Literary Terms Grade 11 Set #2

Front 1

Foreshadowing

Back 1

Giving hints and clues of what is to come later in the story.

Front 2

Genre

Back 2

a category to type of literature based on its style, form, and content. i.e. mystery

Front 3

Gothic Novel

Back 3

a type of fiction characterized by gloomy castles, ghosts, and supernatural or sensational happenings usually scary. i.e. Frankenstein

Front 4

Hubris

Back 4

excessive pride. In Greek tragedy, it is often viewed as the flaw that leads to the downfall of the hero

Front 5

Imagery

Back 5

words or phrases selected to create a certain picture in the reader's mind - usually based on sensory details.

Front 6

Irony

Back 6

a word or phrase that means the exact opposite of its literal or normal meaning. There are 3 kinds.

Front 7

dramatic irony

Back 7

the reader or audience see a character's mistakes or misunderstandings, but the character does not.

Front 8

verbal irony

Back 8

the writer says one thing and means another.

Front 9

irony of situation

Back 9

there is a great difference between the purpose of a particular action and the result. Expectations are not what necessarily occur in reality.

Front 10

local colour

Back 10

the use of details that are common in a certain region. i.e. "Mama came out and lit into me for sitting there doing nothing. Said I was no-count and shiftless and ..."

Front 11

malapropism

Back 11

When the speaker jumbles the words in a funny way.

Front 12

melodrama

Back 12

an exaggerated, sensational form of drama characterized by heavy use of romance, suspense and emotion.

Front 13

mood

Back 13

the feeling a piece of literature arouses in the reader: happiness, sadness, peacefulness, etc.

Front 14

Plot line

Back 14

the graphic display of the action or events in a story: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution(denouement).

Front 15

poetic justice

Back 15

a character "getting what he/she deserves" in the end. The purest form is when one character plots against another but ends up being caught in his/her own trap.

Front 16

poetry

Back 16

a type of writing which is an imaginative response to experience.

Front 17

point of view

Back 17

the vantage point from which the story is told: 1st person: the story is told by a character.

3rd person: the story is told by someone outside the story.

Front 18

protagonist

Back 18

the main character - usually the good guy

Front 19

pseudonym

Back 19

"pen name" or false name. When a writer or artist uses a different name from the one there parents gave them only for work purposes. i.e. Mark Twain's real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens.

Front 20

pun

Back 20

a word or phrase that is used in such a way as to suggest more than one possible meaning. i.e.

A horse is a very stable animal.

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

Front 21

quest

Back 21

a journey or adventure the characters must go on to find something or achieve a goal.

Front 22

realism

Back 22

literature that attempts to represent life as it really is.

Front 23

Renaissance

Back 23

the period of history following the middle ages. 1500's to 1700s. The term means rebirth and now applies to any period of time in which intellectual and artistic interest is revived or reborn.

Front 24

resolution

Back 24

denouement. The portion of the play or story where the problem is solved. It brings the story to a satisfactory end.

Front 25

rising action

Back 25

the series of conflicts or struggles that build a story or play toward the climax.

Front 26

romance

Back 26

a form of literature that presents life as we would like it to be rather than how it is. Usually, it has a great deal of adventure, love, and excitement.

Front 27

romanticism

Back 27

a literary movement with an emphasis on the imagination and emotions.

Front 28

sarcasm

Back 28

mocking language or fake praise. "He's a real he-man." - when the meaning is the opposite. A specific type of verbal irony.

Front 29

satire

Back 29

a literary tone used to ridicule or make fun of human vice or weakness, often with the intent of correcting or changing the subject of the satiric attack.

Front 30

setting

Back 30

time, place, and accompanying circumstances in which the story/play occurs.

Front 31

slapstick

Back 31

a form of comedy that involved exaggerated and sometimes violent action. i.e. a pie in the face

Front 32

soliloquy

Back 32

a speech delivered by a character when he or she is alone on stage.

Front 33

stereotype

Back 33

a pattern or form that does not change. A character that has no real individuality and fits the mold of a particular type of person. i.e. demanding boss, whiny baby

Front 34

stream of consciousness

Back 34

a style of writing in which the thoughts and feelings of the writer are recorded as they occur. i.e. journal or diary entries.

Front 35

structure

Back 35

form or organization a writer uses for his/her literary work. i.e. parable, fable, romance, satire,farce

Front 36

style

Back 36

how an author uses words, phrases, and sentences for form his/her ideas. Also, the qualities and characteristics that distinguish one writer's work from the work of others.

Front 37

symbol

Back 37

a person, place, thing or event use to represent something else. i.e. the dove is a symbol of peace

Front 38

theme

Back 38

the statement or statements about life that a particular work is trying to make.

Front 39

tone

Back 39

overall feeling or effect created by a writer's use of words. i.e. serious, mock-serious, humorous, satiric

Front 40

tragedy

Back 40

a literary work in which the hero is destroyed by some character flaw and by forces beyond his/her control.

Front 41

tragic hero

Back 41

the character who experiences an inner struggle because of a character flaw. That struggle ends in the defeat of the character.

Front 42

exposition

Back 42

writing that is intended to make clear, or explain, something that might otherwise be difficult to understand. In a play or story, it is the portion that helps the reader to understand the background or situation in which the work is set. (The beginning)

Front 43

personification

Back 43

an animal, object or idea that is spoken of or described as if it had a personality

Front 44

simile

Back 44

a comparison of 2 unlike things in which a word of comparison (like or as) is used: "She stood in front of the altar shaking like a freshly caught trout."

Front 45

understatement

Back 45

stating an idea with restraint (holding back) to emphasize what is being talked about. i.e. "After doing the chores in minus 30 degree weather, Father commented that, "it's a mite chilly out there."

Front 46

Flashback

Back 46

returning to an earlier time for the purpose of making something in the present more understandable

Front 47

foil

Back 47

someone who serves as a contrast or challenge to another character.

Front 48

moral

Back 48

the value or lesson the author is trying to get across to the reader. i.e. "the moral of the story is: liars will get caught"

Front 49

oxymoron

Back 49

2 contradictory words shoved together. i.e. jumbo shrimp, good grief, deafening silence

Front 50

narrator

Back 50

the person telling the story

Front 51

parable

Back 51

a short, descriptive story that illustrates a particular belief or moral. i.e. the parable of the lost coin or the parable of the good samaritan

Front 52

paradox

Back 52

a statement that seems contrary to common sense yet may, in fact, be true: "the coach considered this to be a good loss."

Front 53

parody

Back 53

a form of literature intended to mock/make fun of another particular work or its style: a comic effect is intended. i.e. "Space Balls mocks Star Wars.

Front 54

pathos

Back 54

a Greek root meaning suffering or passion. It usually describes the part in a play or story that is intended to bring out pity or sorrow from the audience.