Glossary of diction terms Flashcards
The stressing of certain syllables or words
Accent
The actual movements and speech of characters performing or “acting out “ situations on the stage
Action
A narrative in which the character, places ,and events represent certain abstract qualities or ideas designed to teach some moral lesson or truth
Allegory
The repetition of the same consonant sounds
Alliteration
A reference to mythology, history, or a literary work.
Allusion
A comparison of two different things that may share common characteristics. An analogy is often used to explain or describe something unfamiliar by comparing it to something familiar
Analogy
The opponent force in conflict with the protagonist
Antagonist
Words addressed to an inanimate object as if it were alive or to an absent person as if he were present
Apostrophe
A dramatic effect in which a character directly addresses either the audience or other character. He does this to convey his inner feelings or to comment on some action performed. The other characters are assumed to have not heard the remark.
Aside
Another name for the Neoclassical Age and the Age of Pope; the first half f the eighteenth century, marked by a return to classical standards
Augustan Age
Often anonymous works produced from Anglo-Saxon times until the seventeenth century, through which the common people could be understood
Ballad
An imitation by a modern poet of the early English and Scottish popular ballads.
Art Ballad
A short, narrative folk song which tells of a single event in an objective manner
Popular Ballad
A four-line stanza with four accented iambic syllables in lines one and three, and three accented syllables in lines two and four. The rhyme scheme is abcb
Ballad Stanza
Introduces the facts of another person’s life and orders them in such a way that the reader can develop real insight into the person’s character
Biography
Unrhymed iambic pentameter; it is used for the treatment of serious themes by many great poets including Marlowe, Shakespeare, Milton, and Wordsworth
Blank verse
A unique type of Romantic character developed by Bryon and closely associated with him. This hero is rebellious, brooding, and proud
Byronic Hero
A pause or break in a line of poetry
Caesura
A popular art form which originated in medieval France and spread to other countries in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Originally, carols were sung as any joyous song or hymn. However, the term has now come to be associated with Christmas carols in particular. A good example of an early English folk carol is “The Cherry-Tree Carol”
Carol
Lyricist of a lighthearted nature who emphasized the pleasures of this world and who wrote love songs to or about women. They supported and were loyal to the king.
Cavalier poets
The portrayal of the imaginary persons who carry out the action of the plot in a novel or a story
Characterization
Telling the reader directly what the character is like
Direct exposition
Allows the reader to draw his own conclusions from what the character thinks, or what other characters think about him
Indirect Revelation
The people who perform the action of a narrative, novel or play. Each character often exemplifies a particular quality found in life
Characters
