AP literature Exam Study Guide – Flashcards
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Allegory
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A story illustrating an idea or a moral principle in which objects take on symbolic meanings.
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Anachronism
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A word derived from the Greek that literally means 'misplaced in time.'
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Anaphora
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The repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of consecutive lines or sentences Ex: In the poem of Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou, the phrase "Phenomenal Woman" is a repetition.
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Antecedent
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The word or phrase to which a pronoun refers. It often precedes a pronoun in prose or in poetry. EX: Tom wants to study Political Science; he finds it interesting
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Anthropomorphism
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In literature, when inanimate objects, animals or natural phenomena are given human characteristics, behavior or motivation. Often used with animal to give them human characteristics. EX: The chronicle of Narnia is a great example of a movie that has Anthropomorphism of animals talking.
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Anticlimax
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An often disappointing, sudden end to an intense situation.
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Aphorism
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A brief statement which expresses an observation on life, usually intended as a wise observation.
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Apostrophe
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Figure of speech in which one directly addresses an imaginary person or some abstraction.
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Archaism
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The use of deliberately old-fashioned language.
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Archetype
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A character, situation or symbol that is familiar to people from all cultures because it occurs frequently in literature, myth, religion or folklore.
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Ballad
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A story in poetic form, often about tragic love and usually sung. Ballads were passed down from generation to generation by singers.
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Black Humor
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The use of disturbing themes in comedy.
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Blank Verse
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A poem written in unrhymed iambic pentameter.
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Cacophony/ Euphony
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Cacophony is an unpleasant combination of sounds. Euphony, the opposite, is a pleasant combination of sounds. These sound effects can be used intentionally to create an effect, or they may appear unintentionally.
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Canto
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A subdivision of an epic poem.
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Chiasmus
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A statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed.
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Colloquialism
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A word or phrase used in everyday conversational English that isn't a part of the accepted 'formal' English. EX: Soft Drink is referred to as Soda or Pop
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Conceit
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An unusual metaphor or metaphor that is developed in detail in a paragraph (for a novel) or over several lines (for poetry).
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Connotation
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The associations a word calls to mind. The more connotative a literary work is, the less objective its interpretation becomes.
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Denotation
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The dictionary or literal meaning of a word or phrase.
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Denouement
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The outcome or clarification at the end of a story that follows the climax and leads to the resolution.
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Didactic
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A didactic story, speech, essay or play is one in which the author's primary purpose is to instruct, teach or moralize.
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Enjambment
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The continuation of a syntactic unit from one line or couplet of a poem to the next with no pause.
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Epigram
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A short, clever poem or statement with a witty turn of thought.
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Epigraph
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A brief quotation found at the beginning of a literary work, reflective of the work's theme.
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Epistolary novel
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A novel in letter form written by one or more of the characters. The novelist can use this technique to present varying first person viewpoints and does not need a narrator.
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Exposition
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The presentation of essential information regarding what has occurred prior to the beginning of the work.
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Euphemism
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A mild word of phrase which substitutes for another word or phrase which would be undesirable because it is too direct, unpleasant, harsh, or offensive.
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Farce
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A kind of comedy that depends on exaggerated or improbable situations, physical disasters, and sexual innuendo to amuse the audience.
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Hubris
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Insolence, arrogance or pride
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Hyperbole
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A wild exaggeration or an overstatement for literary effect that is not meant to be interpreted literally.
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Inference
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A judgment based on reasoning rather than on direct or explicit statement.
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Inversion
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A reversal of normal word order
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Irony
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Situational: situation that is the opposite of what you'd expext Verbal: when a writer or speaker says one thing, but really means something completely different. Dramatic: when the reader or audience knows something that the character does not. There is a contrast between what the character says, thinks or does and the true situation. Tragic: dramatic irony that occurs in a tragedy
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Litotes
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A type of understatement in which the speaker or writer uses a negative of a word ironically, to mean the opposite
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Metonym
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Substituting the name of one object for another closely associated with it
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Parable
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A short story illustrating a moral or religious lesson.
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Paradox
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A statement or situation that at first seems impossible, but on closer inspection solves itself and reveals meaning.
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Parody
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A literary work that imitates the style of another literary work. A parody can be simply amusing or it can be meant to ridicule the author or his work.
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Pastoral
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A poem, play or story that celebrates and idealizes the simple life of shepherds and shepherdesses. The form was popular until the late 18th century.
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Pathos
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The quality of a literary work or passage which appeals to the reader's or viewer's emotions—especially pity, compassion and sympathy.
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Pun
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Humorous play on words that have several meanings or words that sound the same but have different meanings.
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Saga
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A story of the exploits of a hero, or the story of a family told through several generations.
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Structure
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Refers to how the parts of a work are organized and arranged
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Syllepsis
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• A construction in which one word is used in two different senses. • The meaning of a verb cleverly changes halfway through a sentence but remains grammatically correct.
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Synecdoche
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A figure of speech where one part of something represents the whole thing.
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Syntax
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The way in which words, phrases and sentences are ordered and connected. Syntax results in various sentence types used for a variety of rhetorical effects.
