Shared Flashcard Set

Details

English III AP Literary Terms
e_e
31
English
12th Grade
01/13/2014

Additional English Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Alliteration
Definition
the repetition of consonant sounds in the initial position of adjacent words
Term
Anastrophe (inversion)
Definition
a technique in which the typical order of words is reversed or rearranged in order to achieve a particular effect of emphasis or meter
Term
Apostrophe
Definition
a figure of speech in which someone (usually but not always absent), some abstract quality or a nonexistent personage is directly addressed as though present
Term
Caesura
Definition
a pause in or near the middle of a line of verse, especially prominent in Anglo-Saxon (and Icelandic) poetry
Term
Catharsis
Definition
relief that comes as a result of the purging of pity and fear (in response to tragedy)
Term
Couplet
Definition
a pair of rhyming lines
Term
Deus ex machina
Definition
in a plot, the employment of some unexpected and improbably incident to make things turn out right
Term
Foil
Definition
a person/character who through contrast underscores the distinctive characteristics of another
Term
Hamartia
Definition
error or frailty
Term
Hubris
Definition
excessive pride (often a tragic hero's tragic flaw)
Term
Inversion (Anastrophe)
Definition
a technique in which the typical order of words is reversed or rearranged in order to achieve a particular effect of emphasis or meter
Term
Kenning
Definition
a metaphorical compound used as a substitute for a person or thing (i.e. whale road, wave traveler, army net)
Term
Metaphysical Conceit
Definition
an extended metaphor that makes an unusually striking, original, and elaborate connection between two quite dissimilar things
Term
Meter
Definition
the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in verse
Term
Motif
Definition
a repeated word, phrase, image, or idea that serves to unify a work of literature
Term
Octave
Definition
an eight-line unit, which may constitute a stanza or a section of a poem, as in the octave of a sonnet
Term
Paradox
Definition
a statement that seems to contradict or oppose itself but is actually true
Term
Parody
Definition
a humorous, mocking imitation of a literary work, sometimes sarcastic, but often playful and even respectful in its playful imitiation
Term
Quatrain
Definition
a four-line stanza in a poem; the first four lines and the second four lines in an Italian sonnet. A Shakespearean sonnet contains three quatrains followed by a couplet
Term
Recognition
Definition
the point (in tragedy) the hero realizes his bad fortune (Anagorisis)
Term
Reversal
Definition
the point (in tragedy) when a hero's fortunes turn in an unexpected direction (Peripeteia)
Term
Sestet
Definition
a six-line unit of verse constituting a stanza or section of a poem; the last six lines of an Italian sonnet
Term
Soliloquy
Definition
a speech in a play that is meant to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on the stage. If there are no other characters present, the soliloquy represents the character thinking aloud
Term
Volta
Definition
literally, a turn

a sonnet has a volta (a turn in thought or a marked shift), typically in line 9 or line 13.
Term
Dichotomy
Definition
division into two mutually exclusive, opposed, or contradictory groups (i.e. good vs. evil)
Term
Didactic
Definition
intended for instruction; teaching or intending to teach a moral lesson
Term
Fatalistic
Definition
accepting all things and events as inevitable; submissive to fate
Term
Penultimate
Definition
next to last
Term
Peripeteia
Definition
hero's fortune turning in a bad thing (reversal)
Term
Anagorisis
Definition
point in plot where protagonist recognizes their or someone's true identity or situation
Term
Parados
Definition
chorus' first song
Supporting users have an ad free experience!