English Lit Terms

Mrs. A (United States of America)
Must know English Lit Terms.
39 words 286 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. allegory
    a short moral story
  2. alliteration
    use of the same consonant at the beginning of each word
  3. allusion
    passing reference or indirect mention
  4. audience
    a gathering of spectators or listeners at a performance
  5. character
    an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction
    Round - reader sees many different traits
    Flat - reader sees only one trait
    Dynamic - Character grows throughout the work
    Static - Character stays the same through the work
  6. climax
    the decisive moment in a novel or play
  7. denouement
    the resolution of the main complication of a literary work
  8. dialogue
    the lines spoken by characters in drama or fiction
  9. diction
    the manner in which something is expressed in words
  10. epithet
    descriptive word or phrase
  11. exaggeration
    the act of making something more noticeable than usual
  12. figurative
    not literal
  13. hyperbole
    extravagant exaggeration
  14. irony
    incongruity between what might be expected and what occurs
  15. literal
    limited to the explicit meaning of a word or text
  16. metaphor
    a figure of speech that suggests a non-literal similarity
  17. mood
    a characteristic state of feeling
  18. narrative
    consisting of or characterized by the telling of a story
  19. oxymoron
    conjoined contradictory terms
  20. paradox
    a statement that contradicts itself
  21. pastoral
    a literary work idealizing the rural life
  22. pathos
    a quality that arouses emotions, especially pity or sorrow
  23. plot
    the story that is told, as in a novel, play, movie, etc.
  24. repetition
    the continued use of the same word or word pattern
  25. rhetoric
    using language effectively to please or persuade
  26. satire
    witty language used to convey insults or scorn
  27. setting
    the context and environment in which something is situated
  28. simile
    a figure of speech expressing a resemblance between things
  29. soliloquy
    a dramatic speech giving the illusion of unspoken reflection
  30. symbol
    something visible that represents something invisible
  31. symmetry
    balance among the parts of something
  32. theme
    a unifying idea that is a recurrent element in literary work
    Central Ideal. What is the one thing that the writer / poet wants you to understand after reading the work.
  33. vignette
    a brief literary description
  34. conflict
    an open clash between two opposing groups
  35. connotation
    an idea that is implied or suggested
  36. imagery
    the ability to form mental pictures of things or events
    Appeals to the senses, go beyond the visual.
  37. personification
    attributing human characteristics to abstract ideas
  38. point of view
    a mental position from which things are perceived
    1st person occurs when a character narrates the story
    3rd person occurs when a voice outside the story narrates
    Omniscient - "all Knowing" Tells the reader what any character things and feels
    Limited - can see through one character's eyes and reveals only that character's thoughts and feelings.
  39. tone
    the distinctive property of a complex sound
    In literature, the voice the writer has chosen to project in order to relate to the readers. Tone is produced by the combined effect of word choice, sentence structure, and purpose, and reflects the narrators and the writer's attitude toward the subject.
Created on Sun Jun 26 22:44:38 EDT 2016 (updated Sun Jun 26 23:26:46 EDT 2016)

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