Ap English Literary Terms

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Allusion

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A reference in a work if literature to something outside the work, especially to a well-known historical or literary event, person, or work.

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Attitude

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A speaker's, author's, or character's disposition toward or opinion of a subject.

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Details (also choice of details)

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Details are items or parts that make up a larger picture or story.

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Devices of sound

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The techniques of deploying the sound of words, especially in poetry. The devices are used for many reasons, including to create a general effect of pleasant or of discordant sound, to imitate another sound, or to reflect meaning.

Ex. RHYME, ALLITERATION, ASSONANCE, CONSONANCE, AND ONOMATOPOEIA.

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Diction

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Word choice. Any word that is important to the meaning and effect of a passage can be used in your essay.

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Figurative Language

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Writing that uses figures of speech (as opposed to literal language or that which is actual or specifically denoted) such as metaphor, simile, and irony.

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Imagery

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The images of a literary work; the sensory details of a work; the figurative language of a work.

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Irony

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A figure of speech in which intent and actual meaning differ, characteristically praise for blame or blame for praise; a pattern of words that turns away from direct statement of its own obvious meaning.

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Metaphor

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A figurative use of language in which a comparison is expressed without the use of a comparative term like "as," "like," or "than.

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Narrative Techniques

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The methods involved in telling a story; the procedures used by a writer of stories or accounts.

Ex. Point of view, manipulation of time, dialogue, or interior monologue.

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Omniscient point of view

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The vantage point of a story in which the narrator can know, see, and report whatever he or she chooses.

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Point of View

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Any of several possible vantage points from which a story is told.

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Resources of Language

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A general phrase for the linguistic devices or techniques that a writer can use.

Topics include diction, syntax, figurative language, and imagery.

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Rhetorical Techniques

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The devices used in effective or persuasive language.

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Satire

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Writing that seeks to arouse a reader's disapproval of an object by ridicule.

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Setting

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The background to a story; the physical location of a play, story, or novel.

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Simile

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A directly expressed comparison.

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Strategy

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The management of language for a specific effect.

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Structure

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The arrangement of materials within a work; the relationship of the parts of a work to the whole.

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Style

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The mode of expression in language; the characteristic manner of expression of an author.

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Symbol

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Something that is simultaneously itself and a sign of something else.

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Syntax

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The structure of a sentence; the arrangement of words in a sentence.

Disscussions include the length of brevity of the sentences, the kinds of sentences (questions, exclamations, declarative sentences, rhetorical questions- or periodic or loose; simple, complex, or compound).

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Tone

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The manner in which an author expresses his or her attitude; the intonation of the voice that expresses meaning.

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Theme

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The main thought expressed by a work.

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Allegory

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A story in which people. things, and events have another meaning.

Ex. Animal Farm

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Ambiquity

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Multiple meanings a literary work may communicate, especially two meanings tat are incompatible.

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Aposthrope

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Direct address, usually to someone or something that is not present.

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Connotation

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The implications of a word or phrase, as opposed to its exact meaning (denotation).

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Convention

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A device of style or subject matter so often used that it becomes a recognized means of expression.

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Denotation

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The dictionary meaning of a word, as opposed to connotation.

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Didactic

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Explicitly instructive.

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Digression

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The use of material unrelated to the subject of a work.

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Epigram

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A pithy saying, often using contrast.

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Grotesque

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Characterized by distortions or incongruities.

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Hyperbole

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Deliberate exaggeration, overstatement. As a rule, hyperbole is self-conscious, without the intention of being accepted literally.

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Jargon

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The special language of a profession or group.

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Literal

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Not figurative; accurate to the letter; matter of fact or concrete.

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Lyrical

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Song like; characterized by emotion, subjectivity, and imagination.

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Oxymoron

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A combination of opposites; the union of contradictory terms.

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Parable

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A story designed to suggest a principle, illustrate a moral, or answer a question.

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Paradox

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A statement that seems to be self-contradicting but, in fact, is true.

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Parody

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A composition that imitates the style of another composition normally for comic effect.

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Personification

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A figurative use of language which endows the nonhuman with human characteristics.

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Reliability

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A quality of some fictional narrators whose word the reader can trust.

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Rhetorical Question

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A question asked for effect, not in expectation of a reply.

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Soliloquy

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A speech in which a character who is alone speaks his or her thoughts aloud.

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Stereotype

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A conventional pattern, expression, character, or idea.

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Syllogism

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A for of reasoning in which two statements are made and a conclusion is drawn from them.

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Thesis

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The theme, meaning, or position that a writer undertakes to prove or support