Understanding Lit

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accent (stress)

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the emphasis placed upon a syllable in pronnunciation

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anaphora

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a rhetorical figure of repitition in which the same word or phrase is repeated in (and usually at the beginning of) successive lines, clauses, or sentences

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conceit

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an unusually far-fetched or elaborate metaphor or simile presenting a surprisingly apt parallel between two apparently dissimilar things or feelings.

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elegy

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an elaborately formal lyrical poem lamenting the death of a friend or public figure, or reflecting seriously on a solemn object

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epigram

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a short, usually witty statement, often rhymed

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epigraph

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a resonant quotation placed at the beginning of a book or poem

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eye rhyme

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near rhyme of two words pronounced differently but spelled alike, such as "love" and "prove"

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imagery

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the use of language to evoke sense-impressions by literal or figurative reference to perceptible or concrete things; distinct from the language of abstract argument or exposition

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metonymy

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the figure of speech that replaces one thing with the name of something else closely associated with it, such as "the press" for journalism or the "Oval Office" for the presidency

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polyptoton

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a figure of speech in which partial repitition arises from the use in close proximity of two related words having different grammatical forms, such as "going, going, gone"

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prose

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ordindary language without metrical structure or overt rhythmical patterning, the significant unit of composition being the sentence rather than the line.

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verse paragraph

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a group of verse lines forming a subdivision of a poem, determined by the sense of organization rather than a formal stanza poem

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abstract

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describing an idea, concept, theme or feeling as opposed to a thing or person.

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allegory

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serves to convey meaning through a narrative in which abstract notions are embodied and given life by concrete characters and actions.

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alliteration

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refers to the repitition of consonant sounds in words.

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allusion

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a reference within a text to some other text or bit of knowledge outside of the text. involves the author's play upon what is assumed the reader's listerary experience; a brief reference in ones work to a passage or scene from another work.

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ambiguity

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uncertainty or multiplicity of meaning. involves suggestive qualities of expression as opposed to plainly directive statements. may also arise from statements in a single text that seem on the surface to possess contradictory implications or intents.

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apostrophe

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the speaker's direct address to an absent person or to some abstract idea or spirit

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assonance

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a similarity in vowel sounds, but the final consonants differ: date/lake

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blank verse

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unrhymed verse in a prevailing iambic pentameter. lends itself to serious subjects of lofty speech.

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cacophony

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a style marked by harsh, grating, hard sounds.

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caesura

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a pause within a line of poetry. the work may be used to suggest a pause in any text that has built some sense of rythm. may suggest shift in mood, a turn to another subject, a characteristic of common speech

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characterization

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the method of creating character through dialogue, description, or narration.

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colloquial

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casual language that reflects common usage and informal conversation. the language of everyday life.

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concrete

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relating to something or person that has a physical presence, to something we can see, touch, or hear, to something we know through our senses.

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connotation

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what a word suggests that lies beyond what a word means in the strictest tense. may be complex, varied, and subtle.

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consonance

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strikes a similarity in the sounds of the final stressed consonant, but the preceding vowel sounds differ: date/rite

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contextual irony

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arises from circumstances or from coincidence.

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couplet

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a cerse or paragraph made up of two lines.

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denotation

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the literal meaning of a word. the leading definition of a word one would find ina contemporary dictionary.

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diction

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word choice

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didactic work

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literature intended to teach, to instruct readers in points of moral or social significance

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dramatic irony

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signals a distinction between what a character knows and what an audience understands. arises at moments when the audience knows more than the character or characters taht are part of the action.

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end rhyme

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rhyme that falls at the end of the poetic line, the most common place for rhyming words

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end stop

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a full stop at the end of a poetic line

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English sonnet (Shakespearean sonnet)

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a lyric poem of 14 lines that lends itself to a tightly developed problem/response structure. often repeats the complication over the first 12 lines (3 quatrains) and saves the resolution for the final two lines (couplet)

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enjambment

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involves the running of one poetic line into the next without pause.

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eupohony

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smooth marked pleasing sounds

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feminine rhyme

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a rhyme of two syllables, the second unstressed. create a light, quick effect.

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figurative language

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and language that is used in ways that deviate from standard significance, order or meaning

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first-person narrator

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narrator uses "I"

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foot

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the combination of one stressed and one or more unstressed syllables that constitutes the recurring rhythmic unit within the larger pattern of a poetic line

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free verse

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poetry that is not marked by any regular metrical scheme or pattern of rhyme. acheived through repeated images or through purposeful variation of line length

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genre

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literary/artistic type or kind.

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hyperbole

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deliberate overstatement, exaggeration

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iamb

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a metrical unit within a poetic line. consists of two syllables, the first unstressed and the second stressed (aTTEMPT) or multiple words (in LOVE)

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iambic pentameter

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a line consisting of ten syllables marked by prevailing iambs

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internal rhyme

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rhyme that occurs within a poetic line as opposed to the end of the line

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Italian sonnet

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lyric poem made up of 14 lines that lends itself to a tightly developed problem/response structure. builds the complication in the first 8 lines (octave) and the resolution is delivered after the turn in the final 6 lines (sestet)

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lyric

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in the modern sense, any fairly short poem expressing the mood, feeling, or meditation of a single speaker.

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masculine rhyme

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a rhyme in which the rhyming syllable falls on the stressed and final syllable

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metaphor

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a joining of two qualities or things to create new meaning. typically says one thing IS another.

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meter

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the regulare and therefore discernable rhythmic pattern of sounds that can be charted in poetry line by line

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objective narrator

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a narrator who reports from the outside what can be seen but makes no effort to get inside the minds of any character (2nd person narrator)

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octave

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a stanza of 8 lines

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ode

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characterized by elements of mood and subject; they are substantial poems of a meditative cast - serious and dignified.

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omniscient narrator

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a narrator who knows everything about the characters' actiosna dn thoughts (3rd person narrator)

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paradox

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an expression that seems to contradict itself but that actually realizes something genuine and deeply coherent. demands that we question common assumptions or understandings

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paraphrase

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involves a superficial revision of the original text; the writer of a paraphrase stays close to the logic, length and language of the original. like a summary

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pastoral

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marked by setting in the quiet countryside amid a gently cultivated nature. a peaceful and uncomplicated way of life away from the city.

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pentameter

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a line of poetry made up of 5 feet.

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persona (speaker)

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distinct from the poet or author. the voice created by the poet/author of a text.

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personification

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projecting animate (human or animal) qualities on an inanimate thing.

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plot

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a meaningful fabric of action. suggests structure (beginning, middle, end). suggests what happend and how.

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point of view

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the point from which one sees. signals the narrative perspective. the way a story is related. who tells the story as well as how the teller's interests, personality, motives, and background influence what is being told.

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quatrain

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a verse paragraph made up of four lines

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reliable narrator

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a narrator who offers accurate information and a credible interpretation of action. one who establishes and rewards trust.

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rhetorical figure

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uses a word or words in an unusual context or sequence but does not radically change the customary meaning of the word or words

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rhythm

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the pattern of sounds perceived as the recurrence of equivalent “beats” at more of less equal intervals

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sestet

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a stanza of 6 lines.

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sestina

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a highly complicated fixed poetic form. consists of 6 sestets and a concluding tercet (3 lines). the six words that close the first sestet must also appear at the ends of the other sestets and then must appear in the final tercet. the repitition serves to foreground or develop themes and feeligns central to the whole.

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setting

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the total environment within which narrative actions take place. the character's living conditions as well as the time and place in which they live constitute setting.

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simile

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a comparison that lines two things with like or as.

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slant (off-) rhyme

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rhyme in which the sounds of the final stressed consonant are similar, but the preceding vowel sounds differ. similar to consonance
ex-that/met

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sonnet

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a lyric poem of 14 lines that lends itself to a tightly developed problem/response structure. the opening section is often called the complication. the second part is the resolution.

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spondee

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consists of two consecutive stressed syllables. is a variant or subsititution of a standard rhythmic unit. may break a pattern, but it cannot be the pattern (a line cannot be made up of only stressed syllables).

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stanza

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a verse paragraph organized by a pattern of rhyme. the most commonforms are the couplet, tercet and quatrain.

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symbol

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a type of trope in which an object or image comes torepresent something more than or other than the object or image alone.

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synaesthesia

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the conflation or cross association of two ore more of the five senses.

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synechdoche

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a figure of speech in which a part represents the whole (ex. all hands on deck)

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syntax

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word-order.

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tercet

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a verse paragraph made up of three lines

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tetrameter

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a line of poetry made up of four feet.

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theme

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a recurrent idea or feeling woven through a text. often subjective and open ended.

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third person narrator

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narrator refers to all characters as "he" or "she" or "they"

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tone

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refers to the author’s attitude toward the reader or subject-matter; more vaguely, a term designating the mood or atmosphere of a work.

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trimeter

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a line of poetry made up of three feet.

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trope

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use words to turn from conventional understanding; significantly alter or enlarge meaning. also called a figure of thought. metaphor, simile, sarcasm and personification are all tropes.

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turn

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suggest a transition space between the complication and the resolution in a sonnet. can suggest a sudden movement against a main line of development in any literary work.

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verbal irony

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most common ironic mode; suggests a deliberate play upon the difference between what is said and what is meant.

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villanelle

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a fixed and especially complex poetic form. consists of 19 lines. the first 15 are made up of a series of five tercets. a quatrain closes the poem.