literary techniques

Question 1

framing devices

Answer 1

how a story is structured within another

Question 2

unreliable narration

Answer 2

how a narrator distorts the truth

Question 3

cyclical structure

Answer 3

parallels with an earlier moment, creating finality and inevitability

Question 4

peripeteia

Answer 4

sudden reversal of fortune from which there is no return

Question 5

anagnorisis

Answer 5

moment of realisation, often too late

Question 6

tragic irony

dramatic irony

dark irony

proleptic irony

Answer 6

tragic when the information withheld from that character leads them to their downfall

dramatic when

dark when it deals with dark content

Ironic because of something in the past

Question 7

pathetic fallacy

Answer 7

weather reflects emotions

Question 8

non-/diegetic elements

Answer 8

n-d: things outside the story world
eg
- the green lights deeper meaning
- nicks narration; how sees the characters and judges/reflects
- cyclical structure
- asides and soliloquies
- dramatic irony

d: within
- handkerchief
- daisys voice
- setting

Question 9

metatextuality

Answer 9

when a text references its own construction eg nick as a self-conscious narrator

Question 10

chiasmus

Answer 10

reversal of structure

Question 11

antithesis

Answer 11

Opposing ideas placed together

Question 12

epizeuxis

Answer 12

intense rep

Question 13

hendiadys

Answer 13

Two nouns joined by ‘and’ instead of an adjective-noun pairing

Question 14

Parataxis vs Hypotaxis –

Answer 14

Short, abrupt clauses vs long, complex ones

Question 15

prolepsis

Answer 15

flashforward

eg nicks reflections at the start

Question 16

analepsis

Answer 16

flashback

ex of time manipulation / temporal distortion

Question 17

parallelism

Answer 17

When events, characters, or structures mirror each other

eg (Tom and Gatsby’s competition over Daisy mirroring class struggle).

Question 18

idiolect

Answer 18

characters unique speech style

• othello’s music
• toms blunt speech

Question 19

register shift

Answer 19

When a character changes their way of speaking depending on situation

eg (Othello moves from eloquent verse to broken prose as he falls into madness).

Question 20

aposiopesis

Answer 20

Breaking off mid-sentence for dramatic effect

Question 21

bathos

Answer 21

A sudden drop from the serious to the trivial (mixing high tragedy with absurdity).

Question 22

proxemics

Answer 22

The physical spacing of characters on stage (Iago whispering in Othello’s ear).

Question 23

catharsis

Answer 23

The audience’s emotional release at the end of a tragedy (Othello’s downfall).

Question 24

stichomythia

Answer 24

Rapid, back-and-forth dialogue to create tension

eg (Othello and Iago’s exchange as Iago fuels Othello’s jealousy).

Question 25

semantic shift

Answer 25

how words meanings change over time contextual thing to look at how language evolves within society, or evolves within a text

Question 26

narrative distance

Question 27

Internal vs External Conflict

Answer 27

Internal vs External Conflict – Internal (emotional/psychological struggles), External (against other characters, society, nature).

Question 28

allegory

Answer 28

A story that functions on multiple levels; a narrative that uses character and plot to depict abstract ideas and themes. things represent more than they appear to be

Question 29

diction

Answer 29

Word choice (formal, informal, poetic, archaic, modern).

Question 30

syntax

Answer 30

Sentence structure (long vs short, fragmented vs flowing).

Question 31

stream of consciousness

Answer 31

A character’s unfiltered, flowing thoughts.

Question 32

internal monologue

Answer 32

character's private thoughts

Question 33

anacoluthon

Answer 33

shift in unfinished sentence from one syntactic construction to another

Question 34

autonomasia

Answer 34

use of an epithet

Question 35

cacophany

Answer 35

harsh words or sounds

Question 36

synecdoche

Answer 36

referencing a whole by a part

Question 37

anecdote

Answer 37

short story within the story to add a character's perspective, knowledge or experience to a situation

Question 38

deus ex machina

Answer 38

some crazy unusual unlikely thing happens that fixes everything and grants a happy resolution. lazy writing

Question 39

in media res

Answer 39

starting a narrative without exposition or contextual information

Question 40

soliloquy

Answer 40

character speaking their thoughts aloud at length, they reflect independently, may be alone or not

Question 41

tone

Answer 41

overall mood and message of novel, established by characterisation, voice, symbolism and themes

Question 42

archetype

Answer 42

universal symbol for a characterm setting, theme, or action they represent feelings and situations shared across cultures and time periods, so instantly familiar to an audience eg theme of death's inevitability

Question 43

motif

Answer 43

recurs throughout novel and develops themes

Question 44

non sequitur

Answer 44

statements that dont logically follow what precedes them can be - for humour - to highlight missing info or miscommunication - dramatic effect

Question 45

paradox

Answer 45

statement that seems illogical but is true