question

allegory

answer

a narrative in which the characters, behavior, etc. demonstrate symbolism on many levels

question

alliteration

answer

repetition of a similar initial sound, usually consonants (She sells sea shells...)

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allusion

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a literary, historical, religious, or mythological reference

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anaphora

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repetition of the same words or phrases at the beginning of successive phrases

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antithesis

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the juxtaposition of sharply contrasting ideas in balanced or parallel words "To err is human, to forgive divine."

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aphorism

answer

a concise statement designed to illustrate a commonly held belief

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assonance

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the repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds (not always at beginning)

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asyndeton

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a structure without conjunctions in a series (I came, I saw, I conquered)

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attitude

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the sense expressed by the tone of voice or the mood of a piece of writing; the author's feelings toward his or her subject

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begging the question

answer

argumentative strategy where the arguer sidesteps the question or the conflict

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canon

answer

that which has been accepted as authentic

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chiasmus

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syntactical structure wherein the order of the terms in the first half of a parallel clause is reversed int he second (Pleasure's a sin, and sin is a pleasure)

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claim

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in argumentation, an assertion of something as fact

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colloquial

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the diction of the common, ordinary folks especially in a specific area (Coke vs. pop)

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comparison and contrast

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mode of discourse; two or more things are compared, contrasted, or both

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conceit

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a comparison of two unlikley things that is drawn out within a piece of literature; usually extended metaphor in a poem

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connotation

answer

the underlying, implied meaning of a word or phrase

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denotation

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the dictionary definition of a word

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consonance

answer

the repetition of 2+ consonants with a change in intervening vowels

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convention

answer

an accepted manner, model, or tradition (Aristotle's conventions of persuasion)

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critique

answer

analysis of something for the purposes of determining its limitations and how it fits in its genre

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deductive reasoning

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movement from the general to the specific

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dialect

answer

language and speech idiosyncrasies of a specific area

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diction

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word choice an author uses to persuade or convey tone, purpose, or effect

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didactic

answer

writing with an instructive purpose or lesson

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elegy

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poem that lements the death of a person

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epistrophe

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repetition of a phrase at the end of successive sentences (opposite of anaphora)

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epitaph

answer

writing in praise of a dead person on a headstone

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ethos

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appeal of a text to the credibility and character of the speaker

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eulogy

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speech in praise of a person (elegy laments, eulogy praises)

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euphemism

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an indirect or less harsh way of expressing unpleasant information

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exposition

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the interpretation or analysis of a text

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extended metaphor

answer

series of comparisons within a piece of writing

question

figurative language

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levels of meaning expressed through figures of speech (metaphor, hyperbole, irony, etc.)

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flashback/retrospection

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an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronology of the narration

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genre

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type or class of literature

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homily

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sermon, but more contemporary

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hyperbole

answer

overstatement characterized by exaggerate language

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imagery

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any sensory detail or evocation in a work

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inductive reasoning

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movement from the specific to the general

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inference

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a conclusion or proposition arrived at by considering facts, observations, or data

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irony

answer

contrast between what is stated and what is really meant

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verbal irony

answer

what the author says is actually the opposite of what is meant

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situational irony

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when events end up the opposite of what is expected

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dramatic irony

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facts or situations are known to the reader or audience but not to the characters

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isocolon

answer

parallel structure in which the parallel elements are similar not only in grammatical structure, but also in length

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jargon

answer

specialized language of a trade or profession

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juxtaposition

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location of one thing adjacent to another to create an effect or reveal an attitude

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litote

answer

figure of speech that emphasizes its subject by conscious understatement

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loose sentence

answer

long sentence that starts with its main clause followed by several dependent clauses

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metaphor

answer

one thing pictured as if it were something else, suggesting a likeness or analogy

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metonymy

answer

a figure of speech in which an attribute is used to name something (Congress said today...)

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mode of discourse

answer

the way in which information is presented in written or spoken form

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mood

answer

feeling resulting from the tone of a piece as wel as the writer's attitude and point of view

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narrative

answer

mode of discourse that tells a story of some port and is based on sequences of connected events

question

onomatopoeia

answer

word capturing the sound of what it describes

question

oxymoron

answer

figure of speech that combines two apparently contradictory elements

question

paradox

answer

statement that seems contradictory but may probably be true

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parallel structure

answer

the use of similar forms in writing for nouns, verbs, phrases, or thoughts

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pathos

answer

element that simulates pity or sorrow

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periodic sentence

answer

a long sentence in which the main clause is not completed until the end

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personifcation

answer

treating an abstraction or nonhuman object as if it were a person

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point of view

answer

the relation in which a narrator stands to a subject of discourse

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prose

answer

the ordinary form of written language without metrical structure in contrast to verse and poetry

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realism

answer

attempting to describe nature and life without idealization

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rebuttal/refutation

answer

an argument technique wherein opposing arguments are anticipated and countered

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rhetoric

answer

the art of using words to persuade in writing or speaking

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rhetorical question

answer

a question that is asked simply for the sake of stylistic effect

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sarcasm

answer

a form of verbal irony in which apparent praise is actually critical

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satire

answer

literary work that holds up human failings to ridicule and censure

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simile

answer

a direct, explicit comparison of one thing to another, usually with like or as

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style

answer

the manner in which a writer combines and arranges word, shapes ideas, and utilizes syntax and structure

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symbolism

answer

use of a person, place, thing, event, or pattern that figuratively represents or "stands" for something else

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synecdoche

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a figure of speech in which a part signifies the whole (100 head of steer, 50 masts)

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syntax

answer

the way words are put together to form phrases, clauses, and sentences

question

theme

answer

central or dominant idea or focus of a work

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tone

answer

the attitude the narrator/writer takes toward a subject and theme

question

voice

answer

acknowledged or unacknowledged source of the words of the story; the speaker's take on an idea

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zeugma

answer

grammatically correct construction in which a word is applied to two or more nouns without being repeated

question

anecdote

answer

short, personal story

question

apostrophe

answer

invocation to an inanimate object

question

epiphany

answer

sudden revelation

question

pun

answer

sharply contrasting meanings using words with the same sound

question

argumentum ad ignorantiam

answer

a position mst be true since no one can prove it is false

question

argumentum ad hominem

answer

attacks on character about the claimant that are not relevant to the argument

question

bandwagon

answer

suggesting that large numbers can give credibility to a product, cause, or assertion

question

circular reasoning

answer

an argument that takes as evidence what it claims to prove

question

either/or

answer

refers to the fact that a third, often a middle, position is missing (for us or against us)

question

false analogy

answer

an analogy in which the dissimilarities between 2 things are so much greater than their similarities that their connection by analogy is unjustified (oversimplifying)

question

hypothesis contrary to fact

answer

an argument; writer begins with a premise that is not true and then draws conclusions therefrom (starts with fantasy_

question

ipse dixit

answer

appeal to an unqualified expert (not a doctor, but I play one on TV)

question

non sequitur

answer

any argument whose conclusion does not follow from its remises (She would make a good senator because she knows Washington)

question

post hog; ergo propter hoc

answer

sequential relationship is misinterpreted as a causal one

question

red herring

answer

introduces an irrelevant point to distract the audience from the main or current argument

question

simple cause

answer

assumes one reason alone is sufficient to explain a situation

question

straw-man

answer

writer denounces an easier, less defensible argument than the one at hand

question

undistrubted middle

answer

first premise and conclusion are said to be related because they share a common property (think syllogy)

question

anapestic

answer

In poetry- two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed Twas the night before christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring not even a mouse

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antagonist

answer

force that is in opposition to the main character

question

archetype

answer

recurrent designs, patterns of action, character types, themes or images which are identifiable in a wide range of literature

question

ballad

answer

poem that was meant to be sung

question

ballad stanza

answer

4 lines (quatrain) that alternates 4 and 3 beats, with lines 2 and 4 rhyming.

question

blank verse

answer

verse form that most resembles common speech

question

caesura

answer

a pause in a line of verse indicated by natural speech patterns rather than metrical patterns

question

caricature

answer

depiction of character's characteristics as deliberately exaggerated. Like in political cartoons (big ears)

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couplet

answer

two rhyming lines of iambic pentameter that together present a single idea

question

dactylic

answer

two stressed syllables followed by one unstressed

question

dramatic monologue

answer

monologue set ina specific situation and spoken to an imaginary audience. Same as soliloquy.

question

enjambment

answer

the continuation of a sentence from one line to the next

question

epic

answer

a poem that celebrates, in a continuous narrative, the achievements of mighty heroes and heroines, often concerned witht the founding of a nation or developing of a culture

question

fable

answer

a legend or a short moral story often using animals as characters.

question

falling action

answer

part of the plot structure in which the complications of the rising action are untangled. Same as denouement

question

farce

answer

a play or scene in a play or book that is characterized by broad humor, wild antics, and often slapstick and physical humor

question

foreshadowing

answer

to hint at or to present an indication of the future beforehand.

question

formal diction

answer

language that is lofty, dignified, and impersonal.

question

free verse

answer

poetry that is characterized by varying line lengths, lack of traditional meter and non rhyming lines

question

iambic

answer

metrical foot in poetry that consists of unstressed and stressed syllables

question

informal diction

answer

language that is not lofty

question

in medias res

answer

"in the midst of things"; refers to opening a story in the middle of the action

question

limited point of view

answer

perspective confined to a single character

question

lyric

answer

any short poem in which the speaker expresses intense personal emotion rather than describing a narrative or dramatic situation

question

message

answer

misleading term for theme; the central idea or statement of a story; misleading because it suggests a simple, pakcaged statement that pre-exists and for the simple communication of which the story is written

question

meter

answer

the more or less regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry.

question

motif

answer

recurrent device, formula, or situation that often serves as a signal for the appearance of a character or event.

question

occasional poem

answer

a poem written about or for a specific occasion, public or private (like a wedding)

question

ode

answer

a lyric poem that is somewhat serious in subject and treatment. Written to praise and exalt a person, characteristic, quality or object

question

omniscient point of view

answer

unlimited point of view

question

overstatement

answer

exaggerated language; hyperbole

question

parable

answer

a short fiction that illustrates an explicit moral lesson through the use of analogy.

question

paradox

answer

contradictory statement that can be true "fight for peace"

question

parody

answer

imitates another work for comic effect by exageration "Scary Movie"

question

pastoral

answer

describes the simple life of country folk

question

persona

answer

the voice or figure of the author who tells and structures the story

question

petrarchan sonnet

answer

aka italian sonnet. Sonnet that divides the poem into one section of eight lines and a second section of six lines

question

plot

answer

the arrangement of the narration based on the cause-effect relationship of events

question

protagonist

answer

main character

question

quatrain

answer

poetic stanza of four lines

question

realism

answer

attempting to describe nature and life without idealization and with attention to detail. Mark Twain.

question

refrain

answer

a repeated stanza or lines in a poem or song

question

rising action

answer

the development of action in a work

question

rhetorical question

answer

question asked simply for stylistic effect. No answer needed.

question

rhythm

answer

modulation of weak and strong elements in the flow of speech

question

scansion

answer

the analysis of verse to show its meter

question

setting

answer

time and place of the action of the story

question

Shakespearean sonnet

answer

four lines, four lines, 2 lines

question

shaped verse

answer

poetry that is shaped like an object

question

soliloquy

answer

character alone and speaking to himself

question

speaker

answer

the person who is the voice of a poem

question

stanza

answer

couplet, tercet, quatrain, cinquain, sestet, heptatich, octave

question

stereotype

answer

characterization based on assumptions. Wicked Which in snow white

question

stock character

answer

one who appears in a number of stories or plays. Cruel stepmother

question

structure

answer

organization or arrangement of the various elements in a work

question

terza rima

answer

3 stanza structure, ababcb

question

tragedy

answer

character is brought to disastrous end

question

trochaic

answer

opposite of iambic, first syllable is stressed second is not

question

turning point

answer

climax

question

villanelle

answer

19 lines, abaacaada....xyaa

AP English Literature and Composistion Key Terminology – Flashcards

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