Study your flashcards anywhere!
Download the official Cram app for free >
- Shuffle
Toggle OnToggle Off
- Alphabetize
Toggle OnToggle Off
- Front First
Toggle OnToggle Off
- Both Sides
Toggle OnToggle Off
- Read
Toggle OnToggle Off
How to study your flashcards.
Right/Left arrow keys: Navigate between flashcards.right arrow keyleft arrow key
Up/Down arrow keys: Flip the card between the front and back.down keyup key
H key: Show hint (3rd side).h key
A key: Read text to speech.a key
249 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
abstract words
|
words used to discuss intangible qualities like good and evil
|
|
accent
|
the stressed portion of a word in poetry
|
|
ad hominem argument
|
argument that appeals to emotion rather than reason; may attack the messenger rather than the message
|
|
aesthetic
|
appealing to the senses, a coherent sense of taste, the study of beauty
|
|
aestehticism
|
devotion to the idea of beauty in art
|
|
aleatory
|
an alogical poem, seems composed by chance
|
|
allegory
|
a story in which each aspect has symbolic meaning outside the story
|
|
alliteration
|
repetition of initial consonant sounds
|
|
allusion
|
reference to a famous work or figure outside the poem
|
|
amplification
|
repeating a word, and adding more modifiers each time
|
|
anachronism
|
an object misplaced in time
|
|
anacoluthon
|
finishing a sentence with different grammatical structure from that with which it began
|
|
analogy
|
a comparison, involving two or more symbolic parts, employed to clarify an action or a relationship
|
|
anapestic
|
metrical measurement of two unstressed syllables and then one stressed one
|
|
anaphora
|
repetition of the same words at the beginning of successive sentences or clauses
|
|
anecdote
|
a short story
|
|
antagonist
|
one that contends with or opposes another
|
|
antecedent
|
a word, phrase, or clause that determines what a pronoun refers to
|
|
anthropomorphism
|
inanimate objects are given human characteristics, but no human shape
|
|
anticlimax
|
an action produces far smaller results than one had led to expect, comic
|
|
antihero
|
a protagonist who is markedly unheroic
|
|
antimetabole
|
reversing the order of repeated words/clauses to intensify the sentence, present alternatives, or show contrast
|
|
antiphrasis
|
one word irony (calling a beautiful girl "ugly")
|
|
antistrophe
|
repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive lines
|
|
antithesis
|
juxtaposition of opposites
|
|
aphorism
|
a short and witty saying
|
|
apocopated rhyme
|
a cut-off rhyme; last syllable of one of the rhymes is missing
|
|
apologia
|
a defense of one's opinions, actions or life
|
|
apologue
|
moral fable using animals to comment on human condition
|
|
aporia
|
expression of doubt about conclusions
|
|
aposiopesis
|
stopping abruptly and leaving statement unfinished
|
|
apostrophe
|
speech is directed to a nonhuman object or one that is not present
|
|
appositive
|
a noun or phrase placed next to another noun, for the purpose of further describing
|
|
archaism
|
use of deliberately old-fashioned diction
|
|
archetype
|
the original pattern or model of which all things of a similar nature are copies
|
|
ars poetica
|
a poem written on the subjec tof poetic art, usually explaining poet's reasons for writing
|
|
aside
|
a speech made by an actor to the audience as though momentarily stepping outside the action on stage
|
|
assonance
|
the repeated use of internal vowel sounds
|
|
atmosphere
|
the emotional tone or background that surrounds a scence
|
|
aubade
|
a love song or poem greeting the dawn
|
|
ballad
|
a long narrative poem in regular meter and rhyme
|
|
bathos
|
writing that strains for grandeur it can't support
|
|
blank verse
|
unrhymed iambic pentameter
|
|
bombast
|
pretentious, exaggeratedly learned language
|
|
burlesque
|
broad parody that takes on a specific style and makes fun of it
|
|
cacophony
|
using deliberately harsh, awkward sounds
|
|
cadence
|
the beat or rhythm of poetry
|
|
caesura
|
a pause in a line of poetry (indicated or not)
|
|
camera eye narrator
|
third-person narrator who describes what would be visible to a camera; objective
|
|
canto
|
a section division in a long work of poetry
|
|
caricature
|
a portrait that exaggerates a facet of personality
|
|
carpe diem
|
the enjoyment of the pleasures of the moment without concern for the future
|
|
catalogue
|
a complete enumeration of items, arranged systematically, with descrptive details
|
|
catharsis
|
cleansing of emotion an audience member experiences, having lived through the experiences
|
|
Chaucerian stanza
|
7-lines, rhyme ababbcc
|
|
chorus
|
the group of citizens who stand outside the main action on stage and comment on it
|
|
classicism
|
a tendency to reflect the principles manifested in the art of ancient Greece and Rome
|
|
climax
|
the point of highest tension, or a major turning point in a play
|
|
coinage
|
a new word, usually invented on the spot
|
|
colloquialism
|
a word or phrase used in everyday conversational English
|
|
conceit
|
an extended metaphor, developed and expanded upon over several lines
|
|
concrete poetry
|
a poem wherein shape of words and lines conveys the meaning
|
|
confessional poetry
|
makes frank, explicit use of incidents in the poet's life
|
|
connotation
|
the association with a word; the word suggests/implies meaning beyond the literal
|
|
consonance
|
repetition of consonant sounds within words
|
|
continuous form
|
a poem in which lines follow each other without stanza breaks
|
|
couplet
|
a pair of lines ending in rhyme
|
|
dactylic
|
a metrical measurement of one accented syllable and two unaccented
|
|
decorum
|
the attitude one should display according to his social/economic status
|
|
denotation
|
a word's literal meaning
|
|
denouement
|
conclusion; the outcome of a plot
|
|
determinism
|
belief that man is fated to defeat under indifferent natural forces; emphasizes vanity of free will
|
|
deus ex machina
|
"god from the machine" -conflicts quickly resolved at end, often by sudden introduction of a power who solves all
|
|
diacope
|
repetition of words before and after syntactical break (We will do it, I tell you, we will do it)
|
|
dialect
|
the characteristic speech of a particular region or group
|
|
diction
|
the author's choice of words
|
|
didactic
|
primary purpose is to teach
|
|
dirge
|
a song for the dead
|
|
dissonance
|
the grating of incompatible sounds
|
|
doggerel
|
crude, simplistic verse, often in sing-song rhyme
|
|
dramaatic monologue
|
single speaking in literature talks to silent audience
|
|
dramatic poem
|
a poem that has a conflict
|
|
dualistic
|
two-valued, eg. good/evil
|
|
dystopia
|
opposite of utopia, society where social and technological advances have serve dto aid corruption
|
|
elegy
|
poem on death or mortality
|
|
encomium
|
a laudatory poem for a legendary or real person
|
|
enjambment
|
continuation of syntax over line break
|
|
enumeratio
|
listing parts, cause, effect, for added emphasis
|
|
epic
|
a long narrative poem on a serious theme in a dignified style; often describes glorious or pround subject
|
|
epigram
|
a short poem intended to impart wisdom
|
|
epigraph
|
a quotation that is placed at the start of a work or section that expresses what will be said
|
|
epiphany
|
a sudden realization or comprehension of the meaning of something
|
|
epistle
|
a letter directed or sent to a group of people
|
|
epistrophe
|
repeat of same word(s) at the end of sentences
|
|
epitaph
|
lines that commemorate the dead at the burial place
|
|
epithalamium
|
a peom that is written for the bride; celebration of a wedding
|
|
epithet
|
a word preceding or following a name which serves to describe
|
|
epizeuxis
|
repetition of the same word for emphasis
|
|
eponym
|
substituting the name of a famous person for a description
|
|
eulogy
|
formal expression of praise, usually given a a funeral
|
|
euphemism
|
a word that takes the place of a more harsh or inappropriate word
|
|
euphony
|
sounds blending harmoniously
|
|
euphuism
|
elegant Victorian prose sytle (filled with alliteration and similes)
|
|
exemplum
|
citing an example
|
|
expletive
|
word interrupting syntax to give emphasis to words around it
|
|
expressionism
|
emphasizes the life of the mind and feelings rather than the realistic external details of everyday life
|
|
eye of the poem
|
the central focus of the poem
|
|
falling rhyme
|
feminine rhyme; ending with unaccented last syllable
|
|
farce
|
a comedy of unlikely, but possible, situations
|
|
feminine rhyme
|
falling rhyme, ending with unaccented last syllable
|
|
figurative image
|
representation of one thing by another
|
|
first person narrator
|
a character in the story who tells the tale from his/her point of view
|
|
flashback
|
a scene that interrupts the action to show an event that happened earlier
|
|
foil
|
a secondary character whose purpose is to highlight the characteristics of a main character
|
|
foot
|
basic rhythmic unit of a line of poetry, formed by two or three syllables, stressed or not
|
|
foreshadowing
|
an event or statement that, in minature, suggests a larger event that comes later
|
|
free verse
|
poetry without regular rhyme or meter
|
|
genre
|
a sub-category of literature; categorizes literature by types
|
|
gothic
|
use of eerie themes and images
|
|
haiku
|
Japanese poetry with 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables
|
|
half rhyme
|
words that almost rhyme; slant rhyme
|
|
hamartia
|
tragic flaw or error which brings down the protagonist of a tragedy
|
|
Harlem Renaissance
|
flowering of African American art and music in the 1920s; center was in Harlem, New York
|
|
head rhyme
|
another word for alliteration
|
|
heptameter
|
poem of seven metrical feet
|
|
heroic couplet
|
a rhyming couplet in iambic pentameter
|
|
hexameter
|
poetic form of six metrical feet
|
|
homonyms
|
words that sound alike but have different spellings and meanings
|
|
hubris
|
excessive pride/ambition which leads to character's downfall
|
|
hyperbaton
|
departure from normal word order; a form of inversion
|
|
hyperbole
|
exaggeration or deliberate overstatement
|
|
hypophora
|
raising a question then proceeding to answer it
|
|
iambic
|
a metrical foot with an unstressed first syllable and a stressed second syllable
|
|
in media res
|
a piece of writing that begins in the middle of the action
|
|
incongruity
|
the joining of opposites to create an unexpected situation
|
|
interior monologue
|
recording of mental talk in character's head
|
|
invective
|
speech/writing that abuses, denounces, attacks
|
|
inversion
|
switching the customary order of elements in a sentence or phrase
|
|
irony
|
events turn out exactly the opposite of how they might be expected; saying the opposite of what is meant
|
|
lament
|
a peom of sadness or grief over the death of a loved one or some intense loss
|
|
lampoon
|
a satire
|
|
linked rhyme
|
first syllable of a line echoes the last syllable of the previous line (on the rooftop/ stops the light)
|
|
literal image
|
concrete replication in words of an object or experience
|
|
litotes
|
type of understatement achieved by denying the opposite (i am not unkind)
|
|
local color
|
use of specific details describing dialect, dress, customs, and scenery associated with a particular region
|
|
loose sentence
|
a sentence complete before its end
|
|
lyric
|
poetry that explores the poet's personal interpretation of and feelings about the world
|
|
madrigal
|
a short lyric on love or pastoral themes
|
|
masculine rhyme
|
rhyme ending on the final stressed syllable
|
|
melodrama
|
cheesy theater; often emphasizes plot and action over character development
|
|
metabasis
|
brief summary of what has been said and what will follow
|
|
metanoia
|
modifies a statement by recalling it and expressing it in a better way
|
|
metaphor
|
comparison or analogy that states that one thing is anotehr
|
|
meter
|
rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables that make up feet
|
|
metonymy
|
a single characteristic used to describe something outside itself
|
|
mixed metaphor
|
combination of incompatible comparisons; trying to compare objects too dissimilar to carry off a comparison
|
|
mood
|
prevailing atmosphere created by language, tone, setting
|
|
motif
|
a recurring feature in a work of literature
|
|
narrative
|
a story peom
|
|
naturalism
|
emphaisis on man as animal, behaving strictly according to dictates of nature; emphasizes lack of free will and the sordid
|
|
neo-classicism
|
sees man as flawed w/flawed institutions; nature neither good nor evil; man need sto seek harmony with what is
|
|
neologism
|
coinage; forming a new word, usually spontaneously
|
|
nonce
|
open form poem (shape is unique to peom) written for a special occasion
|
|
novel of manners
|
novel describing social habits/customs of a social group
|
|
octave
|
eight line stanza
|
|
ode
|
long poem on a serious subject that develops its theme with dignified lanuage, intended to be sung
|
|
omniscient narrator
|
a third-person narrator who sees into character's heads
|
|
onomatopoeia
|
words that sound like what they mean
|
|
opposition
|
a pair of elements that constrast sharply
|
|
oxymoron
|
a phrase composed of opposites; a contradiction
|
|
palinode
|
a poem retracting a regretted derogatory statement
|
|
parable
|
a story told in prose or verse that illustrates a religious or ethical idea
|
|
paradigm
|
a formal plan or sequence of changes which acts as a model
|
|
paradox
|
a statement that seems contradictory, but is not
|
|
parallelism
|
repeated syntactical similarities used for effect
|
|
parenthetical
|
a phrase set off by commas that interrupts the flow of a sentence
|
|
parody
|
exaggering a specific work so that it appears ridiculous
|
|
pastoral
|
a poem set in a tranquil nature (ideally around shepherds)
|
|
pathetic fallacy
|
a cliched personification of nature (rain weeds)
|
|
pentameter
|
a line of verse containing five metrical feet
|
|
periodic sentence
|
a sentence that is grammatically incomplete until its final phrase
|
|
persona
|
the character created by the author to narrate
|
|
personification
|
inanimate objects or animals take on human shape
|
|
Petrarchan sonnet
|
14 lines/abba abba cde cde
|
|
picaresque novel
|
novel about a picara or rogue and vagabond
|
|
prelude
|
an introductory poem to a longer work of verse
|
|
private symbol
|
an author's personal symbol that the reader understands through the context
|
|
protagonist
|
the main character of a novel or play
|
|
public voice
|
a writer who is speaking for all people
|
|
pun
|
humorous use of a word in a way to suggest two or more meanings
|
|
pure rhyme
|
initial sounds of a word differ and the rest of the sound is identical
|
|
pyrrhic
|
a metrical foot with two unstressed syllables
|
|
quatrain
|
four-line stanza
|
|
quintet
|
five lines of poetry with no prescribed rhyme
|
|
realism
|
nature is benign and there is optimism that man can rise above his own animal nature if he wills
|
|
refrain
|
a line or set of lines repeated several times in a poem
|
|
requiem
|
a song of prayer for the dead
|
|
rhapsody
|
passionate verse or section of verse, usually addresssing love or praise
|
|
rhetorical question
|
a question that suggests an answer, and therefore doesn't need to be answered
|
|
rhetorical shift
|
a change in tone or attitude; key words include "but", etc
|
|
rhyme royal
|
ababbcc: sounds are staggered (abab) in first lines, then closely linked (bcc)
|
|
ridicule
|
words intended to belittle or generate contempt/laughter
|
|
rising rhyme
|
masculine rhyme; rhyme ending on the final stressed syllable
|
|
romanticism
|
man is good but institutions and their imposed orders are evil; nature is good; man can live in harmony w/nature
|
|
saga
|
generally long novels, often about several generations
|
|
sarcasm
|
ridicule expressed in ironic praise
|
|
satire
|
work in which human vice or folly is attacked with irony, derision or wit
|
|
scansion
|
analysis of a peoms's rhythm and meter
|
|
second intensity
|
weak poems that could have been better
|
|
septet
|
7 lines of poetry
|
|
sestet
|
a stanza or poem of six lines
|
|
sestina
|
a 6 line stanza ending with tercet; last words of each line in 1st stanza are repeated as last words in next stanza
|
|
Shakespearean sonnet
|
14 lines in iambic pentameter, abab cdcd efef gg
|
|
simile
|
comparison using as or like
|
|
slant rhyme
|
half rhyme
|
|
soliloquy
|
speech spoken by single character on stage
|
|
sonnet
|
14 rhymed lines of verse in iambic pentameter
|
|
Spenserian sonenct
|
14 lines, abab bcbc cdcd ee
|
|
spondee
|
a metrical foot with two stresed syllables
|
|
stanza
|
a unit within a longer poem
|
|
stock character
|
standard or cliched character types
|
|
stream of consciousness
|
reading sees inside main character's head and is privy to all character's conscious, random thoughts
|
|
subjunctive
|
setting up a hypothetical situation
|
|
surrealism
|
allowing the subconscious or dream-like imagery to guide the poem; leaps from image to image
|
|
suspension of disbelief
|
demand of audience to accept stage limitations and believe
|
|
syllogism
|
deductive reasoning
|
|
synecdoche
|
a type of metaphor wherein a part stands for the whole
|
|
synesthesia
|
a mixing of senses
|
|
tautology
|
a repetition so redundant as to be frozen with obvious foolishness
|
|
technique
|
styles, devices and diction used by author
|
|
tetrameter
|
a poetic line with four metrical feet
|
|
texture of poem
|
the sound of the poetic words in a piece
|
|
theme
|
general idea or insight about life that writer wishes to convey
|
|
tone
|
the attitude of the poet
|
|
transcendentalism
|
holds that basic truths can be reache dthrough intuition; transcends reason; the divine is in nature and people
|
|
travesty
|
grotesque parody
|
|
trochaic
|
a metrical measurement of one stressed syllable and one unstressed
|
|
trope
|
any figurative language
|
|
truism
|
a way too obvious truth
|
|
understatement
|
ironic minimalizing of fact
|
|
unreliable narrator
|
first person narrator is carzy, very young, or not entirely credible
|
|
utopia
|
an idealized place
|
|
verisimilitude
|
how precisely the characters/events in fiction match reality
|
|
vernacular
|
everyday spoken langugage of people in a particular region
|
|
villanelle
|
19 lines: 5 tercets (aba) + a quatran (abaa)
|
|
voice
|
associated with the basic vision of a writer, her general attitude toward the world
|
|
weak specification
|
imprecise, abstract language
|
|
wit
|
words that are intellectually amusing; delight that surprises
|
|
zeugma
|
word modifies two or more words for different meanings (the dance floor was square as was his personality)
|