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| Major divisions of action in drama; typically 5 act structure: introduction, complication, climax, falling action, and catastrophe (in a tragedy) |
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| A form of extended metaphor in which objects and characters are equated with meaning outside the story itself. (Eg. Lord of the Flies more than a symbol because it makes a structure out of the levels of meaning.) |
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| Repetition of initial consonant sounds or vowel sounds in successive syllables (Eg. The fair breeze blew) |
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| Reference to a famous historical or literary figure or event. |
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| Character who is the rival or opponent of the main character. See protagonist. |
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| A dramatic convention in which an actor reveals his thoughts aloud and directly to the audience. Others on stage act as if they don't hear it. |
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| The story of a person's life written by himself. |
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| Works Cited. A listing of printed materials used as sources on a paper. |
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| A literary form which gives accurate presentation of the life history of an individual. A person's life story written by someone else. |
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| Emotional purification of relief; tragedies especially are supposed to supply this feeling. |
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| The descriptions and explanations which make imaginary characters seem credible. Methods of characterization: What they do (behavior), what they say or think, what others say about them, what the narrator says about them, etc... |
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| A piece of literature, music, are, which by common consent is considered excellent. It has lasting recognition. |
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| When a character becomes wiser or better as a result of the action. An incident usually causes the character to learn about him or herself. |
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| The use of descriptive, sensory dietails in writing or speaking; a collection of mental pictures which have emotional and psychological power. |
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| Figure of speech in which the actual intent (purpose) is expressed in words which carry the opposite of what was expected. DRAMATIC IRONY is when the reader knows something that one (or all) of the characters don't know. |
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| The point of highest tension in a story; the moment when the conflict is about to be resolved. |
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| Informal conversation; not using formal pronunciation, vocabulary, etc... (Eg. the dialogue in Huck Finn) |
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| The clash of persons, forces, or ideas which is the basis for plot. |
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| Emotional implications of a word. (EG. "stingy" has a negative association.) |
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| The exact meaning of a word. |
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| Forms of writing: narrative, exposition, description, and persuasive. |
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| A story in dialogue, acted out by actors on a stage. (Eg. A Street Car Named Desire by Tennessee Williams). |
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| One who develops and changes as a result of the action. |
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| A formal poem which mourns the dead. |
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| A concluding statement usually at the end of plays. |
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| A brief tale with a moral; the characters are often animals. |
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| Fiction that tells about events that are impossible in the real world because they do not obey scientific laws. It is not the same as science fiction. |
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| Writing created by the author's imagination. Not real. |
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| FIRST PERSON POINT OF VIEW |
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| The narrator is one of the characters in the story usually using "I." |
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| Literary technique in which the author inserts hints of how the action will develop. |
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| Types of literature (such as romances, science fiction, horror.) |
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| A genre whose chief characteristices are: horror, mystery, terror, and the unknown. Famous gothic writers are Edgar Allen Poe and Steven King. |
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| An over-exaggeration (eg. I'd give anything right now for a candy bar.) |
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| Word for word, keeping to the exact meaning, no imaginative interpretation. |
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| A brief personal poem marked by emotion. |
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| Implied comparison which identifies one object with another. (says something is something else). |
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| A miniature world representing the bigger world (eg. the island in Lord of the Flies |
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| The Character's attitude toward what is happening in the story. |
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| A recurring image, pattern, design, theme in a story, painting, music, etc... |
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| Traditional stories of supernatural episodes and beings which attempt to interpret natural events (seasons, death). Best known myths are Greek and Roamn (they are less historical than legends; less concerned with morals than fables). |
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| Writing which is real and not based on imagination of the author. (eg. biographies, essays). |
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| An extended fictional story; a lengthy narrative. |
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| The narrator is "all knowing." The narrator reveals to the reader the character's inner thoughts, as well as, exterior action. The theme can also be commented on. |
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| Words that sound like their meaning (buzz, hiss, sizzle). |
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| Contradictory terms (contrast done for emphasis) Eg. "sad joy," "wise fool," "poor little rich girl." |
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| An illustrative story, like those told by Christ to teach or explain His principles, "There once was a man..." |
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| A figure of speech which gives animals, ideas, and inanimate objects the qualities of human or living things. (Eg. The old car groaned like an old man when I turned it on). |
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| The sequence of events (action); the planned and interrelated incidents of a story. It progresses because of conflict. |
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| Writing which has rhythm opposed to prose. "Poetry is the imaginative expression of feeling." |
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| Everyday language; it has no regular rhythmic patterns. |
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| A play on words (Eg. My soul sores, but my soles are sore). |
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| A question asked for oratorical effect. Done to make a point. The answer is obvious and a reply is not expected. (Eg. Is it time to help the homeless in America?) |
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| Literary technique whjich blends humor and a critical attitude to point out and mke fun of the corruption of society and the evilness of mankind in a attempt to correct the wrongs. (Eg. Animal Farm by George Orwell) |
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| A genre which wuses scientific principles or discoveries in the plot. The setting is in the future and it makes preditions about the future. (EG. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury). |
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| The time and place in which a sotry occurs. |
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| A piece of iction designed to give a single effect or a unified impression and is usually short enough to be read in a sitting. |
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| A comparison using like or as (Eg. She sang like a bird). |
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| When an actor is alone on stage and speaks his words and thoughts aloud (same thing as ASIDE). |
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| A lyric poem of 14 lines with a specific pattern of rhyme. |
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| Divisions in poetry; akin to paragraphs in prose. |
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| One who does not change or progress in a story. Things happen to them with no internal change (the opposite is a dynamic character). |
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| A generalization which does not see individuals but members of a group (Eg. Football players are stupid). |
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| Allowing yourself to go along with the imaginative happenings and fanciful characters in a story. The reader needs to utilize this when reading science fiction or fantasy. |
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| An object, character, or event which represents something else on a deeper level (Eg. The lion is a symbol of courage). |
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| The author's central message or dominating idea in a fictional piece of work. Some works have more than one theme. |
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| Main opinion, theory, or purpose of a formal paper or essay boiled down to one arguable statement. |
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| The author's attitude toward the subject being presented. |
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| A serious drama known for unhappy endings. Deals with man in the ideal state ( being the best mankind could be). |
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| A weakness, frailty, or error which brings the hero misfortune and downfall in a tragedy. Often the downfall carries a sense of human dignity in the face of great conflict. (Eg. Hamlet has a tragic flaw). |
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| When a character becomes wiser or better as a result of the action. An incident usually causes the character to learn about him or herself. |
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| The use of descriptive, sensory details in writing or speaking; a collection of mental pictures which have emotional and psychological power. |
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| Figure of speech in which the actual intent (purpose) is expressed in words which carry the opposite meaning. IRONY OF SITUATION is when something happens opposite of what was expected. DRAMATIC IRONY is when the reader knows something that one (or all) of the characters don't know. |
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