Ap Lit Vocab Flashcards
(157 cards)
1
Q
Allegory
A
The device of using character and/or story elements to symbolically represent an abstraction in addition to their literal meaning. In some allegories, for example, an author may intend the characters to personify an abstraction such as hope or freedom. The allegorical meaning usually deals with a moral truth or a generalization about human existence. Example: Animal Farm
2
Q
Alliteration (definition and purpose)
A
The repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds, in two or more neighboring words (as in “she sells sea shells”). The repeated sounds can serve to reinforce meaning, to unify ideas, and/or to supply a musical sound.
3
Q
Allusion
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A direct or indirect reference to something that is presumably commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art. There may be multiple layers of allusion in a single work.
4
Q
Ambiguity
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This term refers to the multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage. Ambiguity also can include a sense of uncertainty or ambivalence that a work presents.
5
Q
*Analogy (definition and purpose)
A
Drawing a similarity or making a comparison between two different things or the relationship between them. An analogy can explain something unfamiliar by associating it with, or pointing out its similarity tot, something more familiar. Analogies can also make writing more vivid, imaginative, and intellectually engaging.
6
Q
Anaphora
A
Deliberate repetition of the beginning clauses or phrases in sentences to create an effect.
7
Q
Anecdote
A
A short narrative account of an event that may be amusing, unusual, revealing, or interesting. A good anecdote has a single, definitie point and is used to clarify abstract points, and/or to humanize individuals so that readers can relate to them, or to create a memorable image in the readers’ mind
8
Q
Antagonist
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From the Greek word that means “opponent” or “rival,” the antagonistic the character or group of characters who stand in opposition, either physically mentally, or both, to the protagonist
9
Q
Antihero
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A literary character, sometimes the protagonist, who is not a traditional hero. While the stereotypical hero may be dashing, strong, brave, resourceful, and/or attractive, the antihero may be incompetent, unlucky, clumsy, dumb, ugly, or clownish. The multifaceted antihero can be used to represent several things, such as social flaws, human frailties, and political culture, since they usually combine good and evil (which is the true nature of humanity)
10
Q
*Antithesis
A
A figure of speech involving a seeming contradiction of ideas, words, clauses, or sentences within a balanced grammatical structure. The resulting parallelism serves to emphasize opposition of ideas.
11
Q
Aphorism
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A terse statement of known authorship that expresses a general truth or moral principle. An aphorism can be used to provide a memorable summation of the author’s point. E.g. from Essay on Criticism: Alexander Pope’s famous line reads “To err is human, to forgive divine”
12
Q
*Apostrophe
A
A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or personified abstraction, such as liberty or love, or an inanimate object. The effect may be to add familiarity or to increase the emotional intensity.
13
Q
Archetype
A
In literature, this is a typical and recognizable character, action, situation, setting, or theme that seems to represent universal patterns of human nature. Archetypical characters e.g.:hero, mother figure, innocent youth, villain, mentor, scapegoat, etc. Archetypical situations e.g.: journey, conflict between good and evil, etc.
14
Q
Aside
A
In drama, this phrase refers to a few words or a short passage spoken by one character to the audience while the other characters on stage seemingly cannot hear the speaker’s words. This reveals info about the plot or other characters.
15
Q
*Assonance (definition and purpose)
A
Repetition of internal vowel sounds in words that are close to each other. This intensifies the musical effect, develops internal rhythm, and creates mood and flow.
16
Q
Asyndeton
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Deliberate choice to eliminate conjunctions that would normally join phrases or clauses, which creates speed and urgency. E.g. I came. I saw. I conquered.
17
Q
Atmosphere (definition and purpose)
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The overall emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work, established by the setting and author’s choice of description of objects. Atmosphere usually foreshadows upcoming events.
18
Q
Attitude
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The disposition toward a subject by a speaker, author, or character. This usually refers to a writer’s intellectual position or emotion regarding the subject of writing. In FRQ, present complexity of multiple attitudes embedded in text.
19
Q
*Bathos
A
Unintentional misshapes of lesser writers who when trying to appear elevated, they lapse into trivial or mundane imagery, phrasing, or ideas.Comic writers use bathos for comic effect. One trend includes having amusing arrangements of items so that the listed items descend from grandiosity to absurdity.
20
Q
Cacophony
A
Combo of words with tough or inharmonious sounds that is used for a noisy or jarring poetic effect, which creates colorful, noisy, loud, and energetic sounds like a beat of drums. Harsh consonant sounds that deliver this force include “p, d, g, and k” sounds.
21
Q
Caricature
A
A pictorial or literary representation of a character, in which the subject’s distinctive features or peculiarities are deliberately exaggerated to produce comic or grotesque effect (sometimes overly misrepresented).
22
Q
Carpe diem
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Phrase Latin for “seize the day,” referring to a common moral or theme in literature that illustrates making the most out of life and enjoying it before it ends.
23
Q
Catharsis
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When a reader or dramatic audience experiences an emotional release that brings about a moral or spiritual renewal or brings welcome relief from tension and anxiety. Catharsis is the ultimate end of tragic artistic work.
24
Q
Chiasmus
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A rhetorical figure and figure of speech based on inverted parallelism, in which two clauses are related to one another through a reversal of their terms. This allows for a larger point or to provide balance and order. E.g. “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”
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Climax
The peak of emotional response, turning point, and moment in a narrative work at which the crisis reaches its point of greatest intensity and is thereafter resolved.
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*Colloquialism
The use of slang or informality in speech or writing, which gives language a conversational, familiar tone
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Comic relief
Humorous scene, incident, character, or bit of dialogue that occurs after some serious, tragic, or frightening moment. Deliberately designed to relieve emotional intensity and at same time heighten and highlight the seriousness or tragedy of main action.
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Coming-of-age story/Bildungsroman
A work in which an adolescent protagonist moves towards adulthood by a process of experience and disillusionment. This includes the protagonist losing innocence, discovering that previous preconceptions are false, or losing security of childhood, which involves maturation of character.
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*Conceit
A fanciful expression, usually in form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects. A conceit displays intellectual cleverness due to the unusual comparison being made.
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Types of Conflict
This drives the plot and involves the antagonism between opposing entities.
Person vs. self, person vs. person, person vs. fate/God, person vs. society, person vs. nature, person vs unknown, and person vs. technology.
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*Connotation
The nonliteral meaning of a word; implied suggested meanings or feelings that are associated with the word, which may involve ideas, emotions, or attitudes
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*Consonance
A special type of alliteration that has a repeated pattern of identical consonant sounds around different vowels: e.g. “Linger longer”; “Flip, Flop”
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*Convention
A common feature that has been used so often that is has become traditional or expected in specific genres, like novels, short stories, drama, or various forms of poetry.
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*denotation
The strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, without any emotion, attitude, or color
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*denouncement
The events in a narrative that follow the climax and the falling action. This wraps up the loose ends and it resolves any unsettled conflicts.
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Details
Term refers to facts, particulars, individual items, or parts that make up a larger picture or story. Look for these details, then address how they combine to create the coherent big picture.
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*deus ex machina
Literally meaning "god from machine," it was originally used in Greek drama when an actor,
portraying one of the gods, was lowered onto the stage to solve the humans' problems via divine guidance. It is frequently used mockingly, implying ludicrous and implausible solutions, as if the writer could not think of a better way to resolve the characters' conflicts.
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*diction
Related to style, this refers to the writer's particular word choices, especially with regard to their correctness, clearness, and effectiveness. You should be able to describe an author's diction (for example, formal or informal or plain) and understand the ways in which diction can be used to complement the author’s purpose. Diction, combined with syntax, figurative language, literary devices, and so on, creates the author's personal style
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Didactic
In Greek,this literally means "instructive." Didactic works have the primary aim of teaching or instructing, especially teaching moral or ethical principles
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*dissonance
The juxtaposition of jarring sounds, which occurs when sounds are so different that they clash with each other.
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epic hero
The main character in an epic work or epic-poem typically one who embodies the treasured values of the culture.
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Epigram
From the Greek for "to write on, to inscribe," this was originally a brief inscription, frequently a
short poem, on a tomb or building. Today, it refers to a short, witty, satirical statement in poetry
or prose that is both graceful and ingenious.
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Epilogue
A conclusion that is added on to a literary work. In drama it takes the form of one actor stepping out and speaking directly to the audience, asking for their indulgence and appreciation
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Epistolary
means "letter" in Greek; this is a literary genre in which writers use letters, journals, and diary entries in their works, telling stories through a series of letters.
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Epistrophe
Deliberately repeating ending clauses or phrases in sentences to create dramatic effect.
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Epitaph
Literally the inscription carved on a gravestone; many famous literary figures have well known epitaphs
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Eponymous
Work that is titled after is lead character (protagonist)
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Euphemism
From the Greek for “good speech,” this is ore agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts. This can be used to hold onto standards of social or political correctness, or to add humor or ironic understatement.
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Euphony
This means “sweet-voiced” in Greek, this involves the use of words and phrases that are distinguished as having a wide range of noteworthy melody or loveliness in the sounds they create. Technique of pleasing and soothing effects occurs due to repeated vowels and smooth consonants, such as “l, m, n, r, and soft f and v sounds.”
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Exposition
A literary device that introduces background info about events, settings, characters, or other elements of a work to the audience
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*extended metaphor
Metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently or used repeatedly throughout a work
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Fable
A short piece of fiction that features animals, mythical creatures, or other inanimate objects as characters and usually includes or illustrates a moral lesson.
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Falling action
The events in a narration that occur after the climax, but before denouncement; usually, the falling action and denouncement are intricately linked
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*figurative language
Writing or speech that is not intended to carry a literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid
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*figure of speech
A literary device used to produce figurative language. Many figures of speech compare dissimilar things: apostrophe, hyperbole, irony, metaphor, metonymy, oxymoron, paradox, personification, simile, synecdoche, and understatement
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*flashback
A break in narration in which present action is temporarily interrupted so that the reader can witness past events, usually in the form of a character;s memories, dreams, narration, etc. This can inform readers about place or character, or demonstrate important details until just before a dramatic moment.
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*foil
A character that, by contrast, highlights or emphasizes the opposing traits in another character. The foil is a minor character whose traits shed light on a major character.
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*foreshadowing
Use of suggestive word or phrase or hints that help to set the stage as the story unfolds, which gives readers a tip-off that something is going to happen (without directly revealing)
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Frame story
“A story within a story”; a narrative that has an “outer frame” that sets up the telling of another story
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Genre
The major categories into which various literary works fit, which include basic divisions like prose, poetry, and drama.
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Grotesque
A work that is characterized by exaggerated distortions or incongruities
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Hamartia
Term from Greek tragedy, which literally means “missing the mark.” This signifies a tragic flaw that stems from one’s positive traits (irony); catastrophe results from the failure for the tragic hero to recognize his own downfall, which could have been avoided if he recognized and tamed his fault earlier.
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Hubris
Excessive self-pride that turns into arrogance, a formerly good trait that becomes a hamartia. Pride by itself is admirable, but excess creates obsession and all-consuming, inhibiting character from recognizing his personal limitations.
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*hyperbole
Figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement. Often intended to create comic effect, serious effect, or produce irony.
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*idyll
A simple descriptive work in poetry or prose that deals with rustic life or pastoral scene or that suggest a mood of idealized peace and contentment
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*imagery
Sensory details or figurative language an author uses to provide description, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions. On physical level, terms include five senses: visual, auditory, gustatory, tactile, or olfactoryA simple descriptive work in poetry or prose that deals with rustic life or pastoral scene or that suggest a mood of idealized peace and contentment
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Infer
Draw a reasonable conclusion from the info presented; in mcq an inference to be drawn from passage means the most direct, most reasonable inference is the safest answer choice. (Implausible is unlikely to be correct; answer choice that is directly stated in passage is not an inference and is wrong.)
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*in medias res
Literally refers to “In the middle of things”; work in which the actions are not presented in chronological order, and instead uses techniques of significant flashbacks to explain the earlier actions. This heightens tension and creates mystery.
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Invective
Emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or an attack using strong, abusive language
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*irony
Contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant; the difference between what appears to be and what is actually true. This is used to portray feelings of sadness/regret or humor. Types include verbal (words with opposite meaning), situational irony (opposite of what is expected), and dramatic irony (unknown facts to characters but these facts are known to the audience).
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Maxim
A proverb, a short statement believed to contain wisdom or insight into human nature. Defining characteristic is that it’s pithy (lots of meaning in just a few words). E.g. “To thine own self be true.”
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Melodrama
A dramatic form characterized by extreme sentimentality, larger-than-life emotion, and unbelievable and sensationalized action, followed by hollow happy endings. 18th century this got connotated with a work with a simplified and coincidental plot, featuring bathos and happy endings.
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*metaphor
A figure of speech which implies comparison of seemingly unlike things or substitution of one time for another, suggesting similarity.
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*metonymy
Greek means “changed label” or “substitute name”; figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it.
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*mood
The literary definition refers to the prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work. Also, the setting, tone, and events can affect overall mood.
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Motif
An image, sound, action, or other figure that has a symbolic significance and contributes towards the development of a theme.
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Muse
An invocation or address may be made to one of the nine muses of mythology, in which the poet asks for the stimulation, talent, understanding, or appropriate mood to create a worthy poem. (This is a traditional opening of Greco-Roman epics and elegies.) This also refers to someone, real or figurative, who inspires another in artistic expression. As a verb, it means to think deeply and thoughtfully.
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*narrative
Telling a story or an account of an event or series of events
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*onomatopoeia
Figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words. (Not in the MCQ section, but note the effect of this in the poem FRQ.)
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*oxymoron
Greek means “pointedly foolish,” this is a figure of speech in which the author groups together apparently contradictory terms to suggest a paradox.
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Parable
A story or short narrative designed to reveal a symbolically religious principle, a moral lesson, or a universal truth. Unlike fables, parables use human characters.
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*paradox
Statement that appears to be self-contradictory or not in accordance with common sense but, upon closer inspection, contains some degree of truth or validity
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*parallelism
Parallel construction/structure: grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity. This may involve repetition of grammatical elements. This can act as an organizing force to attract reader’s attention, add emphasis, and organization, or simply provide pleasing, musical rhythm.
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Parallel plotline
Story structure in which the writer includes two or more separate narratives linked by a common character, event, or theme. The effect of these multiple perspectives nay include building tension, creating dramatic irony, unraveling a mystery, or revealing character motivation. This leads to nonlinear structure.
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*parody
A work that closely imitates the style or content of another work with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule. This distorts or exaggerates distinctive features of the original, and mimics the work by repeating and borrowing words, phrases, or characteristics in order to illuminate weaknesses in the original.
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Pastoral
Poem or prose work that idealizes the simplicity of rural country life. Frequently portraying shepherds (e.g.), this envisions a peaceful, uncorrupted existence in which characters are kind, charming, and serene as they live in nature.
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*pathos
A scene or passage designed to evoke the feeling of pity or sympathetic sorrow in a reader. Strong emotions (e.g. suffering, joy, pride, patriotism, humor) connected to pathos.
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*pedantic
Describes words, phrases, or a general tone that suffers from being overly scholarly, academic, or bookish
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*Personification
Figure of speech in which the author presents concepts, animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions, which makes them feel more vivid to readers.
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*Point of view (List types)
Perspective from which the story is told:
```
First-person POV
Third-person omniscient POV
Third-person limited POV
Objective POV
Unreliable narrator
```
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Polysyndeton
Deliberately using a multitude of conjunctions in a sentence to join items and thus create a n overwhelming effect.
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Prologue
Greek “prologos” means “before word”; introductory material that establishes character or situation.
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Prose
Major division of literature which refers to fiction and nonfiction since they are written in ordinary language and most closely resemble everyday speech. (Technically everything except poetry or drama.)
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Protagonist
Main character in a literary work sometimes called the hero or focal/central character. Personal change usually occurs at climax of story.
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Repetition
The repeated duplication of any element of language, such as sound, word, phrase, clause, sentence, or grammatical pattern. When well done, it can link and emphasize ideas while giving the comfort of recognizing something familiar.
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*rhetorical question
Question that is asked merely for effect and that does not elicit a reply; the answer is apparent or assumed.
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Sarcasm
Greek meaning “to tear flesh”;bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridi ul someone or something, which may also use irony as a device.
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*satire
Work that makes light of human vices and follies or ridicules social institutions and conventions. Regardless of whether or not the work aims to reform humans or their society, satire is best seen as a style of writing rather than a purpose for writing. It may be recognized by the following devices: irony, wit, parody, caricature, hyperbole, understatement, and sarcasm. Good satire is thought-provoking and insightful about the human condition.
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Setting
Setting normally includes both time and place, with both affecting characters’ actions, the atmosphere, the social environment, and the manners and mores of culture.
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*simile
An explicit comparison (using “like,” “as,” or “if”)
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Soliloquy
A monologue spoken by an actor at a point in the play when the character believes himself to be alone, which can reveal a character’s inner thoughts, feelings, state of mind, motives, or intentions. Insightful info is revealed that otherwise would not to the audience.
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Stream of consciousness
Style of writing in which a character’s perceptions, thoughts, and memories are presented in an apparently random form, without regard for logical sequence, chronology, syntax, or punctuation. (No logical sequence.)
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Subplot
Minor or subordinate secondary plot that takes place simultaneously with the larger plot.
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*syllogism
Greek meaning “reckoning together”; this is a deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises (one called major and other minor) that inevitably lead to a sound conclusion, which is only valid if two premises are valid. E.g. All men are mortal (major), Socrates is a man (minor), socrates is mortal (conclusion).
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*symbol
Anything (concrete or abstract) that represent or stands for something else:
Natural symbols: objects and occurrences from nature to represent ideas commonly associated with them.
Conventional symbols: those that have been invested with meaning by a specific group.
Literary symbols: more complicated and generally recognized in variety of works
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Theme
Central idea or message of a work and the insight it offers into life. The universal or eternal truth and a general statement about the human condition.
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*tone
Describes the author’s attitude toward his or her material, the audience, or both.
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Tragedy
Branch of drama that uses a serious and dignified style to relate the sorrowful or terrible events that were encountered or caused by a heroic individual and that lead inevitably to a final, devastating catastrophe.
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Tragic hero
Main character in Greco-Roman tragedy is always a tragic hero, who is admirable character with tragic flaw (hubris) and downfall
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*understatement
Ironic minimizing of fact and presents something as less significant than it actually is. The effect is humorous and emphatic.
Litotes: affirmation made by indirectly denying its opposite.
Meiosis: referred to as far less important than it really is, and a character misrepresents something that is actually very impressive by stating that they are unimpressed.
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Verisimilitude
Relates to the appearance of believability, of plausibility, such that readers are likely to “buy into” the plot, even if it seems far-fetched (gullibility of readers). This leads to the idea of “suspension of disbelief” or “willing suspension of disbelief.”
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Volta
A turn or sudden change in emotion, thought, or direction, which signals a shift that begins the poem’s resolution (in a sonnet, usually).
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Wit
Refers to intellectually amusing language that surprises and delights. It can be humorous and demonstrates the speaker's verbal prowess. This involves brief and pithy language.
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Anapest
Foot of poetry composed of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable. E.g. “Twas the might before Christmas when all through the house.”
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Ballad (meter)
Narrative poem consisting of quatrains of iambic tetrameter, alternating with iambic trimeter with an abcb or abab rhyme scheme. Ballads start abruptly, tell a story through dialogue and action, use simple language, present tragic themes, and repeat a refrain.
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*blank verse
Unrhymed iambic pentameter
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Caesura
Latin meaning “a cutting” or “slicing”; Natural pause in a line that is dictated by rhythm. E.g. “A little learning/is a dangerous thing.”
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Dactyl
Metrical foot of three syllables, including an accented syllable followed by two unaccented ones
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Dramatic monologue
Poem in which the speaker directly addresses a specific listener who is present or the reader. Speaker reveals inner thoughts and character traits.
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Elegy
Dignified poem that usually mourns death. Poem begins with a lament in which the poet expresses grief, followed by praise and admiration for the deceased, and finally finds consolation and peace.
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*end-stopped
A line with a pause at the end, which includes a period, comma, colon, semicolon, exclamation point, or question mark.
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Enjambment
French for “straddling”; line in poetry that has no punctuation that indicates a pause or a complete stop, with the sentence continuing to the next line.
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Epic poetry
Genre of classical poetry in which there is a long narrative about a serious subject, told in elevated style, and focused on the feats of a hero who represents the cultural values of a group or nation in which the hero’s success of failure will determine the fate of those people or nation.
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Epic simile
Simile of epic proportions (very long), which is formal, sustain comparison that can take several lines to develop and is one of the conventions of epic poetry.
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Epithet
Short, poetic term used to characterize or identify a person.
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Feminine rhyme
Also known as double rhyme, thsi term refers to an end rhyme involving the two syllables, with the last syllable being unstressed (which allows for softer sound)
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*free verse
Poetry that is not written in a traditional meter but is still rhythmical. It can be liberating since lines do not have to have a specific syllable count or rhyming pattern, and stanzas don’t require a specific line count.
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*heroic couplet
Two end-stopped iambic pentameter lines rhymed aa, bb, cc usually containing a complete thought in the two-line unit.
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*iamb
two-syllable foot with an unstressed syllable followed by an stressed syllable
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Internal rhyme
Rhyme that occurs within a line rather than at the end
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Kenning
Compounded image, frequently two words, that describes something or someone. E.g. “peace-weaver”
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Lyric
Short poem written with repeating stanza patterns that is often designed to be set to music. It dwells on something intensely emotional and personal
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Masculine rhyme
Also known as single rhyme, it refers to monosyllabic rhyme or a rhyme that occurs only in stressed final syllables. This ends a line of poetry with a degree of finality.
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Metaphysical poetry
Highly complex and abstract poetry, which rejects the traditional conventions of verse and imagery and instead produces wildly original images, puns, metaphors, and conceits. These poets approach philosophical and spiritual subjects with reason, but often conclude in paradox.
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*meter
Recognizable pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry. Each unit of stressed and unstressed syllables is known as a foot. Examples include monometer (one foot), dimeter (two foots), trimeter (three foots), tetrameter (four foots), pentameter (five foots)... and so on
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Mock epic
Long comic poem that merely imitates features of the classic epic, in which poet usually takes an elevated style of language but applies that language to mundane or ridiculous objects and situations
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Octave
Eight-line stanza or any poem of eight lines. It can also refer to the opening eight lines of a sonnet in which e speaker sets up an objective problem to be solved
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Ode
Lyric poem of some length dealing with serious subjects in a dignified style, and it’s dedicated to a specific topic
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Ottava rima
Refers to an eight-line stanza that has 11 syllables and a rhyme scheme of abababcc.
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Quatrain
Stanza form consisting of four lines
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Rhyme royal
Seven-line stanza of iambic pentameter rhymed ababbcc
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Sestet
Six-line stanza or any poem of six lines. This term also refers to the last six lines of sonnet in which the speaker subjectively resolves or comments on the issue or dilemma of the opening octave, bringing the sonnet to a unified end.
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Sestina
A 39-line poem that consists of six sestets that are followed by a three-line stanza (known as envoy). This form is complicated, and the end words of the first stanza are repeated in different order as end words in each of the subsequent five stanzas; the closing envoy contains all six words, two per line, placed in the middle and at the end of the three lines.
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Slant/near rhyme
Words that don’t exactly rhyme, instead the sounds are similar but not identical. These rhymes create an unusual range of words to give a variety of rhyming effects, and it helps poets avoid the typical sing-song chiming effects of full rhymes, which creates freedom. They provide subtle disagreeing note, disturbing absolute harmony and offers variation in tone.
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*sonnet
Poem written in iambic pentameter, normally composed of 14 lines. The Italian/Petrarchan sonnet is rhymed abba, abba, cde, cde; the English/Shakespearean sonnet is rhymed abab, cdcd, efef, gg
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Spondee
Metrical foot that has two consecutive strong, stressed beats, which can heighten feeling and increase interest
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*stanza
Repeated grouping of three or more lines, usually with the same meter and rhyme scheme
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*tercet
A poetic unit of three lines, which do not have to rhyme, but if they do, the rhyme scheme is usually aaa. This creates a nice flow of words, like rolling waves.
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Terza rima
Three-line stanza rhymed aba, bcb, cdc.
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Trochee
Metrical foot of poetry consisting of one stressed syllable followed by one unstressed syllable
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Villanelle
19 lines: five tercets followed by a quatrain; whole lines must be repeated in a specific order (refrain), and the entire poem has only two rhyming sounds.
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Clause
Grammatical unit that contains both a subject and verb: independent/main clause expresses complete thought; dependent/subordinate clause cannot stand alone in sentence.
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Loose sentence
Type of sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses.
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Periodic sentence
Sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end; the final independent clause is preceded by a dependent clause. This adds emphasis and structural variety.
Predicate adjective
One type of subject complement that follows a linking verb.
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Predicate nominative
Second type of subject complement that renames the subject/noun
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Subject complement
The words or clause that follows a linking verb and complements, or completes the subject of the sentence by either renaming it or describing it. Examples include predicate nominative and predicate adjective
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Syntax
The way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences, which also refers to the arrangement or order of grammatical elements in a sentence. Note the following:
The length of sentences; any unusual constructions; sentence patterns; questions, declarations, exclamations, or rhetorical questions; periodic or loose, simple, compound, complex. Analyze type of sentences the author uses, then determine how it amplifies meaning, and finally offers why they work well for author’s purpose.
