English Ii Literary Terms

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hyperbole

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exaggeration used to expresss a strong feeling or create a comic effect

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synecdoche

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a figure of speech in which the name of a part is used to refer to the whole; for example, the use of "wheels" to mean "automobile"

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tragic flaw

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character defect that causes the downfall of the protagonist of a tragedy

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blank verse

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poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter

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prose

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the ordinary form of spoken or written language

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litote

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ironic understatement

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anachronism

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an object or person that is not placed in its correct historical time period

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protagonist

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the main character in a literary work

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romance

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a story featuring high born characters in a series of adventrues taht are normally chivalric

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personification

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the attribution of human characteristics to comething non-human

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soliloquy

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a speech in wich a character speaks his thoughts aloud while alone on stage

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pun

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a play upon the multiple meanings of a word or on two words with similar sounds but different meanings

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verse

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a sequence of words arranged metrically in accordance with some rule or design

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metonymy

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a figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated

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aside

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remarks spoken in an undertone by a character, either to the audience or another character on stage

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antagonist

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a person who opposes, fights, or competes with another opponent, usually the protagonist

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foreshadowing

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a writer's use of hints and clues to suggest events that have as yet to occur in a literary work

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metaphor

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a direct comparison between two seemingly unlike things without using the connective words like, as, than, or resembles

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tragedy

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a serious play having an unhappy or disastrous engind brought about by the characters or central character impelled

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simile

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an indirect comparison between two seeminglyunlike things that does used the connective terms like, as, than, or resembles

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soliloquy

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a speech in which a character speaks his thoughts aloud while alone on stage

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hero

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usually the protagonist in a literary work

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imagery

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language that appeals to the five senses

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villain

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a wicked or unprincipled character in a play

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irony

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a contrast or discrepancy between expectations and reality

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drama

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a literary composition that tells a story, usually of human conflict, by means of dialogue and action, to be performed on the stage by actors

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alliteration

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the repetition of initial consonant sounds within the line of verse

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allusion

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an indirect reference, by means of mention or quotation, to something real or fictitious outside the work being read

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theme

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the central idea or message of literary work

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verbal irony

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occurs when a writer or character says one thing but means another, usually the opposite