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Definition
| in literature and in art, the depiction of idealized, fabulous or fantastic characters and events; the stories abound in dashing, extravagant adventures, characters of extreme virtues or faults, exotic worlds, strong and inflexible loyalties, and idealized love-making |
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Definition
| in literature and art, an attempt to reproduce and interpret the visions and images of the unconscious mind as manifested in dreams; characterized by an irrational arrangement of bizarre experiences |
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Definition
| inclusion in poetry of abstract and concrete meaning; related to metonymy in that expression of the particular suggests the universal; presenting the image suggests the idea; term first introduced by critic Allen Tate |
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Definition
| a form of romanticism, largely of a philosophical nature; sponsored by Americans such as Emerson and Thoreau |
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Definition
| a literary work that aims to arouse laughter by a ludicrous or grotesque imitation of a serious work |
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Definition
| a kind of ambiguity in literature resulting from a series of images invoking streams of thought |
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Definition
specifically meaning "rebirth"
also applied to the period between the medieval and the modern world |
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Definition
| Aristotle's term for the protagonist's tragic flaw or tragic error of judgement |
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Definition
| the quality in action, speech, or writing which excites amusement; less intellectual than wit and having a more sympathetic tone |
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Definition
| a concern by a critic with analysis of a work itself without seeking answers to problems in the biography or milieu of the author or in influences upon him/her; the method of New Critics |
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Definition
| a brief explanation, summary, or evaluation of a text or work of literature |
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Definition
| as expressed in the works of such writers as Kafka, Camus and Faulkner, a view of life that emphasizes existence as opposed to essence; human beings are presented as unable to solve the basic enigmas of life |
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Definition
| a form of art in which the artist depicts the inner essence of man and projects his viewof the world as colored by that essence |
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Definition
| in strict sense, refers to an elaborate style of architecture that followed classicism; in general usage however, refers to elaborate and unstructured style |
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Definition
| an allegorical story conveying a useful lesson; most frequently deals with animals or inanimate nature |
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Term
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Definition
| a reference to a person, place or event meant to create an effect or enhance the meaning of an idea |
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Term
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Definition
| the repetition of one or more initial consonants in a group of words or lines of poetry or prose |
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Term
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Definition
| a story in which the narrative or characters carry an underlying symbolic, metaphorical, or possibly and ethical meaning. In works such as Spenser's The Faerie Queen and Bunyon's Pilgrim's Progress, the story and characters represent values beyond themselves. |
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Definition
| an abbreviated synopsis of a longer work of scholarship or research |
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Definition
| an abbreviated synopsis of a longer work of scholarship or research |
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Term
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Definition
| as opposed to concrete terms, abstract terms represent ideas or thoughts-generalities |
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Term
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Definition
| a saying of proverb containing a truth based on experience and often couched in metaphorical language |
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Definition
| a vagueness of meaning; a conscious lack of clarity meant to evoke multiple meanings and interpretation |
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Term
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Definition
| a person, scene, event, or other element in literature that fails to correspond with the time or era in which the work is set |
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Definition
| a comparison that points out similarities between two dissimilar things |
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Definition
similar in meaning to Keats' "Negative Capability"
refers to a total objectivity of a writer wherein his/her views and judgements are withheld in his/her account of human experience. Another conception of the term defines it as the distance between a work of art and its perceiver, the perceiver recognizing that the work of art is pretense and thereby on occasion larger and truer than life |
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Term
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Definition
| the main idea or menaing, often an abstract idea upon which a work of literature is built |
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Definition
| a character whose name appears in the title of the novel or play; also known as the eponymous character |
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Definition
| the author's attitude toward the subject being written about. The tone is the characteristic emotion that pervades a work or part of a work- in other words, the spirit or quality that is the work's emotional essence |
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Term
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Definition
| a form of literature in which the hero is destroyed by some character flaw andd a set of forces that cause the hero considerable anguish |
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Term
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Definition
| the generic name for a figure of speech such as image, symbol, similt, and metaphor |
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Term
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Definition
| a discrepency between the true meaning of a situation and the literal meaning of the written or spoken word |
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Definition
| a synonym for poetry. Also a group of lines in a song or poem; also a single line of poetry |
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Term
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Definition
| similar to the truth; the quality of realism in a work that persuades readers that they are getting a vision of life as it is |
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Term
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Definition
| a subordinate or minor collection of events in a novel or play, usually connected to the main plot |
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Term
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Definition
| the implied meaning that underlies the main meaning of a work of literature |
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Term
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Definition
| the use of one object to evoke ideas and associations not literally part of the original object. The letter A worn by Hester Prynne in Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is an obvious symbol of Hester's adultery |
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Definition
| a figure of speech in which a part signifies the whole (days for life, as in "He lived his days under African skies") when the name of a material stands for the thing itself, as in pigskin for football, that, too, is synecdoche |
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Term
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Definition
| the organization of language into meaningful structure; every sentence has a particular syntax or pattern of words |
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Term
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Definition
| the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables found in poetry |
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Term
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Definition
| a figure of speech that uses the name of one thing to represent something else with which it is associated. Example: "The White House says..." |
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Definition
| the language spoken in England roughly between 1150 and 1500 AD Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales in Middle English |
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Definition
| a parody of traditional epic form. It usually treats a frivilous topic with extreme seriousness, using conventions such as invocations to the Muse, action-packed battle scenes, and accounts of heroic exploits. An example is Alexander Pope's "Rape of the Lock," a poem that portrays a woman applying makeup and fixing her hair |
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Term
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Definition
| the general form, pattern, and manner of expression of a work of literature |
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Term
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Definition
| a quick succession of images or impressions used to express an idea |
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Term
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Definition
| the emotional tone in a work of literature |
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Term
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Definition
| a form of understatement in which the negative of the contrary is used to achieve emphasis or intensity. Example: He is not a bad dancer. |
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Term
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Definition
| a sentence that follows the customary word order of English sentences, i.e. subject-verb-object. The main idea of the sentnece is presented first and is then followed by one or more subordinate clauses |
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Term
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Definition
| personal, reflective poetry that reveals the speaker's thoughts and feelings abou the subject |
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Term
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Definition
| a saying or proverb expressing common wisdom or truth |
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Term
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Definition
| a literary form in which events are exaggerated in order to create an extreme emotional response |
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Term
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Definition
| a figure of speech that compares unlike objects |
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Term
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Definition
| the work of poet, particularly those of the 17th century, that uses elaborate conceits, is highly intellectual, and expresses the complexities of love and life |
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Term
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Definition
| a figure of speech in which objects and animals are given human characteristics |
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Term
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Definition
| the interrelationship among the events in a story; the plot line is the pattern of events, including exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution |
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Term
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Definition
| an episodic novel about a rogueloke wanderer who lives off his wits. Examples: Don Quixote, Moll Flander, The Red and the Black |
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Term
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Definition
| the relation in which a narrator or speaker stands to the story or subject matter of a poem. A story told in the first person has an internal point of view; an observer uses an external point of view |
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Term
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Definition
| the grammar of meter and rhythm in poetry |
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Term
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Definition
| the main character in a work of literature |
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Term
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Definition
| also called "pen name" or "nom de plume," a pseudonym is a false name or alias used by writers, such as Mark Twain, George Eliot, and George Orwell |
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Term
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Definition
| providing hints of things to come in a story or play |
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Term
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Definition
| a structure that provides premise or setting for a narrative. A group of pilgrims exchanging stories while on the road is the frame for Chaucer's Canterbury Tales |
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Term
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Definition
| a kind of poetry without rhymed lines, rhythm, or fixed metrical feet |
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Term
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Definition
| a term used to describe literary forms, such as novel, or fixed metrical feet |
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Term
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Definition
| a novel in which supernatural horrors and an atmosphere of unknown terrors pervades the action. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is a popular example |
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Term
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Definition
| a forceful sermon, lecture or tirade |
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Term
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Definition
| two rhymed lines written in iambic pentameter and used widely in 18th century verse |
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Term
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Definition
| The structural form of a line of verse as revealed by the number of feet it contains. For example: monometer= 1 foot; tetrameter= 4 feet; pentameter= 5 feet, and so forth. |
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Term
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Definition
| A French verse form calculated to appear simple and spontaneous but consisting of nineteen lines and a perscribed pattern of rhymes. |
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Term
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Definition
The real or assumed personality used by a writer or speaker. In grammar, active voice and passive voice refer to the use of verbs. A verb is in the active voice when it expresses an action performed by its subject. A verb is in the passive voice when it expresses an action performed upon its subject or when the subject is the result of the action.
ACTIVE: The crew raked the leaves.
PASSIVE: The leaves were raked by the crew. |
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Definition
| the quickness of intellect and the power and talent for saying brilliant things that surprise and delight by their unexpectedness; the power to comment subtly and pointedly on the foibles of the passing scene. |
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Definition
| a work of literature dealing with rural life. |
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Term
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Definition
| faulty reasoning that inappropriately ascribes human feelings to nature or nonhuman objects. |
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Term
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Definition
| the element in literature that stimulates pity or sorrow. |
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Term
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Definition
| a verse with five poetic feet per line. |
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Term
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Definition
| a sentence that departs from the usual word order of English sentences by expressing its main thought only at the end. in other words, the particulars in the sentence are presented before the idea they support. |
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Term
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Definition
| the role or facade that a charachter assumes or depicts to a reader, a viewer, or the world at large. |
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Term
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Definition
| A rendering of a quotation in which actual words are not stated but only approximated or paraphrased |
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Term
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Definition
| a direct verbal assault; a denunciation |
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Term
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Definition
| a mode of expression in which the intended meaning is the opposite of what is stated, often implying ridicule or light sarcasm; a state of affairs or events that is the reverse of what might have been expected |
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Term
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Definition
| a device employed in Anglo-Saxon poetry in which the name of a thing is replaced by one of its functions or qualities, as in "ring giver" for king and "whale-road" for ocean. |
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Term
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Definition
| a mocking, satirical assault o a person or situation. |
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Term
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Definition
| a variety of poetry meant to entertain or amuse, but sometimes with a satirical thrust |
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Term
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Definition
| French for a novel in which historical events and actual people appear under the guise of fiction |
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Term
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Definition
| an extended narratice about improbable events and extraordinary people in exotic places |
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Term
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Definition
| a sharp, caustic expression or remark; a bitter jibe or taunt; different from irony, which is more subtle |
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Term
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Definition
| a literary style used to poke fun at, attack or ridicule an idea, vice, or foible, often for the purpose of inducing change |
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Term
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Definition
| the act of determining the meter of a poectic line. The pattern is called scansion. If a verse doesn't "scan", the meter is irregular. |
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Term
| coming-of-age-story/novel |
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Definition
| A tale in which a young protagonist experiences an introduction to adulthood. The character may develop understanding via disillusionment, education, doses of reality, or any other experiences that alter his or her emotional or intellectual maturity. Examples inslude Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Thomas Wolfe's Look Homeward, Angel, and Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses. |
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Term
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Definition
| a witty or ingenious thought; diverting or highly fanciful idea, often stated in figurative language |
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Term
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Definition
| the suggested or implied meaning of a word or phrase. Contrast with denotation. |
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Term
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Definition
| the repetition of two or more consonant sounds in a group of words or a line of poetry |
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Term
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Definition
| a pair of rhyming lines in a poem. Two rhyming lines in iambic pentameter is sometimes called a heroic couplet |
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Term
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Definition
| Literally, "seize the day"; enjoy life while you can, a common theme in literature |
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Term
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Definition
| a cleansing of the spirit brought about by the pity and terror of a dramatic tragedy |
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Term
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Definition
| a highly regarded work of literature or other art form that has withstood the test of time. |
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Term
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Definition
| deriving from the orderly qualities of ancient Greek and Roman culture; implies formality, objectivity, simplicity, and restraint. |
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Term
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Definition
| the high point, or turning point, of a story or play |
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Term
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Definition
| The dictionary definition of a word. Contrast with connotation. |
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Term
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Definition
| The resolution that occurs at the end of a play or work of fiction. |
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Term
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Definition
| In literature, the use of an artificial device or gimmick to solve a problem. |
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Term
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Definition
| The choice of words in oral and written discourse. |
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Term
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Definition
| As distinguished from Apollonian, the word refers to sensual, pleasure-seeking impulses. |
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Term
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Definition
| A circumstance in which the audience or reader knows more about a situation than a character. King Oedipus, for example, unwittingly kills his own father, yet later declares that he shall find and punish his fathers killer. |
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Term
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Definition
| A poem or prose selection that laments or meditates on the passing or death of something or someone of value. |
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Term
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Definition
| Three periods (...) indicating the omission of words in a thought or quotation. |
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Term
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Definition
| A sentence containing a deliberate omission of words. In the sentence "May was hot and June the same," the verb was is omitted from the second clause. |
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Term
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Definition
| A feeling of association or identification with an object or person. |
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Term
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Definition
| a simple narrative verse that tells a story that is sung or recited. |
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Term
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Definition
| a poet; in olden times, a performer who told heroic stories to musical accompaniment. |
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Term
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Definition
| the use of insincere or overdone sentimentality. |
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Term
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Definition
| French term for the world of books, criticism, and literature in general. |
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Term
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Definition
| a list of works cited or otherwise relevant to a subject or other work. |
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Term
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Definition
| A German word referring to a novel structured as a series of events that take place as a hero travels in quest of a goal. |
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Term
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Definition
| Poetry written in iambic pentameter, the primary meter used in English poetry and the works of Shakespeare and Milton. It is blank because the lines generally do nor rhyme. |
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Term
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Definition
| a narrative told by a character involved in the story, using first-person pronouns such as I and we. |
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Term
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Definition
| a return to an earlier time in a story or play in order to clarify present action or circumstances. An author may simply state:"There was a time when Henry loved Hune with great passion..." A flashback might also be a character's account of the past, a dream, or a sudden association with past events. Willie Loman in Death of a Salesman, for example repeatedly relives events that occurred in the past. |
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Term
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Definition
| a unit of stressed and unstressed syllables used to determine the meter of a poetic line. While scanning the meter of a poem, mark unstressed syllables with U; mark dressed syllables with /. |
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Term
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Definition
| the Anglo-Saxon language spoken in what is now England from approximately 450 to 1150 A.D., a form of German |
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Term
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Definition
| A narrator with unlimited awareness, understanding, and insight of characters, setting, background, and all other elements of the story. |
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Term
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Definition
| The use of words whose sounds suggest their meaning. Example: bubbling, murmuring brooks. |
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Term
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Definition
| An eight-line rhyming stanza of a poem |
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Term
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Definition
| A term consisting of contradictory elements juxtaposed to create a paradoxical effect. Examples: loud silence, jumbo shrimp |
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Term
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Definition
| A story consisting of events from which a moral or spiritual truth may be derived. |
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Term
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Definition
| a statment that seems contradictory but is nevertheless true |
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Term
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Definition
| an imitation of a work meant to ridicule its style and subject |
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Term
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Definition
| a version of a text put into simpler, everyday words |
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Term
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Definition
| A character or force in a work of literature that, by opposing the protagonist, produces tension or conflict. |
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Term
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Definition
| A short, pithy statement of a generally accepted truth or sentiment. |
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Term
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Definition
A locution that addresses a person or personified thing as not present.
"Oh, you cruel streets of Manhattan, how I detest you!" |
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Term
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Definition
The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in agroup of words or lines in poetry and prose.
"Meete Pete Green, he's mad as a hatter." |
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Term
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Definition
| A brief and often simplistic lesson that a reader may infer from a work of literature. |
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Term
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Definition
| a phrase, idea, or event that through repetition serves to unify or convey a theme in a work of literature. Tolstoy, for example, repeatedly uses descriptions of nature to reflect the personality and emotions of his characters. Similarly, Hemingway often uses rain to evoke feelings of death and despair. |
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Term
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Definition
| One of the ancient Greek goddesses presiding over the arts. The imaginary source of inspiration for an artist or writer. |
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Term
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Definition
| An imaginary story that has become an accepted part of the cultural or religious tradition of a group or society. Myths are often used to explain natural phenomena. Almost every culture has some sort of myth to account for the creation of the world and its inhabitants. |
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Term
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Definition
| A form of verse or prose that tells a story. |
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Term
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Definition
| A term often used as a synonym for realism; also a view of experience that is generally characterized as bleak and pessimistic. |
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Term
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Definition
| A statement or idea that fails to follow logically from the one before. |
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Term
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Definition
| A work of fiction of roughly 20,000 to 50,000 words-- longer that a short story, but shorter than a novel. Popular novellas include Daisy Miller by Henry James, Billy Budd by Herman Melville, and Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. |
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Term
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Definition
| A novel focusing on and describing the social customs and habits of a particular social group. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin and The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton are prime examples. |
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Term
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Definition
| A lyric poem usually marked by serious, respectful, and exalted feelings toward the subject. Keats wrote odes on melancholy, a Grecian urn, and a nightingale, among others. His poem "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer" is an ode honoring the translation of Homer's works by the Elizabethan poet, George Chapman. |
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Term
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Definition
| the background and events that lead to the presentation of the main idea or purpose of literature |
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Term
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Definition
| The interpretation or analysis of a text |
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Term
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Definition
| A short tale often featuring nonhuman characters that act as people whose actions enable the author to make observations or draw useful lessons about human behavior. Aesop's Fables are previous examples. In some respects, Orwell's Animal Farm is also a fable. |
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Term
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Definition
| The action in a play or story that occurs after the climax and that leads to the conclusion and often resolution of the conflict |
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Term
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Definition
| A story containing unreal, imaginary features |
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Term
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Definition
| A comedy that contains an extravagant and nonsensical disregard of seriousness, although it may have a serious, scornful purpose |
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Term
| figure of speech, figurative language |
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Definition
| In contrast to literal language, figurative language implies meanings. Figures of speech include metaphors, similes, and personification, among many others |
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Term
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Definition
| Inflated, pretentious language used for trivial subjects |
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Term
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Definition
| A work of literature meant to ridicule a subject; a grotesque imitation |
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Term
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Definition
| Grating, inharmonious sounds |
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Term
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Definition
| A pause somewhere in the middle of a verse, often (but not always) marked by punctuation |
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Term
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Definition
| The works considered most important in a national literature or period; works widely read and studied. |
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Term
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Definition
| A grotesque likeness of striking qualities in person and things. |
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Term
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Definition
| The excessive pride that often leads tragic heros to their death |
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Term
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Definition
| A belief that emphasizes faith and optimism in human potential and creativity |
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Term
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Definition
| Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect. |
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Term
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Definition
| A lyric poem or passage that describes a kind of ideal life or place |
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Term
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Definition
| a word or phrase representing that which can be seen, touched, tasted, smelled, or felt |
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Term
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Definition
| A Latin term for a narrative that starts not at the beginning of events but at some other critical point |
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Term
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Definition
| a synonym for view or feeling, also a refined and tender emotion in literature. |
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Term
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Definition
| a term that describes characters' excessive emotional response to experience; also nauseatingly nostalgic and mawkish. |
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Term
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Definition
| the total environment for the action in a novel or play. It includes time, place, historical milieu, and social, political, and even spiritual circumstances. |
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Term
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Definition
| a figurative comparison using the words "like" and "and" |
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Term
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Definition
| a popular form of verse consisting of fourteen lines and a prescribed rhyme scheme. Shakespeare wrote what has become known as the Elizabethan sonnet. Other poets follow a form called the Italian sonnet, attributed to Petrarch. |
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Term
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Definition
| a group of two or more lines in poetry combined according to subject matter, rhyme, and some other plan. |
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Term
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Definition
| a style of writing in which the author tries to reproduce the random flow of thoughts in the human mind. |
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Term
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Definition
| the manner in which an author uses and arranges words, shapes ideas, forms sentences, and creates a structure to convey ideas. |
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Term
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Definition
| An extended narrative poem that tells the adventures and exploits of a hero that is generally larger than life and is often considered a legendary figure such as Odysseus or Beowulf. Homer's Iliad and Vergil's Aeneid are examples of epics. |
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Term
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Definition
| A concise but ingenious, witty, and thoughtful statement. |
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Term
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Definition
| Pleasing, harmonious sounds. |
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Term
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Definition
| An adjective or phrase that express a striking quality of a person or thing; sun-bright topaz, sun-lit lake, and sun-bright lake are examples. |
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Term
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Definition
| A term for the title character of a work of literature. |
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Term
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Definition
| a mild or less negative usage for a harsh or blunt term; pass away is a euphemism for die. |
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Term
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Definition
| A detailed analysis or interpretation of a work of literature. |
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Term
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Definition
| A piece of writing that reveals weakness, faults, frailties, or other shortcomings. |
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Term
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Definition
| A term that describes a line of poetry that ends with a natural pause often indicated by a mark of punctuation, as these lines from "The Waste Land" by T.S. Eliot: In the mountains, there you feel free. I read, much of the night, and go south in the winter. |
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Term
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Definition
In poetry, the use of successive lines with no punctuation or pause between them, as in these lines from Dylan Thomas's "Poem in October": A springful of larks in a rolling
Cloud and the roadside bushes brimming with whistling
blackbirds and the sun of October. See also caesura. |
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