1 The Complete English Literature Glossary—Woodbury High School Terms are listed alphabetically. However, some terms are grouped under a term that serves as an overarching umbrella such as terms associated with character or meter. This categorization is not always perfect. Abstract Language – Diction that describes intangible things like ideas or emotions or denotes general qualitities of persons or things. A passage lacking vivid details or specifics may be called abstract. It is the diction of analysis and commentary, the opposite of concrete language. Allegory – An allegory is a fictional work in which the characters represent ideas or concepts on a symbolic level. In Paul Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, for example, the characters named Faithful, Mercy, and Mr. Worldly Wiseman are clearly meant to represent types of people rather than to be characters in their own rights. See parable. Alliteration – Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds usually at the beginning of words: the repeated or and "c" sounds in the sentence, "The tall tamarack trees shaded the cozy cabin," are examples of alliteration. Allusion – An allusion is a reference to another work, concept, situation, or person which generally enhances the meaning of the work that is citing it. Often, modern readers may miss the context of a particular reference because they have a limited frame of reference. For example, in the sentence "She faced the challenge with Homeric courage," "Homeric" is an allusion to Homer's works The Iliad and The Odyssey. Some categories of allusion include: Biblical (“tribulations of Job,” “the fall from paradise,” “destruction by flood or fire”); Mythological (reference to “the beauty of Aphrodite,” or “the power of Zeus,”); Historical (major events like Napolean at Waterloo or Nixon with Watergate); Literary (other well known pieces like Milton’s Paradise Lost or Romeo and Juliet); Political (sustained as in Alice in Wonderland or Gulliver’s Travels; Julius Caesar or Crucible); Contemporary (these are often lost when current context falls out of the public eye e.g., “Valley girls” or “Beavis and Butthead”); and Scientific/Philosophical (e.g., Kepler, Newton, Einstein, Big Bang Theory etc.) Ambiguity, Ambiguous – When something is ambiguous, it is uncertain or indefinite; it is subject to more than one interpretation. In other words, meaning in a work is seemingly incongruous and contradictory. For example you might say, "The poet’s use of the word is ambiguous," to begin to discuss the multiple meanings suggested by the use of the word and to indicate that there is an uncertainty of interpretation. Anagnorisis – In the context of Greek tragedy, this meant recognition. It is a moment in play or other work when a character makes a critical discovery where the hero moves from ignorance to knowledge. According to Aristotle it was the hero’s discovery of one’s own identity true character and a sudden awareness of a real situation, the realization of things as they stood, and finally, the hero’s insight into the relationship with the antagonist. See peripeteia. Analogy – Analogy asks a reader to think about the correspondence or resemblance between two things that are essentially different. For example, if you say. "The pond was as smooth as a mirror," you ask your audience to understand two different things, "pond" and "mirror,"-‐as being similar in some fashion. Analysis – The methodical examination of the parts in order to determine the nature of the whole. Anapest – See meter. Anaphora – Repetition of a word, phrase, or clause se 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. Anastrophe – Also known as inversion is the inversion of the usual, normal, or logical order of the parts of a sentence. Purpose is rhythm or emphasis or euphony. It is a fancy word for inversion. Anecdote – A brief account of an interesting incident or event that usually is intended to entertain or to make a point.
2 Antecedent – Every pronoun refers back to a previous noun or pronoun-‐the antecedent; "antecedent" is the grammatical term for the noun or pronoun from which another pronoun derives its meaning. For example, in the sentence "The car he wanted to buy was a green one,” the pronoun "one" derives its meaning from the antecedent “car.” Antimetabole – Repetition of words in successive clauses in reverse grammatical order. Moliere: “One should eat to live, not live to eat.” In poetry, this is called chiasmus. Antithesis – The strongly balanced opposition or contrast of words, phrases, clauses, sentences, or ideas; the direct opposite. This is often done by means of similar grammatical structure. Anthropomorphism – Attributing human characteristics to an animal or inanimate object. See personification. Aphorism – A pithy, cleverly worded statement of known authorship, which expresses a wise observation about life, or accepted general truth or moral principle. (If the authorship is unknown, the statement is generally considered to be a folk proverb.) An aphorism can be a memorable summation of the author’s point. This is also called a maxim or epigram. The Bible is full of aphorisms, for example: "a house divided against itself cannot stand" (Mt. 12:25); "with the measure you use, it will be measured to you" (Mk. 4:24); "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Mk.14:38). Apostrophe – 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!” Apotheosis – The word “apotheosis” is derived from the Greek word meaning to deify. Apotheosis occurs in literature when a character or a thing is elevated to such a high status that it appears godlike. Apposition – Placing in immediately succeeding order of two or more coordinate elements, the latter of which is an explanation, qualification, or modification of the first (often set off by a colon). Paine: “These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” Appositive – An appositive is a word or phrase that follows a noun or pronoun for emphasis or clarity. Appositives are usually set-‐off by commas. For example, in the sentence, “The luxury train, The Orient Express crosses Europe from Paris to Istanbul in just twenty-‐six hours,” the name “The Orient Express” is the appositive for “train.” Archetype – Carl Jung first applied this term to literature. Archetypes recognize a variety of recurrent patterns in bodies of literature, such as the loss of paradise. Archetypes can be applied to: symbols, plot, character types, images, themes, and ideas. Aside – An actor’s speech, directed to the audience, that is not supposed to be heard by other actors on stage. An aside is used to let the audience know what a character is about to do or what he or she is thinking. Assonance – Repetition of vowel sounds within a line of poetry. Asyndeton – Commas used without conjunction to separate a series of words, thus emphasizing the parts equally: instead of X, Y, and Z... the writer uses X, Y, Z.... see polysyndeton. Atmosphere – Atmosphere is the emotional feeling – or mood – of a place, scene, or event. In Toni Morrrison’s Beloved, for example, the opening chapters convey an atmosphere of loneliness and grief. Aubade – See poetry. Audience – The particular group of readers or viewers that the writer is addressing. A writer considers his or her audience when deciding on a subject, a purpose for writing and the tone and style in which to write.
3 Author – The writer of a book, article or other text. Author’s Purpose – An author’s purpose is his or her reason for creating a particular work. The purpose can be to entertain, explain or inform, express an opinion, or to persuade. Autobiography – A form of nonfiction in which a person tells the story of his or her life. Memoir: a specific type of autobiography; like autobiography, a memoir is about the author’s personal experiences. However, a memoir does not necessarily cover the author’s entire life. Attitude – Attitude describes the feelings of a particular speaker or piece of writing toward a subject, person, or idea. This expression is often used as a synonym for tone. Ballad – See poetry. Balance – 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. Bathos – Bathos is false or forced emotion that is often humorous. Whereas pathos draws upon deep emotion, bathos takes this emotion to such an extreme that the reader finds it humorous rather than touching. Biography – The story of a person’s life that is written by someone else. Blank Verse – See meter. Cacophony – Harsh and discordant sounds in a line or passage of a literary work. Caesura – A break or pause within a line of poetry indicated by punctuation (“,” or “;”) and used to emphasize meaning. Caricature – see characterization. Catastrophe: The tragic conclusion of a story or play. The point of catastrophe in a tragedy typically includes the death or moral destruction of the protagonist in the concluding action of a drama. The catastrophe in Shakespeare's tragedies always occurs in Act 5, and always includes the death of the protagonist. Consider the fates of Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear, and Othello. Catharsis – Aristotle describes catharsis as the purging of the emotions of pity and fear that are aroused in the viewer of a tragedy. Character – A person who is responsible for the thoughts and actions within a story, poem, or other literature. Characters are extremely important because they are the medium through which a reader interacts with a piece of literature. Every character has his or her own personality, which a creative author uses to assist in forming the plot of a story or creating a mood. Characterization – The techniques that writers use to create characters. Terms Associated with Characterization: Character Trait – A character’s personality; a trait is not a physical description of a character. Direct Characterization – The author directly states a character’s traits or makes direct comments about a character’s nature. Indirect Characterization – The author does not directly state a character’s traits; instead the reader draws conclusions and discovers a character’s traits based upon clues provided by the author. Dynamic Character – A character who changes throughout the course of the story. Flat Character – A character about whom little information is provided. Foil – A character who serves as a contrast or a conflict to another character. A foil only functions as a contrast to a more important character. This helps reveal to the reader facets of the opposing characters traits. For example, in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Brutus and Cassius are foils for each other. Often a funny sidekick to a dashing hero, or a villain contrasting a hero.
4 Round Character – This is a character who is fully described by the author (several character traits, background information, etc.) Static Character – A character who does not change or who changes very little over the course of a story. Stereortype or Stock Character – A character who is used to represent a class or a group.
Terms Associated with Character Roles in Story: Protagonist – The main character who is the central focus of a story, the character the audience sympathizes with. For example, Hamlet is the eponymous protagonist. Aantagonist – The character or force in a story or poem who deceives, frustrates, or works against the main character, or protagonist, in some way. The antagonist does not necessarily have to be a person. It could be death, the devil, an illness, the elements, or any challenge that prevents or blocks the main character from achieving his or her goal. Major or Main Characters – The characters who are central to the plot of a story; main characters are usually dynamic and round and play a significant role in the work. Minor Characters – A less important character who interacts with the main characters, helping to move the plot along and providing background for the story. Minor characters are usually static and flat. Caricature – A picture or imitation of a person’s habits, physical appearance, or mannerisms exaggerated in a comic or absurd way. Motivation – The reasons for a character’s behavior. Hero/Heroine – A character whose actions are inspiring or noble; often the main character in a story. Concepts Associated with the Characterization of the Hero/Heroine: Aristotelian Tragic Hero/Heroine: o Of noble birth; larger than life o Basically good or moral o Exhibits a fatal flaw o Makes error in judgment o Possesses hubris (excessive arrogance or pride) which causes the error in judgment o Brings about his own downfall o Has a moment of realization, an epiphany o Lives and suffers o Classic examples include Oedipus in Oedipus the King and Creon in Antigone Classical Hero/Heroine – A variation on the tragic hero largely derived by Shakespeare: o Examples: Macbeth in Macbeth, Hamlet in Hamlet Romantic Hero/Heroine: o Larger than life o Charismatic o Possesses an air of mystery o “Saves the day” or the heroine o Embodies freedom, adventure, and idealism o Often outside the law o Examples: Robin Hood, James Bond, Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre, Neo in The Matrix, Beowulf, Harry Potter, Ivanhoe Modern Hero/Heroine: o May be everyman o Has human weaknesses o Caught in the irony of the human condition o Struggles for insight o Examples Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman, Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath Hemmingway Hero/Heroine: o Brave o Endures
5 o o o
Maintains a sense of humor Exhibits grace under pressure Examples: Santiago in The Old Man and the Sea, Jake Barnes in The Sun Also Rises, Butch and Sundance in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Antihero: o Protagonist is notably lacking in heroic qualities: o Examples: Mersualt in The Stranger, Randall McMurphy in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Homer Simpson of cartoon fame
Chiasmus – Latin term from Greek, "crossing," shaped like the letter “Χ." In This the figure of speech
two or more clauses are related to each other through a reversal of structures in order to make a larger point; that is, the clauses display inverted parallelism with some pattern like this ABCCBA where letters correspond to grammar, words, or meaning. Today, chiasmus is applied fairly broadly to any "criss-‐cross" structure. Examples: Coleridge: “Flowers are lovely, love is flowerlike.”; In
prose this is called antimetabole. Chorus – Repetition in literature of one or more lines at regular intervals. Also see refrain and point-‐of – view. Concrete Language – The diction of specificity, referring to particular persons or things. Passages that are rich in detail and imagery, creating striking particularity and sensuous detail, are the opposite of abstract language. Cliché – A type of figurative language containing an overused expression or a saying that is no longer considered original. Clause – A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb. An independent, or main, clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent, or subordinate, clause cannot stand alone as a sentence and must be accompanied by an independent clause. The point that you want to consider is the question of what or why the author subordinates one element should also become aware of making effective use of subordination in your own writing. See phrase. Colloquial/Colloquialism – The use of slang or informalities in speech or writing. Not generally acceptable for formal writing, colloquialisms give a work a conversational, familiar tone. Colloquial expressions in writing include local or regional dialects. Example: “He’s out of his head, if he thinks I’m gonna go for such an idea.” Comedy – A dramatic work that is light and often humorous in tone and usually ends happily with a peaceful resolution of the main conflict. The style is less exalted and uses irony, wit, action, pun and so forth. It is the antithesis of tragedy. You must always consider that with comedy, something is being mocked, ridiculed, made fun of, belittled, slighted etc. and this necessarily means that there is potential that someone will be offended, upset, etc. and it becomes a matter of “whose ox is being gored” or when something seems to be out of synch with our own best interests. See tragedy. Types of Comedy: Low Comedy: Lacks seriousness of purpose or subtlety of manner and has little intellectual appeal—quarrelling, fighting, noisy singing, boisterous conduct in general, boasting, burlesque, trickery; buffoonery, clownishness, drunkenness, coarse jesting, wordplay, and scolding. High Comedy: Pure or serious comedy—appeals to the intellect and arouses thoughtful laughter by exhibiting the inconsistencies and incongruities of human nature and by displaying the follies of social manners. Humor: A mode of comedy that is sympathetic and tolerant toward human nature, exposing the ridiculous, ludicrous, and comical n human affairs. Wit: An intellectual mode that is satirical and less tolerant toward human nature. Wit requires great originality, imagination, the ability to see similarities in seemingly different things, and a quick, bright use of language. Wit is intellectual, depending on skillful phrasing, plays on words, surprising contrasts, paradoxes, and epigrams.
6 Burlesque: Form of comedy characterized by ridiculous exaggeration and distortion. The sublime may be absurd, honest emotions may be turned to sentimentality, a serious subject may be treated frivolously or a frivolous subject seriously. Also called Mock Heroic or Mock Epic, mocking the absurdity of the epic hero’s pretentious qualities. Comedy of Manners – A form of comedy, which satirizes the manners and affectations of a social class or of multiple classes, often represented by stereotypical stock characters. Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest is a good example of this. Farce: A light dramatic work in which highly improbable plot, exaggerated character, and often slapstick elements are used for humorous effect. Lampoon: A broad satirical piece that uses ridicule to attack a person or group. Parody: A composition imitating or burlesquing another, usually serious, piece of work. Designed to ridicule in nonsensical fashion an original piece of work. Parody is in literature what the caricature and cartoon are in art. Satire: Holding up to ridicule the follies and vices of a people or time Slapstick: Boisterous form of comedy marked by chases, collisions, and crude practical jokes. Travesty: Presents a serious (often religious) subject frivolously—reduces everything to its lowest level. *Note—Travesty, Burlesque and Parody are similar, but travesty always makes a mockery of a serious subject, whereas burlesque and parody may do the reverse—make something frivolous, serious.
Comic Relief – The inclusion of a humorous character or scene to contrast with the tragic elements of a work, usually the highest moment of tension. Conceit – see metaphor. Confessional Poetry – A twentieth century term used to describe poetry that uses intimate material from the poet’s life. Connotation – The non-‐literal, associative meaning of a word, implied, suggested meaning. Connotations may involve ideas, emotions, or attitudes. Consonance – The repetition of consonant sounds anywhere within a line of poetry. Alliteration is a specific type of consonance. Context – The matter that surrounds the word or text in question, lending it significance, even irony. An accurate analysis of a word or portion of text depends upon a full understanding of the overall context. Context Clues -‐ Hints or suggestions that may surround unfamiliar words or phrases and clarify their meaning. Contrast – Writers often use contrasts, or oppositions, to elaborate ideas. Contrasts help writers to expand on their ideas by allowing them to show both what a thing is and what it is not. Take, for instance, images of light and darkness: a reader may better appreciate what it means to have light by considering its absence-‐ darkness. Convention – A traditional aspect of a literary work, such as a soliloquy in a Shakespearean play or a tragic hero in a Greek tragedy. Couplet – see stanza. Dactyl – see meter. Denotation – The strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion, attitude, or color. (Example; the denotation of a knife would be a utensil to cut; the connotation of a knife might be fear, violence, anger, foreboding, etc.)
7 Deus ex machina – A Greek invention, literally “the god from the machine” who appears at the last moment and resolves the loose ends of a play. Today, the term refers to anyone, usually of some stature, who untangles, resolves, or reveals the key to the plot of a work. See the conclusion of Euripides’s Medea for an example or the sheriff at the end of Desire Under the Elms by O’Neill. Dialect – A form of language that is spoken in a particular place or by a particular group of people. Dialogue – The conversation between characters in a drama or narrative. A dialogue occurs in most works of literature. Diction – Diction refers to an author's choice of words. For instance, in the sentence, that guy was really mad!" the author uses informal diction ("guy," "mad”). Whereas in the sentence, the gentleman was considerably irritated." the author uses more elevated diction ("gentleman," "irritated”). A writer's diction contributes to the tone of a text. Didactic – from the Greek, didactic literally means “teaching.” Didactic words, or forms of fiction or non-‐ fiction have the primary aim of teaching or instructing, especially the teaching of a moral or ethical principles providing a model for correct behavior or thinking. Discourse – A written or spoken communication or debate or a formal discussion of a topic in writing. Also functions as a verb meaning to speak or write authoritatively on a subject (e.g., She could discourse at great length on the history of Europe). Discourse – Written or spoken communication or debate to exchange thoughts and ideas. Doppelgänger – The alter ego of a character-‐the suppressed side of one’s personality that is usually unaccepted by society (e.g., The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson – Mr. Edward Hyde (hide) is Dr. Jekyll’s evil side). Drama – A drama or play is a form of literature meant to be performed by actors before an audience. In a drama, the characters’ dialogue and actions tell the story. The written form of a play is known as a script. Dramatic Monologue/Soliloquy – A literary device that is used when a character reveals his or her innermost thoughts and feelings, those that are hidden throughout the course of the story line, through a poem or a speech. This speech, where only one character speaks, is recited while other characters are present onstage. This monologue often comes during a climactic moment in a work and often reveals hidden truths about a character, their history and their relationships. Also see dramatic monologue as a form of poetry. Drawing Conclusions – Combining several pieces of information to make an inference is called drawing a conclusion. Elegy/Elegiac – See poetry. Enjambment – A technique in poetry that involves the running-‐on of a line or stanza into the next verse. It enables the poem to move and to develop coherence as well as directing the reader with regard to form and meaning. Walt Whitman uses this continually. Epanalepsis – A device of repetition in which the same expression (single word or phrase) is repeated both at the beginning and at the end of the line, clause, or sentence. Voltaire: “Common sense is not so common.” Epic – A long, elevated, narrative poem that celebrates the adventures of a hero whose actions reflect the ideals and values of a nation or group. Beowulf is a prime example. Epigram – 1) A pithy saying or remark expressing an idea in a clever and amusing way. 2) A short poem, especially a satirical one, which seeks to ridicule a thought or event, usually with witticism or sarcasm and a witty or ingenious ending. Alexander Pope utilizes this form for satiric commentary. See poetry. Epigraph – a quotation or aphorism at the beginning of a literary work suggestive of the theme.
8 Epilogue – A short poem or speech spoken directly to the audience following the conclusion of a play, or in a novel the epilogue is a short explanation at the end of the book which indicates what happens after the plot ends. Epiphany – A moment of sudden and great revelation or realization that causes a character to change or to act in a certain way. Epistrophe – Device of repetition in which the same expression (single word or phrase) is repeated at the end of two or more lines, clauses, or sentences (it is the opposite of anaphora). Epitaph – A phrase or form of words written in memory of a person who has died, especially an inscription on a tombstone. Something by which the person, time, or event will be remembered. Epithet – 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.” Essay – A short work of nonfiction that deals with a single subject. Various Types of Essays: Four Modes of Discourse Essays can be informal being lighter in tone, reflecting the writer’s feelings and personality. Essays can be formal essay being highly organized and thoroughly researched. They can be humorous with the purpose to amuse or entertain the reader. Here are four broad types: 1. The Descriptive Essay is one that describes a particular subject. Uses language to create a mood or emotion. 2. The Narrative Essay is an essay that tells a story. 3. The Expository Essay is one whose purpose is to enable an audience to understand something unfamiliar through a clear explanation with facts and information about a subject. 4. Argumentative/Persuasive Essays attempt to convince a reader to adopt a particular option or course of action. Argumentation is one of the four forms of discourse which uses ethics, logic, and emotional appeals (ethos, logos, pathos) to develop an effective means to convince the reader to think or act in a certain way. Persuasion – Relies more on emotional appeals than on facts Argument – Form of persuasion that appeals to reason instead of emotion to convince an audience to think or act in a certain way. Causal Relationship – Form of argumentation in which the writer claims that one thing results from another, often used as part of a logical argument. Other types include: 1. Analytical Essay – An attempt to identify an author’s purpose and to evaluate his or her success in achieving it; often used as another name for a book review (see below). 2. Book Review – An attempt to introduce an audience to a new or unfamiliar book by combining elements of an expository essay (briefly explaining the setting, main characters, plot), a persuasive essay (making judgments about the quality and importance of the book and sharing your reactions to it), and sometimes an analytical essay (evaluating the author’s purpose and success). 3. Letter to the Editor – An attempt to introduce or respond to a current issue of civil importance by combining elements of an argumentative (rational) and persuasive (emotional) essay in a very brief format (100-‐150 words). Ethos – Ethos is the characteristic spirit or ideal that informs a work. In The County of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, for instance, the ethos of the work is derived from the qualities of the inhabitants, who are described as both able and caring. Ethos also refers more generally to ethics, or values. In rhetorical writing, authors establish authority and credibility by utilizing expert opinion and research of others, their own personal experience, and appeal to the reader’s sense of ethical principals to convince and persuade.
9 Euphemism – A euphemism is a mild or pleasant sounding expression that substitutes for a harsh, indelicate, or simply less pleasant idea. Euphemisms are often used to soften the impact of what is being discussed. For example, the word "deceased" is a euphemism for the word "dead," just as the phrase "in the family way" is a euphemism for the word "pregnant." Euphony – the pleasant, mellifluous presentation of sounds in a literary work. Exposition – The word "exposition" refers to writing or speech that is organized to explain. For example, if the novel you read involves a wedding, your exposition might explain the significance of the wedding to the overall work of literature. Explication – Act of interpreting or discovering the meaning of a text, usually involves close reading and special attention to figurative language. Fable – A brief tale that teaches a lesson about human nature. Fables often feature animals as characters. Aesop and La Fontaine are authors who excel at this form. Frame Story – A narrative that is a framework for another story or stories. The frame usually explains or sets up the interior story; often the narrative returns to the frame situation to provide closure at the end. (e.g., Hamlet’s play within the play) Fiction – The word "fiction" comes from the Latin word meaning to invent, to dream, to imagine. Works of fiction can be based on actual occurrences, but their status as fiction means that something has been imagined or invented in the telling of the occurrence. Fiction: prose writing that tells an imaginary story. Fiction includes both short stories and novels. Figurative Language – Figurative language is an umbrella term for all uses of language that imply an imaginative comparison. It is the body of devices that allows the writer to operate on levels beyond the literal one. Figurative language is opposed to “literal meaning,” which is the actual, denotative, dictionary meaning for a word or phrase. Here is an example of figurative language, "You've earned your wings." This is a figurative way to say, "You've succeeded;" it implies a comparison with a bird who has just learned to fly. Examples of figurative language include: simile, metaphor, symbol, hyperbole, understatement, irony, oxymoron, cliché, metonymy, and others listed here. Free Verse – See meter and poetry. Flashback – see plot. Folklore – Traditions, customs and stories that are passed down within a culture. Folklore contains various types of literature such as legends, folktales, myths, and fables. Folktale – A simple story that has been passed from generation to generation by word of mouth. Folktales are told primarily to entertain rather than to explain or teach a lesson. Foreshadowing – see plot. Form – The shape or structure of a literary work. Genre – The major category into which a literary work fits. Basic divisions include: prose, poetry, and drama. There may be subdivisions such as fiction and non-‐fiction prose. On the AP exam, expect the majority of passages to be from the following genres: autobiography, biography, diaries, criticism, essays, and journalistic, political, scientific, and nature writing. Types or Genres of Novels: Allegorical – This type of novel is representative and symbolic. It operates on at least two levels. Its specifics correspond to another concept (e.g., Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies). Autobiographical – This readily identifiable type is always told in the first person and allows the reader to directly interact with the protagonist (e.g., Dickens’ David Copperfield, Catcher in the Rye)
10 Epistolary – Utilizes letter writing and are among the earliest novel forms (e.g., Pamela, Dracula, The Color Purple) Gothic – This type of novel is concerned with the macabre, supernatural, and exotic (e.g., Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Interview with a Vampire) Historical – This form is grounded in a real context and relies heavily on setting and factual detail (e.g., A Tale of Two Cities, War and Peace) Picaresque – This early, episodic novel form concentrates on the misadventures of a young rogue (e.g., Huckleberry Finn, Don Quixote, Tom Jones, Candide). Romantic – This novel form is idealistic, imaginative, and adventuresome. The romantic hero is the cornerstone of the novel, which often includes exotic locales (e.g., Wuthering Heights, Madame Bovary) Historical Fiction – Fiction that explores a past time period and may contain references to actual people and events of the past. Horror – Fiction that contains mysterious and often supernatural events to create a sense of terror. Humor – The quality that provokes laughter or amusement. Writers create humor through exaggeration, sarcasm, amusing descriptions, irony, and witty dialogue. Realistic Fiction – Imaginative writing set in the real, modern world. The characters act like real people who use ordinary human abilities to cope with problems and conflicts typical of modern life. Science Fiction – Prose writing in which a writer explores unexpected possibilities of the past or the future by using scientific data and theories as well as his or her imagination. Magical Realism – A type of literature that explores narrative by and about characters who inhabit and experience their reality differently form what we term the objective world. Writers who are frequently placed in this category include Gabriel Barcia Márquez, Günter Grass and Isabel Allende.
Metaphysical Poetry – See poetry. Generalization – A broad statement about an entire group obtained by inference. Haiku – see poetry. Hamartia – A term used in Aristotle’s Poetics with reference to Greek tragedy. Often translated as an unwitting mistake or error in judgment committed in ignorance of important surrounding circumstances; in tragedy it is often described as a hero’s nemesis or ”tragic flaw” which ultimately leads to disastrous consequences. Heroic Couplet – A couplet consisting of two successive rhyming lines that contain a complete thought. Horatian Satire – Satire which is indulgent, tolerant, amused and witty, wryly and gently ridiculing human absurdities and follies, exemplified by the dramatic form know as comedy of manners. See Juvanalian satire. Hubris – A term of ancient Greek tragedy originally meaning excessive pride toward or defiance of the gods leading to nemesis or inescapable agent of someone or something’s downfall. The term means extreme or excessive pride and overconfident arrogance. Hubris often indicates being out of touch with reality and overestimating one's own competence or capabilities, especially for people in positions of power. Hyperbole – Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which exaggeration is used to achieve emphasis. The expressions "my feet are as cold as an iceberg" and “I’ll die if I don't see you soon” are examples of hyperbole. The emphasis is on exaggeration rather than literal representation. Hyperbole is the opposite of understatement Iamb – see meter. Idiom – A phrase or expression that is cultural and cannot be derived from the denotative, dictionary meaning and grammatical structure of the utterance (for example, using the phrase “over his head” instead of “He doesn’t understand”). The following phrases are examples of idiomatic expressions: “You’re putting me on,” “The Devil is in the details,” “It’s raining cats and dogs,” “She’s pulling my leg” etc. Idyll – see poetry.
11 Image, Imagery -‐ An image is a mental picture that is conjured by specific words and associations, but there can be auditory and sensory components to imagery as well. Nearly all writing depends on imagery to be effective and interesting. Metaphors, similes, symbols, and personification all use imagery. The use of words and phrases that appeal to the five senses. Writers use sensory details to help readers imagine how things look, feel, smell, sound, and taste. Inference/Infer – To draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented. When a multiple-‐ choice question asks for an inference to be drawn from a passage, the most direct and reasonable inference is the safest answer choice. Inference is a logical guess based on evidence based on evidence in the text. See subtext. Impressionism – Writing that reflects a personal image of a character, event, or concept. The Secret Sharer is a fine example. Invective – an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language. Inversion – also known as anastrophe, the reversal of the normal word order in a sentence or phrase words is reversed in order to achieve a particular effect of emphasis or meter. The main function of inversion in prose or poetry is to help the writers achieve stylistic effects like laying an emphasis on a particular point or changing the focus of the readers from a particular point.For example, it was a common practice in Shakespeare’s day to use inversions: Macbeth: “If’t be so, For Banquo’s issue have I fil’d my mind, For them the gracious Duncan have I murther’d, Put rancors in the vessel of my peace Only for them, and mine eternal jewel Given to the common enemy of man, To make them kings -‐the seed of Banquo kings! Rather than so, come, Fate, into the list, And champion me to the utterance!” The inversions in the above lines serve to highlight the conflict in Macbeth’s mind after he had killed Duncan. The conflict was leading him to insanity gradually Irony, ironic – Discrepancy between appearances and reality. Irony occurs when a situation produces an outcome that is the opposite of what is expected. In Robert Frost's poem “Mending Wall,” for instance, it is ironic that the presence of a barrier-‐a fence-‐keeps a friendship alive. Frost’s observation that “good fences make good neighbors” is both true and ironic. Similarly, when an author uses words or phrases that are in opposition to each other to describe a person or an idea, an ironic tone results. For example, in “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, when the speaker says, “I am glad my case is not serious!" the reader-‐who is also aware just how “serious” her case is-‐is aware of the irony of the statement Verbal Irony – when the words literally state the opposite of the writer’s/speaker’s meaning Situational Irony – When events turn out the opposite of what was expected; when what the characters and readers think out to happen is not what does happen Dramatic Irony – Derived from ancient Greek drama, when the reader or audience (and other characters in the story) know or understand facts, or events that the character does not. Cosmic Irony – Suggests that some unknown force brings about dire and dreadful events. Juvanalian Satire – Like its classical Roman progenitor, this mode of satire attacks vice and error with contempt and indignation. It is realistic and harsh in tone. See Horatian satire. Juxtaposition – When two contrasting things-‐ideas, words, or sentence elements-‐are placed next to each other for comparison, juxtaposition occurs. For instance, a writer may choose to juxtapose the coldness of one room with the warmth of another or one person's honesty with another's duplicity. Juxtaposition sheds light on both elements in the comparison.
12 Legend – A story handed down from the past about a specific person, usually someone of heroic accomplishments. Limerick – A short humorous poem composed of five lines that usually has the rhyme scheme AABBA, created by two rhyming couplets followed by a fifth line that rhymes with the first couplet. A limerick typically has a singsong rhythm. Litotes – This is a form of understatement in which the positive form is emphasized through the negation of a negative form: Hawthorne-‐-‐-‐ “...the wearers of petticoat and farthingale...stepping forth into the public ways, and wedging their not unsubstantial persons, if occasion were, into the throng...” Logos -‐ The word logos refers to the use of reason as a controlling principle in an argument in rhetorical writing, authors often attempt to persuade readers by appealing to their sense of logos or reason. Logical Fallacy – An incorrect argument in logic and rhetoric resulting in a lack of validity and soundness. The following provides a list of some logical fallacies. Note that there are many logical fallacies and a variety of nomenclature for them: Ad Hominem argument -‐ This term comes from the Latin phrase meaning "to the man." hominem refers to an argument that attacks the opposing speaker or another person rather than addressing the issues at hand. Argument from Ignorance (appeal to ignorance, argumentum ad ignorantiam) – assuming that a claim is true because it has not been or cannot be proven false, or vice versa. Argument from Incredulity (divine fallacy, appeal to common sense) – I cannot imagine how this could be true, therefore it must be false. Association Fallacy (guilt by association) – arguing that because two things share a property they are the same. Begging the Question -‐ providing what is essentially the conclusion of the argument as a premise. Circular Reasoning (circulus in demonstrando) – when the reasoner begins with what he or she is trying to end up with; sometimes called assuming the conclusion. (Shifting the) Burden of Proof -‐ I need not prove my claim, you must prove it is false. Equivocation – the misleading use of a term with more than one meaning (by glossing over which meaning is intended at a particular time). Fallacy of the Single Cause (causal oversimplification) – it is assumed that there is one, simple cause of an outcome when in reality it may have been caused by a number of only jointly sufficient causes. False Dilemma (false dichotomy, fallacy of bifurcation, black-‐or-‐white fallacy) – two alternative statements are held to be the only possible options, when in reality there are more. Mind Projection Fallacy – when one considers the way one sees the world as the way the world really is. Moral High Ground Fallacy – in which one assumes a "holier-‐than-‐thou" attitude in an attempt to make oneself look good to win an argument. Non sequitur (Latin for "it does not follow"), in formal logic, is an argument in which its conclusion does not follow from its premises. In a non sequitur, the conclusion could be either true or false, but the argument is fallacious because there is a disconnection between the premise and the conclusion. Post hoc Fallacy – In Latin, post hoc ergo propter hoc translates as: post hoc, after this; ergo, therefore; propter hoc, because of this. This fallacy is based upon the mistaken notion that simply because one thing happens after another, the first event was a cause of the second event. Post hoc reasoning is the basis for many superstitions and erroneous beliefs. Post hoc or after the fact reasoning is a particularly tempting error because the time sequence appears to be integral to causality. For example, "I can't help but think that you are the cause of this problem; we never had any problem with the furnace until you moved into the apartment." The manager of the apartment house, on no stated grounds other than the temporal priority of the new tenant's occupancy, holds that the tenant's presence has some causal relationship to the furnace's becoming faulty. One commits this fallacy by jumping to conclusions based on coincidences. Red Herring – a speaker attempts to distract an audience by deviating from the topic at hand by introducing a separate argument the speaker believes is easier to speak to. Slippery Slope – asserting that a relatively small first step inevitably leads to a chain of related events culminating in some significant impact/event that should not happen, thus the first step
13 should not happen. While this fallacy is a popular one, it is, in its essence, an appeal to probability fallacy. (e.g., if person x does y then z would [probably] occur, leading to q, leading to w, leading to e.) This is also related to the Reductio ad absurdum. Straw Man – an argument based on misrepresentation of an opponent's position. To be successful, a straw man argument requires that the audience be ignorant or uninformed of the original argument. Tu Quoque ("you too", appeal to hypocrisy, I'm rubber and you're glue) – the argument states that a certain position is false or wrong and/or should be disregarded because its proponent fails to act consistently in accordance with that position.
Loose Sentence – A sentence in which the main clause comes first, followed by further dependent grammatical units. Loose sentences tend to be long and rambling, beginning with subject and predicate followed by many modifiers and subordinate ideas. Hawthorne: “Hester gazed after him a little while, looking with a half-‐fantastic curiosity to see whether the tender grass of early spring would not be blighted beneath him, and show the wavering track of this footsteps, sere and brown, across its cheerful verdure.” See periodic sentence. Lyric Poetry – A song-‐like poem written mainly to express the feelings or emotions of a single speaker. This does not tell a story as a ballad does. Memoir – see autobiography. Meter – The regular pattern of accented and unaccented syllables. Although all poems have rhythm, not all poems have regular meter. Each unit of meter is known as a foot. The conventional symbols used to identify accented and unaccented syllables are: “/” to indicate an accented syllable; and an “x” or a small symbol shaped like a “u” to indicate an unaccented symbol. The metrical foot is the basic unit of meter. The most common metrical feet and their patterns of stressed and unstressed syllables are as follows: iamb: x / (examples: behold, amuse, awake, rebel, “Of Mice and Men,” “The South will rise again.”) trochee: / x (examples: happy, clever, slacker, rebel, “Doctor Wheeler lives in Douglas County.”) anapest: x x / (examples: interupt, comprehend, New Rochelle, “Get a life in the blink of an eye.”) dactyl: / x x (examples: bitterly, prominent, scorpion, “Bribery toppled him, bronchopneumonia”) spondee: / / (examples: football, love song, heartbreak, meltdown, black hole, breakdown) pyrrhic: x x (examples: “when the blood creeps and the nerves prick.”) This will often be “the,” prepositions, and words that carry less meaning or content. *Note that some words change their meter depending upon how they are used. For instance, the word rebel is pronounced one way when it is a noun, and another way as a verb. The same is true for detail. Likewise, contrast words with similar pronunciation except for their patterns of stress: rockets with Rockettes, glycerin with Listerine, travel with travail, and so on. The meter of a poem, or line-‐length, is determined by the predominant metrical foot, and by the number of feet per line that predominates in the poem. The following terms indicate the number of feet per line: Foot: a unit of meter within a line of poetry 1. Monometer – one foot per line 2. Dimeter – two feet per line 3. Trimeter – three feet per line 4. Tetrameter – four feet per line 5. Pentameter – five feet per line 6. Hexameter – six feet per line 7. Heptameter – seven feet per line 8. Octameter – eight feet per line A poem written in predominantly iambic meter, with five feet per line, would be called "iambic pentameter." One written in primarily trochaic meter, with four feet per line, would be "trochaic tetrameter." One written in anapestic meter, with three feet per line, would be "anapestic trimeter." Blank Verse – Unrhymed iambic pentameter (see meter). Most all of Shakespeare’s works are written this way.
14 Common Meter – Alternating lines of iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter, in four-‐line stanzas typically rhyming ABAB or ABCB. Also called hymn meter and ballad meter. Free Verse – Poetry without regular patterns of rhyme and rhythm, or meter. Often used to capture the sounds and rhythms of ordinary speech. Metaphor -‐ A metaphor is a figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared directly with a common quality; usually for emphasis or dramatic effect. For instance, the observation that “she lived a thorny life" relies on an understanding of how dangerous and prickly thorns can be. Unlike a simile, a metaphor does not contain an explicit word of comparison, such as “like,” “as,” or “seems.” In an Extended Metaphor, the properties of a single comparison are used throughout a poem or prose work. For example, if you call government "the ship of State,” you could extend the metaphor by calling industry and business the engines of this ship, and by calling the citizens of the state "passengers of the ship.” A Conceit is an elaborate metaphor that compares two things that are startlingly different, often an extended metaphor. Types of Metaphor: Implied Metaphor -‐ does not state explicitly the two terms of the comparison: “I like to see it lap the miles” is an implied metaphor in which the verb lap implies a comparison between “it” and some animal that “laps” up water. Extended Metaphor -‐ is a metaphor that is extended or developed as far as the writer wants to take it. (Conceit if it is quite elaborate). Dead Metaphor -‐ is a metaphor that has been used so often that the comparison is no longer vivid: “The head of the house”, “the seat of the government,” “a knotty problem” are all dead metaphors. Mixed Metaphor -‐ is a metaphor that has gotten out of control and mixes its terms so that they are visually or imaginatively incompatible. “The President is a lame duck who is running out of gas.” Metonymy – Metonymy is a figure of speech in which something is referred to by using the name of something that is associated with it. For example, a crown is associated with royalty, and is often used as a metonym for royal authority ("The edict issued today by the Crown forbids grazing in the commons”). The metaphorical substitution of one word or phrase for another related word or phrase. Example: “The pen is mightier than the sword.” The word “pen” is used in place of “words” and the word “sword” is used to represent the idea of fighting or war. Monologue – A speech given by one character (e.g., Hamlet’s “To be or not to be . . . ”) Mood – Mood is the prevailing or dominant feeling of a work, scene, or event. The opening scene of Macbeth in which three witches are center stage, for instance, sets a mood of doom and tragedy for the first act of the play. Mood is similar to atmosphere. Moral – A lesson that a story teaches. A moral is often stated directly at the end of a fable. Motif – In its most general sense, motif is the repetition of an image, object, concept, or structure. It may be closely connected to symbol, or it may be a thematic restatement. Motifs help drive and create themes. A motif may also be two contrasting elements in a work, such as good and evil. A motif is important because it allows one to see main points and themes that the author is trying to express, in order that one might be able to interpret the work more accurately. Motifs can include recurring color, sound, music, animals, weather, things, or other. Myth – A traditional story that attempts to explain how the world was created or why the world is the way that it is. Myths are stories that are passed on from generation to generation and are of unknown authorship. Also see folklore. Mythos – A pattern of beliefs expressing often symbolically the characteristic or prevalent attitudes in a group or culture. In rhetoric, making an argument based on tradition, “that’s just the way things have always been.” Narrative – the telling of a story or an account of an event or series of events. Most novels and short stories are placed into the categories of first-‐person and third-‐person narratives, which are based on who is telling the story and from what perspective.
15 Narrative Poem – See poetry. Narrator – The speaker of a literary work. See point-‐of-‐view. Nonfiction: is prose writing that presents and explains ideas or that tells about real people, places, objects or events. Some examples of nonfiction include autobiographies, newspaper articles, biographies, essays, etc. Novel – A work of fiction that is longer and more complex than a short story. In a novel, setting, plot and characters are usually developed in great detail. Novella – A short novel usually under 100 pages. Ode – see poetry. Onomatopoeia – Onomatopoeia is an effect created by words that have sounds that reinforce their meaning (hiss, gurgle, bang). For example, in the sentence, "The tires screeched as the car zoomed around the corner, the words “screeched” and "zoomed” are onomatopoetic because the sounds they make when spoken are similar to the sounds the car makes when performing these actions. Oral History – Stories of people’s lives related by word of mouth. These histories usually include both factual material and personal reactions. Oxymoron – An oxymoron combines two contradictory words in one expression. The results of this combination are often unusual or thought provoking. For instance, if you praise a child for her "wild docility," in essence you change the separate meanings of the words "wild” and "docility" and create a new hybrid image. Other examples include: jumbo shrimp, bittersweet, pretty ugly, or giant economy size. Pacing or Narrative Pacing – Pacing is the speed of a story's action, dialogue, or narration. Some stories are told slowly, some more quickly. Events happen fast or are dragged out according to the narrator's purpose. For example, action movies are usually fast paced; when their pacing slows the audience knows that the section is being given special emphasis. Asyndeton, polysyndeton, loose and periodic sentences, as well as sound devices and rhythm can have an effect on the pacing and feel of a work. Parable – a relatively short story that teaches a moral, or lesson about how to lead a good life (e.g., John Steinbeck’s The Pearl). See allegory. Paradox – A paradox is a seeming contradiction that in fact reveals some truth. For example, the paradoxical expression “He lifted himself up by his bootstraps,” suggests a physical impossibility and thus communicates a truth about the enormity of the person's achievement. For example, in Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing, the Friar says to Hero, “Come, Lady, die to live.” Koan -‐ is a paradox used in Zen Buddhism to gain intuitive knowledge: “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” “If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, is it heard?” These are philosophical thought experiments that raise questions regarding observation and knowledge of reality. Parallelism/Parallel Structure – Parallelism is a literary technique that relies on the use of the same syntactical structures, (phrases, clauses, sentences) in a series in order to develop an argument or emphasize an idea. For example, in the declaration “At sea, on land, in the air, we will be loyal to the very end,” the parallel phrases at the beginning of the sentence emphasize the loyalty and determination of a group of people. Paraphrasing – The restatement of a text that retains the meaning while changing it to ordinary form and syntax in the reader’s own words. It usually retains the point of view of the passage. When a difficult passage of poetry is paraphrased, it is explained sentence by sentence, with figurative language changed to literal. Parody – see comedy.
16 Pathos – Pathos is a sympathetic feeling of pity or compassion that an artistic work elicits from the audience. In rhetorical writing, authors often attempt to persuade readers by appealing to their sense of pathos, or their emotions. Pedantic – An adjective that describes words, phrases, or general tone that is overly scholarly, academic, or bookish (language that might be described as “show-‐offy”; using big words for the sake of using big words). Periodic Sentence – Sentences that withhold the main idea or central complete thought until the end of the sentence, after all introductory elements. Periodic sentences force the reader to pay careful attention while awaiting the ending, and thus may seem more cognitively demanding. See loose sentence. Persona – Literally, a mask. The “second self.” Persona is the character created by the voice and narration of the speaker of a text. The term “persona” implies a fictional representation or an act of disguise (that the speaker is not the author, but a created character). Personification – Personification is a figure of speech in which ideas or objects are described as having human qualities or personalities. For example, in the sentence, "The saddened birch trees were bent to the ground laden with ice; they groaned and shivered in the cold winds,” the trees are personified, or represented as capable of human emotion. Peripeteia – According to Aristotle, this is “change by which the action veers around to its opposite” known in Greek tragedy as reversal. This is a reversal of circumstances or turning point. There is no element in plots like peripeteia as it can result in and evoke terror, mercy, laughter, sadness, and so forth. See anagnorisis. Phrase – A Plot – A sequence of events in a literary work. Elements of Plot: Antecedent Action – Events that preceded the starting point of the piece of literature. Exposition – Introduces the characters, setting, and the conflicts they face. Initial incident – The event that puts the story in gear. This usually occurs after the exposition and introduces the central conflict within the story. In medias res – Literally from Greek, to be in the middle. This is a device that places the reader immediately into the action. Rising Action – Following the introduction of the central conflict; complications arise as the characters struggle with the conflict. Climax – The turning point, point of maximum interest, and highest tension in the plot of a story, play, or film. The climax usually occurs towards the end of story after the reader has understood the conflict and become emotionally involved with the characters. At the climax, the conflict is resolved, and the outcome of the plot becomes clear. Anticlimax – A rhetorical device in which details of lesser importance are placed where something greater is expected, or in which the importance of items in a series is decreased rather than increased. Falling Action – The end of the central conflict in a story, when the action starts to wind down. Dénouement/Resolution – occurs after the climax and is where conflicts are resolved and loose ends are tied up. Flashback – An interruption of the chronological sequence (as in a film or literary work) of an event of earlier occurrence. A flashback is a narrative technique that allows a writer to present past events during current events, in order to provide background for the current narration. Foreshadowing – When the writer provides clues or hints that suggest or predict future event in a story.
17 Terms Associated With Conflict: Conflict – The tension or problem in the story; a struggle between opposing forces providing interest, suspense, and tension in a plot. Central Conflict – The dominant or most important conflict in the story. External Conflict – The problem or struggle that exists between the main character and an outside force. (e.g., person vs. person, person vs. society, person vs. nature, person vs. the supernatural, person vs. technology, etc.) Internal Conflict – The problem or struggle that takes place in the main character’s mind (person vs. self). Subplot – An additional minor plot that involves a secondary conflict in the story; the subplot may or may not affect the main plot. Parallel Plot – A secondary story line that mimics and reinforces the main plot (e.g., Hamlet loses his father, as does Ophelia).
Poetic Justice – The rewarding of virtue and the punishment of vice in the resolution of a plot. The character, as they say, gets whaat he/she deserves. Poetry – Literature in which ideas and feelings are expressed in compact, imaginative, and often musical language. Poets arrange words in ways designed to touch readers’ senses, emotions, and minds. Most poems are written in lines that may contain patterns of rhyme and rhythm. These lines may in turn be grouped in stanzas. Three Broad Categories of Poetry: Narrative – Narrative poetry: poetry that tells a story. A narrative poem can come in many forms and styles, both complex and simple, short or long, as long as it tells a story. Like fiction, narrative poetry contains characters, settings, and plots. Lyrical – A song-‐like poem written mainly to express the feelings or emotions of a single speaker. Dramatic – poetry in which one or more characters speak. Dramatic poetry generally uses the conversation of the characters involved to tell a story or portray a situation. Specific Types of Poems: Aubade – A love poem set at dawn, which bids farewell to the beloved. Ballad – A simple narrative poem that is meant to be sung or recited. It often incorporates dialogue and is written in quatrains with a rhyme scheme of ABCD. It also has a refrain, which adds to its song-‐like quality. This is unlike lyric poetry that is primarily meant to express emotion and feelings. Ballads often deal with events in the life of a hero, like Robin Hood. Sometimes they retell historical events. The supernatural, disasters, good and evil, love and loss are all topics found in traditional ballads. Blank Verse – Unrhymed iambic pentameter (see meter). Most all of Shakespeare’s works are written this way. Carpe Diem Poetry –From Latin, the admonition often translated as “seize the day” is more accurately “pluck, as a ripe fruit or flower.” It was first used y Horace in classical Rome, and is a common theme in sixteenth-‐and seventeenth-‐century English love poetry: yield to love while you are still young and beautiful. Complaint – A lyric poem of lament, regret, and sadness, which may explain the speaker’s mood, describe its cause, discuss remedies, and appeal for help. The Blues is a musical counterpart to the literary form. Dithyrambic Poetry – Known as the dithyrambs. This ancient Greek form of poetry incorporated choral song and dance. One theory argues that dithyrambic poetry was eventually coupled with a performance by a single actor playing the role of a legendary hero, giving rise to the basic structure of the tragedy. Dramatic Monologue – A type of poem that presents a conversation between a speaker and an implied listener. It relates an episode in a speaker’s life through a conversational format that reveals the character of the speaker. Browning’s “My Last Duchess” is a perfect example.
18 Elegy/Elegiac – An elevated song or poem that expresses sorrow or lamentation, usually in honor for one who has died. A Eulogy is great praise or commendation, a laudatory speech, often about someone who has died. Epigram – A short poem, especially a satirical one, which seeks to ridicule a thought or event, usually with witticism or sarcasm and a witty or ingenious ending. Alexander Pope utilizes this form for satiric commentary. Free Verse – Poetry without regular patterns of rhyme and rhythm, or meter. Often used to capture the sounds and rhythms of ordinary speech. Haiku – A traditional form of Japanese poetry, traditionally centered on the seasons and nature. A Haiku has three lines and describes a single moment, feeling, or thing. In strict Japanese tradition first and third lines contain five syllables and the second line contains seven syllables, however in translation of well-‐known Japanese Haiku this is not always consistent. Idyll – A type of lyric poem, which extols the virtues of an ideal place or time. Lyric Poetry – a type of poetry highly characterized personal feelings, emotion, and brevity; a large and inclusive category of poetry that exhibits rhyme, meter, and reflective thought. Metaphysical Poetry – Refers to the work of poets like John Donne who explore highly complex philosophical ideas through extended metaphors and paradox. Ode – A formal, elevated, lyric poem of some length that celebrates a particular subject in a serious and meditative manner. Rhyme Royal – A stanza with seven lines of iambic pentameter rhyming ABABBCC. Sestina – A highly structured poem of 39 lines, written in iambic pentameter. This form has six sestets followed by a 3-‐line envoi (short stanza at the end of a poem), in this case a tercet. This type of poem uses a complex algorithm in the repetition of the same six end-‐words at the end of each line in each stanza. Sonnet – see sonnet. Villanelle – A highly structured poem of French origin that comprises six stanzas; five tercets and a quatrain (e.g., Dylan Thomas’s “Do not go gentle into that good night.”)
Point-‐of-‐View – Point-‐of-‐view is the method of narration or the perspective from which a story is told in a work of literature. The narrator is the person who tells the story; the speaker or the “voice” of an oral or written work. The narrator is not usually the same person as the author. The narrator is the direct window into a piece of work. Who the author chooses to narrate establishes the point-‐of-‐view in the story. Narrators can be unreliable. An unreliable narrator gives his or her own understanding of a story, instead of the explanation and interpretation the author wishes the audience to obtain. This type of action tends to alter the audience’s opinion of the conclusion. First-‐Person – the narrator tells the story using the first-‐person pronoun “I” point-‐of-‐view. The narrator is a character, and often the protagonist in the story. This is the most limited among the types because the narrator can only state what he or she sees, feels, and hears. He or she cannot go into the minds of the other characters. Second-‐Person point-‐of-‐view: refers to the use of “you” in explanations or arguments. It is not frequently used, but is appropriate in certain circumstances. Most second-‐person point-‐of-‐view occurs within instructions that are meant to be followed. Third-‐Person – the narrator relates the events with the third person pronouns “he” “she” and “it.” Third-‐Person Limited or Objective – The person telling the story is not one of the characters in the story. He or she is an outside observer. The narrator presents the feelings and thoughts of only one character, presenting on the actions of all the remaining characters. The reader can only know what one character learns through interaction with other characters or through overheard conversations. The narrator cannot supply the thoughts or feelings of other characters in the story. Third-‐Person Omniscient – in which the narrator with godlike knowledge, presents the thought and actions of any and all characters. The narrator is not a character in the story, but the events in the story are seen through the eyes of more than one of the characters. The narrator is considered to be “all knowing” and cannot only see and hear everything that is happening to all characters in the story, but can also enter their minds and tell the reader what each is thinking and feeling. This is the least limited point-‐of-‐view because the narrator has knowledge of all the characters. Stream of Consciousness – This is a narrative technique that places the reader in the mind and thought processes of the narrator, no matter how random and spontaneous that may be (e.g., James Joyce’s Ulysses). Interior Monologue – This technique reflects the inner thoughts of the character.
19 Chorus – Ancient Greek plays employed a chorus as a narrative device. The chorus, as needed could be a character, an assembly, the playwright’s voice, the audience, or an omniscient forecaster. This function can be seen in modern works as well. Stage Manager – This technique utilizes a character who comments omnisciently (e.g., Our Town, The Glass Menagerie). *In addition, be aware that the term point-‐of-‐view carries an additional meaning. When you are asked to analyze the author’s point-‐of-‐view, the appropriate point for you to address is the author’s attitude. Also note that, in modern literature, authors often use multiple forms of narration. For example, in William Faulkner’s As I lay Dying every chapter has a different narrator.
Polysyndeton – Sentence which uses a conjunction with NO commas to separate the items in a series. Instead of X, Y, and Z ... Polysyndeton results in X and Y and Z ... Kurt Vonnegut uses this device. See asyndeton. Primary Source – A first hand account of an event; primary sources include: diaries, journals, letters, speeches, news stories, photographs, and pieces of art. Prologue – An introduction or preface, especialy a poem recited to introduce a play. Propaganda – Text that uses false or misleading information to present a slanted point-‐of-‐view. Prose – This is the written equivalent of spoken language. It is written in words, phrases, sentences paragraphs, and chapters. It utilizes punctuation, grammar, and vocabulary to develop its message. Prose is made up of fiction (novels and short stories) and non-‐fiction (essays, autobiographies and biographies, speeches, journals, and articles) including all its forms. Protagonist – see character. Pun – A pun is a play on words creating double meaning or double entendre. Using a word that has two different meanings, or using two different words with similar meanings for a playful effect creates a pun. Shakespeare uses puns extensively in his plays; in Hamlet, for instance. Hamlet says he is "too much in the sun." making use of the meaning of the word “sun” and stressing his role as a "son" simultaneously. Quatrain – see stanza. Refrain – Repetition in literature of a word, phrase, or one or more lines at regular intervals for emphasis or effect; sometimes called the chorus. Repetition – Repetition is the reiteration of a sound, word, or phrase for emphasis. Rhetoric – Rhetoric is the art and logic of a written or spoken argument. Rhetorical writing is purposeful; examples of rhetorical purposes include to persuade, to analyze, or to expose. It is the study and art of persuasion. Rhetorical Appeals – Logos (logic), Ethos (ethics/credibility), Pathos (emotion), Mythos (tradition/culture). Rhetorical Modes – Describes the variety, the conventions, and the purposes of the major kinds of writing. The four most common rhetorical modes (or modes of discourse) are as follows: Narration – The purpose of narration is to tell a story or narrate an event or series of events. This writing mode frequently uses the tools of descriptive writing. Narration is an especially useful tool for sequencing or putting details and information into some kind of logical order, usually chronological. Working with narration helps us see clear sequences separate from all other mental functions. Examples include: • Anecdotes • Autobiography, memoir, biography • Novels
20 Oral history Short story Exposition – Expository writing is to explain and analyze information by presenting an idea, relevant evidence, and appropriate discussion. AP Lang exam essay questions are frequently expository topics. Description – Descriptive writing is to recreate, invent, or visually present a person, place, event, or action so that the reader can picture that being described. Good descriptive writing can engage all five senses, be sensuous, and picturesque. Descriptive writing may be straightforward and objective or highly emotional and subjective. Argumentation –Argumentative writing is to prove the validity of an idea, or point-‐of-‐view, by presenting sound reasoning, discussion, and argument that thoroughly convince the reader. Persuasive writing is a type of argumentation having an additional aim of urging some form of action. Rhetorical, or Narrative Strategy – A strategy is a plan of action or movement to achieve a goal. In rhetoric or writing, strategy describes the way an author organizes words, sentences and overall argument in order to achieve a particular purpose. Rhetorical, or Stylistic Devices – Rhetorical, or stylistic, devices are the specific language tools that an author uses to carry out a rhetorical strategy, and thus achieve a purpose for writing. Some typical language devices include appeals to logos, ethos, pathos, allusion, diction, imagery, syntax, selection of data, figurative language, and repetition. Rhetorical Question – A rhetorical question is a question that is asked for the sake of argument. An explicit answer is not expected; however, the probable answer to such a question is usually implied in the argument. Rhetorical questions are used to pose an idea to be considered by the speaker or audience. Rhyme/Rime – Repetition of an identical or similarly accented sound or sounds in a work. Rhyme gives poems flow and rhythm, helping the lyricist tell a story and convey a mood. Terms Associated with Rhyme: End-‐Rhyme – words that rhyme at the end of a verse-‐line. Eye Rhymes – are words that when written appear to rhyme, but when spoken do not (ex: move/love, slaughter/laughter, flood/brood, cough/enough/bough, come/home etc.). Internal Rhyme – rhyme found within a line of poetry (alliteration, assonance, and consonance). Slant Rhyme is also known as Near Rhyme, Half Rhyme, Off Rhyme, Imperfect Rhyme, Oblique Rhyme, or Pararhyme. A distinctive system or pattern of metrical structure and verse composition in which two words have only their final consonant sounds and no preceding vowel or consonant sounds in common. Emily Dickinson’s poetry is well known for using this technique. Instead of perfect or identical sounds or rhyme, it is the repetition of near or similar sounds or the pairing of accented and unaccented sounds that if both were accented would be perfect rhymes (stopped and wept, parable and shell). Alliteration, assonance, and consonance are accepted as slant rhyme due to their usage of sound combinations (spilled and spoiled, chitter and chatter). Masculine Rhyme – This is the most frequently used end-‐rhyme. It occurs when the last stressed syllable of the rhyming words match exactly (e.g., “The play’s the thing/Wherein I’ll catch the king.”) Feminine Rhyme – this involves tow consecutive syllables of the rhyming words, with the first syllable stressed (e.g., “The horses were prancing / as the clowns were dancing.”) Internal Rhyme – These rhymes occur within the line and add to the music of the poem. The mid-‐ line appearance of the word dreary in this line from Poe’s The Raven exemplifies this: “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary.” Rhyme Scheme – The annotation of the pattern of end rhyme used in a poem, generally indicated by matching lowercase or uppercase letters to show which lines rhyme. The letter "A" notes the first line, and all other lines rhyming with the first line. The first line that does not rhyme with the first, or "A" line, and all others that rhyme with this line, is noted by the letter "B," and so on. The rhyme scheme may follow a fixed pattern (as in a sonnet) or may be arranged freely according to the poet's requirements. • •
21 Rhythm (see also meter) – Refers to the pattern of flow of sounds created by the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry. The accented or stressed syllables are marked with: stressed or accented syllables: / unstressed or unaccented syllables: x or u Romance – In general, a story with extravagant characters, remote and exotic settings, passionate love, and elements of the supernatural in which an idealized hero or heroine undertakes a quest and is successful. Romanticism – A style or movement of literature that has as its foundation an interest in freedom, adventure, idealism, and escape. Sarcasm – A form of irony from the Greek word “to tear flesh,” sarcasm involves bitter, caustic language that may be meant to change behavior or hurt or ridicule someone or something. It may use irony as a device, but not all ironic statements are sarcastic. Satire – To satirize is to ridicule or mock ideas, persons, human foibles or weaknesses, events, customs, or doctrines with the purpose or intent of improving society. Sentence Type – see loose sentence and periodic sentence. Sestina – see poetry. Scansion – The analysis and annotation of a poem’s rhyme and meter. Scene – A section in a play presenting events that occur in one place at one time. Secondary Source – A secondary source presents information compiled from or based on other sources. Sensory Details – Words and phrases that help readers see, hear, taste, feel, or smell what an author is describing. Sentimentalism – Overindulgence in emotion, especially the conscious effort to induce emotion in order to enjoy it; often an excess of romanticism. The reader is asked for a emotional response in excess of wha the occasion merits; emotion replaces ethical and intellectual judgment. Setting – Traditionally, setting is the time and place of a work, but it is so much more. Setting is not accidental. It is a vital part of the narrative, and it can serve many functions. You could consider setting in light of the following: Generality – to underscore the universality of the work (e.g., “The Open Boat”) Specificity – to create a definitive ambiance that impacts on the work’s possibilities (e.g., Gone with the Wind) Character or foil – in relation to the protagonist (e.g., The Perfect Storm) Limiting factor – to allow the plot, character, and theme to develop (e.g., Lord of the Flies) To reveal style (The Secret Sharer) To reveal character (Hedda Gabler) To reveal theme (Heart of Darkness) Semantics – The branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their historical and psychological development, their connotations, and their relation to one another. Sibilance – Hissing sounds represented by s, z and sh. Simile – A simile is a commonly used figure of speech that compares two otherwise unlike one objects or ideas using the words “like,” “as,” or “seems.” For example, the sentence, “He was so thirsty that he drank like a camel”; contains the simile -‐like a camel. Soliloquy – A speech delivered by a character who speaks his or her thoughts out loud alone on the stage.
22 Sonnet – A sonnet is a distinctive poetic style that uses a system or pattern of metrical structure and verse composition usually consisting of fourteen lines, arranged in a set rhyme scheme or pattern. There are two main styles of sonnet, the Italian sonnet and the English (Shakespearean) sonnet. 1. The Italian or Petrarchan sonnet has 14 lines and is usually written in iambic pentameter. It consists first of an octave, or eight lines, which asks a question or states a problem or proposition and follows the rhyme scheme ABBA, ABBA. The sestet, or last six lines, offers an answer, or a resolution to the proposed problem, and follows the rhyme scheme CDECDE. 2. In the English or Shakespearean sonnet has 14 lines where the octave and sestet were replaced by three quatrains, each having its own independent rhyme scheme typically rhyming every other line, and ending with a rhyme couplet. Instead of the Italianic break between the octave and the sestet, the break comes between the twelfth and thirteenth lines. The ending couplet is often the main thought change of the poem, and has an epigrammatic ending. It follows the rhyme scheme ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, GG. 3. A variation on the English Sonnet, the Spenserian Sonnet created by Edmund Spencer (1552-‐1599), is composed of three quatrains in an interlocking rhyme scheme of ABAB, BCBC, CDCD, EE. This suggests the linked form of the Italian Terza Rima. This poem does not require that the octave set up a problem that the sestet solves. Sound Devices – see alliteration, onomatopoeia, repetition, rhyme and rhythm. Speaker – The speaker is the narrator or voice that a reader hears in a story, poem, or drama. The speaker should not be confused with the author, who creates the voice of the speaker: the speaker is a fictional persona. Spondee – See meter. Stanza – A grouping of two or more lines within a poem. A stanza is comparable to a paragraph in prose. Some common stanza forms include: Couplet – Two consecutive lines of verse with the same rhyme. One of William Shakespeare’s trademarks was to end a sonnet with a couplet, as in the poem “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day”: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long as lives this, and this gives life to thee. Tercet or triplet – three line stanz Quatrain – four line stanza that can be considered as a unit; a poem consisting of four lines Cinquain or quintet – five line stanza Sestet or sextet – six line stanza usually paired with an Octave in a Petrarchan sonnet Septet – seven line stanza Octave – eight line stanza usually combined with sestet in a Petrarchan sonnet Continuous Form – Poetry not divided into stanzas. Envoi or Envoy – A conventionalized stanza at the close of a poem. The envoi may provide a summary or simply serve to dispatch the poem. Sonnet – fourteen line stanza Stage Directions – The instructions to the actors, director and stage crew in the script of a play. Static Character – see character Stereotype – A broad generalization or an oversimplified view that disregards individual differences. Story Mapping – A visual organizer that helps a reader understand a work of literature by tracking setting, characters, events and conflicts.
23 Style – The consideration of style has two purposes: 1. An evaluation of the sum of the choices an author makes in blending diction, syntax, figurative language, and other literary devices. Typical adjectives to describe style include; flowery, explicit, succinct, rambling, bombastic, commonplace, incisive, laconic, etc. Some authors’ styles are so idiosyncratic that we can quickly recognize works by the same author. 2. Classification of authors to a group and comparison of an author to similar authors. We can see, through comparison and contrast, how an author’s style reflects and helps define a historical period. Subplot -‐ see plot Subtext – implied meaning of a work or section of a work. It involves reading between the lines to discover subtle attitudes, comments, and observations within the piece. The exploration of subtext utilizes all of your interpretive skills. Summarizing – The process of briefly recounting the main ideas of a piece of writing in a person’s own words, while omitting unimportant details. See paraphrasing. Suspense – A feeling of growing tension and excitement. Writers create suspense by raising questions in readers’ minds about what might happen. Syllogism – A syllogism is a form of deductive reasoning in which pieces of evidence are used to create a new conclusion. For instance, the sentence “All children are imaginative: Sam is a child; therefore Sam is imaginative,” employs deductive reasoning and is a syllogism. The major premise – all children are imaginative; the minor premise – Sam is a child; conclusion – Sam is imaginative. A syllogism’s conclusion is only valid if each of the two premises is valid. Symbolism – A symbol uses something specific to that stands for something else, especially an idea. For example, a dove may represent peace. Typically a symbol is something concrete – such as an object, action, character, or scene; that represents something more abstract. 1. Nature symbols are objects and occurrences from nature to symbolize ideas commonly associated with them; rose=love, tree=knowledge 2. Conventional symbols are that have been invested with meaning by a group; national symbols like the flag or bald eagle; skull and crossbones for pirates; scale for law and justice 3. Literary symbols are sometimes also conventional in that they are found in a variety of works and are generally recognized. Synecdoche – A literary technique in which the one of the parts represents the whole (genus named for species), or vice versa (species named for genus). Example: “You've got to come take a look at my new set of wheels.” The vehicle here is represented by its parts, or wheels. See metonymy. Synesthesia – Describing one kind of sensation in terms of another (e.g., sound as color, color as sound, sound as taste, color as temperature). Syntax – Syntax refers to the way words are arranged in a sentence. Includes sentence length and complexity; the variety and pattern of sentence form; inversion of natural word order; unusual juxtaposition; repetition; parallelism; use of active or passive voice; level of discourse (see usage); order, including emphatic or subordinate position of elements, etc. For example, the following two sentences share a similar meaning, but have different syntax, or word order: "The big blue sky beckoned her" essentially says the same thing as “She was beckoned by the big blue sky.” Syntactic Fluency – Ability to create a variety of sentence structures, appropriately complex and/or simple and varied in length. Tension – Tension, in a work of literature, is a feeling of excitement and expectation the reader or audience feels because of the conflict, mood, or atmosphere of the work. Tercet – see stanza.
24 Texture – Texture describes the way the elements of a work of prose or poetry are joined together. It suggests an association with the style of the author -‐ whether, for instance, the author's prose is rough-‐hewn (elements at odds with one another) or smooth and graceful (elements flow together naturally). Theme – The theme of a work is usually considered the central idea or moving force that the story is all about. It’s the “why” behind the “what,” the universal concept or comment on the big picture, the major insight, the raison d’etre. It is a common thread or repeated idea that is incorporated throughout a literary work. It is usually a thought or idea the author presents to the reader about life or human nature. The author utilizes the setting, characters, plot, figurative language, diction, syntax, and other literary devices to assist the reader in this endeavor. The author often intertwines the theme throughout the work, and the full impact is slowly realized as the reader processes the text. The ability to recognize a theme is important because it allows the reader to understand part of the author’s purpose in writing the book. There can be several themes in a single work. In The Woman Warrior, for instance, Maxine Hong Kingston includes endurance, loyalty, bravery, intelligence, fortune, and risk as themes variously treated and dramatized. Third-‐Person Point-‐of-‐View: see point-‐of-‐view. Tone – Tone, which can also be called attitude, is the way the author presents a subject. An author's tone can be serious, scholarly, humorous, mournful, ironic, just to name a few examples. A correct perception of the author's tone is essential to understanding a particular literary work; misreading an ironic tone as a serious one, for instance, could lead you to miss the humor in a description or situation. When an author assigns less significance to an event or thing than it deserves, the result is an understatement For example, if a writer refers to a very destructive monsoon as "a bit of wind," the power of the event is being deliberately understated. Tragedy – A dramatic work that presents the downfall of a dignified character or characters who are involved in historically or socially significant events. Tragedy presents humans as grand and godlike. The events in a tragic plot are set in motion by a decision that is often an error in judgment. Succeeding events inevitably lead to a disastrous conclusion, usually death. Tragic Hero – see character/Aristotelian tragic hero/heroine. Trait – see characterization. Transition – Do not be fooled into thinking that “transition” is an unimportant term. An author will give you aroad map through his or her story’s journey, and one of th ebest indicators of direction is the trnsition word or phrase. Transitions help to move the reader smoothly from one part of the text to another. Here is a list of the most effective comonly used transitions: And Also Nonetheless In the same way Because But Besides Similarly On the contrary Once For Consequently Still On the other hand Since Nor Furthermore Therefore Otherwise Unless Or However As a result Unlike the former Until So Likewise For example After While yet Moreover In addition Although First, second, third Trochee – see meter. Trope – A trope is any departure from "ordinary" language in a literary text. "Trope" means "turn"; the term implies a turning away from conventional uses of words. Tropes include metaphors, similes, repetitions, and other figures of speech. Turn/Volta – A rhetorical figure that provides a change in thought signaled by words like but, however, and yet. In the Petrarchan sonnet, a turn begins the sestet (at line 9); in a Shakespearean sonnet, it may occur after the quatrains, as the couplet begins in line 13.
25 Understatement – A statement that is restrained in ironic contrast to what might have been said; the opposite of hyperbole. Understatement is usually used for a humorous effect. Example: During the second war with Iraq, American troops complained of a fierce sand storm that made even the night-‐vision equipment useless. A British commando commented about the storm: “It’s a bit breezy.” See litotes. Unreliable Narrator – see point-‐of-‐view Urban Legend – A contemporary story that is told in many rumored versions that have little basis in fact. Usage – In literature, refers to the level of discourse; characteristics of the words that are not standard and require a dictionary label, such as: informal, formal, slang, offensive, cliché, jargon, regional, technical, archaic, obsolete, and chiefly British. Use of such non-‐standard words may help create characterization and tone in a work of literature. Vernacular – The language spoken by the people who live in a particular locality. Villanelle – see poetry. Voice – An author or narrator’s distinctive style or manner of expression. Voice can reveal much about the author or narrator’s personality. How the speaker of a literary work presents himself or herself to the reader determines that speaker's unique voice. For example, the speaker's voice can be loud or soft, personal or cold, strident or gentle, authoritative or hesitant, or can have any manner or combination of characteristics. Voice is also a grammatical term. A sentence can be written in either active or passive voice. A simple way to tell the difference is to remember that when the subject performs the action in the sentence, the voice is active (for example, "I sent the letter"); when the subject is acted upon, the voice is passive (for example, "The letter was sent by me.”). Zeugma – the term “zeugma” refers to a particular breech of sense in a sentence. It occurs when a word is used with two adjacent words in the same construction, but only makes literal sense with one of them. For example, in the sentence, “She carried an old tapestry bag and a walk that revealed a long history of injury,” the verb carried makes sense with the word “bag,” but not with the word “walk,” and so is an instance of zeugma. Writing Movements And Styles To Know Old English [449 -‐ 1066] – Germanic tradition of Anglo-‐Saxon settlers. Middle English [1066 -‐ 1485] -‐ Middle English became important as a literary language during the 14th century, with poets such as Chaucer, Langland, John Gower, and the Pearl Poet. There was also an interest in writing in vernacular during the Lollard movement, with religious theologians and dissenters John Wycliffe and John Purvey writing for the cause. Since the printing press was not in use in England before the 1470s, no original Middle English works are available in print; Chaucer's Canterbury Tales was first printed in 1478. No Bibles were ever printed in Middle English; Wycliffe's Bibles of 1382 to 1395 were copied by scribes and are therefore manuscripts. Renaissance [1485 -‐ 1660] – Development of modern English. Despite the popular belief that Shakespeare’s writing was in Middle English, he actually wrote in early Modern English that developed during the Renaissance. Plain Style (American Lit) – Writing style that stresses simplicity and clarity of expression (but will still utilize allusions and metaphors), and was the main form of the Puritan writers. Puritanism also known as Colonial (American Lit) [1620 -‐ 1770s] – Writing style of America’s early English-‐speaking colonists. Emphasizes obedience to God and consists mainly of journals, sermons, and poems. Restoration or Neoclassicism or Rationalism [1660s -‐ 1789] – A movement that began in Europe in the seventeenth century, which held that we can arrive at truth by using our reason rather than relying on the
26 authority of the past, on the authority of the Church, or an institution. Also called Neoclassicism and The Age of Reason. Romanticism [early 1780s -‐ 1832] – A revolt against Rationalism that affected literature and the other arts, beginning in the late eighteenth century and remaining strong throughout most of the nineteenth century. Victorian Era [1832 -‐ 1901] – Was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death, on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities, and national self-‐ confidence for Britain. Realism (American Lit) [1850s -‐early 1900s] – A style of writing, developed in the nineteenth century, that attempts to depict life accurately without idealizing or romanticizing it. Regionalism (American Lit) [1884 -‐ early 1900s] – Literature that emphasizes a specific geographic setting and that reproduces the speech, behavior, and attitudes of the people who live in that region. Naturalism (American Lit) [late 1800s -‐ mid 1900s] – A nineteenth century literary movement that was an extension of realism and that claimed to portray life exactly as it was. Surrealism (American Lit) [early 1920s – 1960s] – An avant-‐garde movement in art and literature that started in Europe during the 1920s. Surrealists wanted to replace conventional realism with the full expression of the unconscious mind, which they considered to be more real than the “real” world of appearances through, for example, the irrational juxtaposition of images. Symbolism (Principally French) [1860s -‐ 1930] – A literary movement that originated in late nineteenth century France, in which writers rearranged the world of appearances in order to reveal a more truthful version of reality. Transcendentalism (American Lit) [late 1820s and 1830s] – A nineteenth century movement in the Romantic tradition, which held that every individual could reach ultimate truths through spiritual intuition, which transcends reasons and sensory experience. Modernism [1920s -‐ 1945] – A term for the bold new experimental styles and forms that swept the arts during the first third of the twentieth century. Impressionism [1800s] – A nineteenth-‐century movement in literature and art that originated with a group of Paris-‐based artists. The name is derived from Claude Monet, which advocated a recording of the artist’s personal impressions of the world, rather than a strict, or accurate representations of reality. TIME LINE: Old English 449 -‐1066 Middle English 1066 – 1485 Renaissance 1485 – 1660 Puritanism 1620 -‐ 1770s Neoclassicism 1760s -‐ early 1789 Romanticism early 1780s – 1832 Victorian 1832 -‐1901 Realism 1850s -‐early 1900s Regionalism 1884 -‐ early 1900s Naturalism – late 1800s -‐ mid 1900s Surrealism – from 1920s Modernism -‐ 1920s -‐ [1945] [Post-‐Modernism -‐ 1945 -‐ ]