AP Literary Elements (Vocab) (A-F)

Question 1

ALLEGORY:

Answer 1

story or poem in which characters, settings, and events stand for other people or events or for abstract
ideas or qualities. EXAMPLE: Animal Farm; Dante’s Inferno; Lord of the Flies

Question 2

ALLITERATION:

Answer 2

repetition of the same or similar consonant sounds in words that are close together. EXAMPLE:
“When the two youths turned with the flag they saw that much of the regiment had crumbled away, and the dejected
remnant was coming slowly back.” –Stephen Crane (Note how regiment and remnant are being used; the regiment is
gone, a remnant remains…)

Question 3

ALLUSION:

Answer 3

reference to someone or something that is known from history, literature, religion, politics, sports, science,
or another branch of culture. An indirect reference to something (usually from literature, etc.)

Question 4

AMBIGUITY:

Answer 4

deliberately suggesting two or more different, and sometimes conflicting, meanings in a work. An event
or situation that may be interpreted in more than one way– this is done on purpose by the author, when it is not done on
purpose, it is vagueness, and detracts from the work.

Question 5

ANALOGY:

Answer 5

Comparison made between two things to show how they are alike

Question 6

ANAPHORA:

Answer 6

Repetition of a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of two or more sentences in a row. This is a
deliberate form of repetition and helps make the writer’s point more coherent.

Question 7

ANECDOTE:

Answer 7

Brief story, told to illustrate a point or serve as an example of something, often shows character of an
individual

Question 8

ANTAGONIST:

Answer 8

Opponent who struggles against or blocks the hero, or protagonist, in a story. (Ex. Gabby to me).

Question 9

ANTITHESIS:

Answer 9

Balancing words, phrases, or ideas that are strongly contrasted, often by means of grammatical structure.

Question 10

ANTIHERO:

Answer 10

Central character who lacks all the qualities traditionally associated with heroes; may lack courage, grace,
intelligence, or moral scruples.

Question 11

APHORISM:

Answer 11

brief, cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life, or of a principle or accepted
general truth. Also called maxim, epigram.

Question 12

APOSTROPHE:

Answer 12

calling out to an imaginary, dead, or absent person, or to a place or thing, or a personified abstract idea.
If the character is asking a god or goddess for inspiration it is called an invocation. Josiah Holland —“Loacöon! Thou
great embodiment/ Of human life and human history!”

Question 13

ASSONANCE:

Answer 13

the repetition of similar vowel sounds followed by different consonant sounds, especially in words that
are together.

Question 14

BALANCE:

Answer 14

Constructing a sentence so that both halves are about the same length and importance. Sentences can be
unbalanced to serve a special effect as well.

Question 15

CHARACTERIZATION:

Answer 15

the Process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character.

Question 16

INDIRECT CHARACTERIZATION:

Answer 16

​the author reveals to the reader what the character is like by describing how the character looks and dresses, by letting the reader hear what the character says, by revealing the character’s private thoughts and feelings, by revealing the characters effect on other people (showing how other characters feel or behave toward the character), or by showing the character in action. Common in modern literature.

Question 17

DIRECT CHARACTERIZATION:

Answer 17

​the author tells us directly what the character is like: sneaky, generous, mean to pets and so on. Romantic style literature relied more heavily on this form.

Question 18

STATIC CHARACTER:

Answer 18

​is one who does not change much in the course of a story.

Question 19

DYNAMIC CHARACTER:

Answer 19

​is one who changes in some important way as a result of the story’s action.

Question 20

FLAT CHARACTER:

Answer 20

​has only one or two personality traits. They are one dimensional, like a piece of cardboard. They can be summed up in one phrase.

Question 21

ROUND CHARACTER:

Answer 21

has more dimensions to their personalities—they are complex, just a real people are.

Question 22

CHIASMUS:

Answer 22

In poetry, a type of rhetorical balance in which the second part is syntactically balanced against the first, but with the parts reversed. Coleridge: “Flowers are lovely, love is flowerlike.” In prose this is called ​antimetabole​.

Question 23

CLICHÉ:

Answer 23

is a word or phrase, often a figure of speech, that has become lifeless because of overuse. Avoid clichés like the plague. (That cliché is intended.)

Question 24

COLLOQUIALISM:

Answer 24

​a word or phrase in everyday use in conversation and informal writing but is inappropriate for formal situations. Example: “He’s ​out of his head ​if he thinks I’m ​gonna go for ​such a stupid idea.

Question 25

COMEDY:

Answer 25

n general, a story that ends with a happy resolution of the conflicts faced by the main character or characters.

Question 26

CONCEIT:

Answer 26

​an elaborate metaphor that compares two things that are startlingly different, often an extended metaphor.

Question 27

CONFLICT:

Answer 27

the struggle between opposing forces or characters in a story.

Question 28

EXTERNAL CONFLICT:

Answer 28

​conflicts can exist between two people, between a person and nature or a machine or between a person a whole society.

Question 29

INTERNAL CONFLICT:

Answer 29

a conflict can be internal, involving opposing forces within a person’s mind.

Question 30

CONNOTATION:

Answer 30

​the associations and emotional overtones that have become attached to a word or phrase, in addition to its strict dictionary definition.

Question 31

DIALECT:

Answer 31

​a way of speaking that is characteristic of a certain social group or of the inhabitants of a certain geographical area.

Question 32

DICTION:

Answer 32

​a speaker or writer’s choice of words.

Question 33

EPIC:

Answer 33

​a long narrative poem, written in heightened language, which recounts the deeds of a heroic character who embodies the values of a particular society.

Question 34

EPIGRAPH:

Answer 34

a quotation or aphorism at the beginning of a literary work suggestive of the theme.

Question 35

EPITHET:

Answer 35

​an adjective or adjective phrase applied to a person or thing that is frequently used to emphasize a characteristic quality. “Father of our country” and “the great Emancipator” are examples. A ​Homeric epithet ​is a compound adjective used with a person or thing: “swift-footed Achilles”; “rosy-fingered dawn.”

Question 36

EXPLICATION:

Answer 36

​act of interpreting or discovering the meaning of a text, usually involves close reading and special attention to figurative language.

Question 37

FABLE:

Answer 37

​a very short story told in prose or poetry that teaches a practical lesson about how to succeed in life.

Question 38

FARCE:

Answer 38

​a type of comedy in which ridiculous and often stereotyped characters are involved in silly, far-fetched situations.

Question 39

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE:

Answer 39

Words which are inaccurate if interpreted literally, but are used to describe. Similes and metaphors are common forms.

Question 40

FLASHBACK:

Answer 40

​a scene that interrupts the normal chronological sequence of events in a story to depict something that happened at an earlier time.

Question 41

FOIL:

Answer 41

A character who acts as contrast to another character. Often a funny side kick to the dashing hero, or a villain contrasting the hero.

Question 42

FORESHADOWING:

Answer 42

​the use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in a plot.