Literary Terms Flashcards
(26 cards)
A narrative or description in which the characters, plCES, nd other terms are symbols
Allegory
An approximate rhyme in which initial consonant sounds are the same
Alliteration
A reference to mythology, history, or literature
Allusion
The one with whom the protagonist comes into conflict within a novel or story
Antagonist
A compact statement expressing a truth
Aphorism
The repetition of vowel sound
Assonance
Words addressed to an inanimate object as if it were alive or to an absent person as if he were present
Apostrophe
A short narrative song written in stanzas
Ballad
The earliest type of ballad
Folk ballad
Consciously written by a poet in imitation of the folk ballad
Literary ballad
A four-line stanza in which the first and third lines have eight syllables and the second and fourth lines have six syllables
Ballad stanza
Unrhymed iambic pentameter
Blank verse
Incorrect spelling often used for humorous effect
Cacography
A close investigation or study of a literary character
Character analysis
Telling the reader directly what the character is like
Direct exposition
Allowing the reader to draw his own conclusions
Indirect revelation
Imaginary persons who carry out the plot in a story or novel
Characters
One who undergoes some changes and is different at the end of the story
Dynamic character
One who remains essentially the same throughout the story
Static character
A portrait of a specific person
Character sketch
The point of highest intensity in a story or poem
Climax
A type of figurative language which includes metaphors, similes, personification, and their various forms
Comparison
A strongly exaggerated simile or metaphor
Conceit
An elaborate metaphor used by the renaissance love poet to compare his mistress or his love for her to an object of nature
Petrarchan conceit
