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AP English > Lit Terms 3rd Term > Flashcards

Lit Terms 3rd Term Flashcards

(97 cards)

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1
Q

alliteration

A

repetition of initial consonant sounds

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2
Q

allusion

A

referencing another work of literature/historical event/etc within another work

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3
Q

alter ego

A

a secondary or alternative personality

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4
Q

ambiguity

A

capable of having multiple meanings

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5
Q

anadiplosis

A

repetition of word in the clause that follows

ex. “Anger leads to fear, fear leads to hate, hate leads to suffering.”

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6
Q

anaphora

A

repetition at the beginnings of phrases or clauses

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7
Q

antagonist

A

character in opposition to the protagonist

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8
Q

anthimeria

A

“verbing” a noun

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9
Q

anit-hero

A

a hero lacking one or more attributes that are associated with a hero

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10
Q

antithesis

A

opposing ideas in parallel structure

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11
Q

apostrophe

A

directly addressing someone dead or not present, or something that is not human

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12
Q

aside

A

line spoken onstage directly to the audience while other characters are present but do not hear (a behind-the-hand comment)

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13
Q

assonance

A

repeated vowel sounds that are NOT rhyming

ex. rowing slowly over oceans

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14
Q

asyndeton

A

no conjunctions in a series

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15
Q

bildungsroman

A

a coming-of-age story

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16
Q

blank verse

A

unrhymed iambic pentameter

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17
Q

cacophonous sounds

A

grating or harsh sounds

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18
Q

charaterization

A

the portrayal/attributes given to a character in a work

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19
Q

chiasmus

A

two or more clauses that balance against each other by reversing structure

ex. Never let a fool kiss you or you kiss a fool.

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20
Q

cliche

A

a trite, overused expression that has lost its original impact

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21
Q

comic relief

A

a scene placed in the midst of tragedy to lighten the mood

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22
Q

commercial fiction

A

thrillers, money makers, inventive plots, thin on literary merit

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23
Q

connotation

A

meanings ASSOCIATED with a word, not found in its dictionary definition

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24
Q

consonance

A

words that involve the same consonant sound anywhere EXCEPT the beginning of the word

ex. struts and frets

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25
couplet
two lines of poetry
26
denotation
the dictionary definition of a word
27
Deus ex machina
an improbable device/event brought into a story to resolve all of the plot's entanglements
28
diction
word choice
29
doppleganger
literally--doublewalker, a look alike, an alter ego, or two characters who walk similar paths
30
dumb show
a pantomime occurring before a play begins that gives a brief summary of the play's contents
31
elegy
a poem written for someone who has died
32
ellipsis
the omission from speech or writing of a word or words that are superfluous or able to be understood from contextual clues
33
epistolary
using letters or other documents to tell a story ex. Frankenstein
34
epistrophe
repetition at the ends of phrases or clauses
35
eternizing conceit
the final 2 lines of a Shakespearean sonnet (ending couplet)
36
eulogy
a speech for someone that has died
37
euphonious sounds
pleasing to the ear
38
extended metaphor
a metaphor which extends through the entire work (poem or novel)
39
figurative language
not literal language, standing for more than itself
40
foil/character foil
a character who contrasts with another, most likely the protagonist
41
frame story
a story within a story
42
genre
categories within literature
43
heroic couplet
rhyming couplet in iambic pentameter
44
hubris
excessive pride, arrogance
45
iambic pentameter
unstressed, stressed syllable repeated 5 times per line
46
imagery
sensory language
47
implied mataphor
a comparison HINTED at but not explicitly stated
48
in media res
in the middle of things, beginning in the middle of the action
49
dramatic irony
reader or audience understands/knows more than the characters
50
verbal irony
saying the opposite of what is meant
51
situational irony
the outcome is significantly different from what is expected
52
juxtaposition
things set up side by side for the purpose of comparison
53
literary analysis
the study of various techniques or devices and their contribution to the larger literary work
54
literary criticism
the study, analysis, and EVALUATION of a literary work
55
literary ficiton
serious fiction, works that hold high literary merit
56
litotes
understatement by using double negatives ex. not too bad instead of good or not as young as i was instead of I am old
57
lyric
poetry which expresses emotions
58
malapropism
using an incorrect word that is similar in sound to the word you MEANT to use, usually creating humor
59
metaphor
direct comparison of two things
60
metonymy
a thing or concept is called not by its own name but by the name of something associated in meaning with that thing or concept
61
microcosm
a "a small world," a miniature version of the world at large
62
mood
the prevailing emotion or atmosphere in a scene
63
motif
a repeated word, object, image, etc.--unifies the work and contributes to theme
64
narrative poem
tells a story
65
non sequitur
a statement or conclusion which does not follow any logic
66
octave
8 lines of poetry
67
onomatopoeia
a word that imitates the sound it is associated with
68
oxymoron
two opposing ideas are joined to create an effect (cruel kindness, jumbo shrimp)
69
paradox
a statement that seems to be untrue, yet it is true--it opposes itself
70
parallelism
words, phrases, or clauses that are grammatically parallel
71
paraphrase
to rewrite in your own words
72
personification
giving human qualities to non-human things
73
poetic justice
the good characters are rewarded and the bad are punished by the end of the work
74
point of view
the perspective through which the story is told
75
polysyndeton
many conjunctions in a series
76
prose
not verse
77
protagonist
the main character
78
pun
a play on words using a word that suggests two or more meanings creating a humorous effect
79
quatrain
four lines of poetry
80
satire
criticizing and exposing foolishness corruption of an individual or a society by using humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule
81
sestet
six lines of poetry
82
setting
the place and time in which a story occurs
83
simile
comparison using like or as
84
soliloquy
speech by a character alone on stage, generally giving the audience an idea of his/her inner thoughts
85
sonnet
14 line poem with specific rhyme scheme ex. Shakespearean/English: ababcdcdefefgg Petrarchan/Italian: abbaabba/cdecde (last 6 lines are combo of c, d, e rhymes)
86
stream-of-consciousness
type of writing where character's thoughts or perceptions are presented as occurring in random from, without regard for logical sequences, syntactic structure, or grammatical rules
87
symbol
something which is both literal and figurative; stands for more than itself
88
synecdoche
a figure of speech in which part is made to represent the whole
89
syntax
sentence structure
90
theme
the meaning of the work, a truth about the human condition, FULL sentence
91
tone
the speaker's or author's attitude toward the work
92
tragic hero
a hero destined for downfall or defeat
93
tragic flaw
a trait/flaw that leads to the downfall of a character
94
tricolon
a series of three parallel phrase or clauses
95
tropes
1. figures of speech | 2. overused, familiar plot device
96
unreliable narrator
a narrator who sees things less clearly than the reader
97
verse
written like poetry, not prose

AP English (2 decks)

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