stanzas, sentences, or paragraphs to create emphasis.

apostrophe

(Hamilton-Figure of Speech [scheme]) addressing the dead (as if they were living), the inanimate (as if they were capable of understanding), or the absent (as if they were present)

chiasmus

(Hamilton-Figure of Speech [scheme]) in which two successive phrases or clauses are parallel in syntax, but reverse the order of the analogous words.

litotes

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) in which a point is affirmed by negating its opposite. "He's no fool."

structural irony

an implication of alternate or reversed meaning that pervades a work. Can be constructed through an unreliable narrator (like the gullible Huckleberry Finn), or through different perspectives of multiple narrators who each reveal a version of a truth.

dramatic irony

occurs when the audience is privy to knowledge that one or more of the characters lacks.

oxymoron

Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) a rhetorical antithesis; two apparently contradictory terms are brought together to form a sharper perception as in phrases such as "bitter-sweet," "wise fool," "eloquent silence," or "cheerful pessimist."

personification

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) in which human characteristics are attributed to non-human things and events.

pun

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) that plays on words that have the same or nearly the same sound (homonyms), but sharply contrasted meanings. Puns are usually employed for witty or humorous effect, however, can be used "with serious intent.

repetition

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy) intentional repetition of sounds, words, phrasing, or concepts to create unity and emphasis.

simile

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) involving a direct comparison between two unlike things and using the words like or as.

synecdoche

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) part of something represents the whole such as in the expressions "All hands on deck!" or "Give us this day our daily bread."

tone

(Previous Barron's-aspect of poetry) a manner, feeling, or atmosphere the poet means to set in the poem. Created through choice of form, sound, and deliberate use of language (diction/syntax/figurative language, etc.).

allusion

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy) a passing (indirect) reference in a work of literature to another literary or historical work, figure, or event, or to a literary passage.

analogy

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy) is the comparison of a subject to something that is similar to it in order to clarify the subject's nature, purpose, or function.

antithesis

(Hamilton-Figure of Speech [scheme]) a figure of speech characterized by strongly contrasting terms, clauses, and ideas.

atmosphere

conceit

(*Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) an extended metaphor, used extensively by the Metaphysical poets of the 17th century.

diction

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy) denoting the word choice and phrasing. May be described by quality of the language (formal, colloquial, abstract, concrete, literal, figurative...). Sometimes, the language of origin contributes to a poet's intention

dramatic situation

(Previous Barron's-aspect of poetry) Who is the speaker? To whom is she/he speaking (auditor)? What are the circumstances? How does the aforementioned contribute to the meaning and impact of the poem?

epiphany

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy) means a sudden, overwhelming insight or revelation evoked by a commonplace object or a scene in a poem or a work of fiction.

hyperbole

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope "a turn"]) a figure of speech involving great exaggeration and used to emphasize strong feelings, create a satiric, comic, or sentimental effect.

imagery

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy) words used to evoke a sensory representation of an object. Concrete details appeal to the five senses more easily communicating an experience.
Specific types of imagery are visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile, and gustatory.

metaphor

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) that implies comparison between two fundamentally different things. The qualities of one are ascribed to the other. An extended metaphor is continued throughout a stanza or an entire work. A mixed metaphor is an inconsistent comparison.

metonymy

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) the substitution of the name of one object for the name of another closely associated with it.

irony

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) depends on presenting a deliberate contrast between two levels of meaning. verbal irony: implying a meaning different from, and often the complete opposite of, the one
that is explicitly stated. (sarcasm, cynicism)

cosmic irony

refers to an implied worldview in which characters are led to embrace false hopes of aid or success, only to be defeated by some larger force such as God or fate.

pathetic fallacy

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) a special type of personification in which inanimate aspects of nature (landscape, weather) are represented as having human qualities or feelings. Derives from the logical absurdity (fallacy) that nature can sympathize with (feel pathos for) human moods and concerns.

paradox

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) a seemingly self-contradictory or absurd statement that is still true such as "The more we learn, the less we know" or the idea that one must sometimes be cruel to be kind. Meaning or symbolism is developed or emphasized by the use of apparent opposites.

periphrasis

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) in which a point is stated in deliberate circumlocution. Euphemism is a type of periphrasis, as are kennings and more complex references.

rhetorical question

(Hamilton-Figure of Speech [scheme]) in which a question is posed to emphasize a foregone or clearly implied conclusion, NOT to solicit a reply. This creates a stronger effect than it would to state a direct assertion.

symbol

(Hamilton-Rhetorical Strategy of symbolism) something concrete, such as an object, person, place, or happening, that stands for or represents something abstract, such as an idea, a quality, a concept, or a condition.

theme

(Previous Barron's-aspect of poetry) reveals the poet's dominant purpose behind writing the poem

understatement

(Hamilton-Figure of Thought [trope]) a form of irony in which a point is deliberately expressed as less (in magnitude, value, or importance) that it actually is.