English 211 exam semester 2

Allegory

a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.

Allusion

an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.

Ambiguity

the quality of being open to more than one interpretation; inexactness.

Hyperbole

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

Mood

the atmosphere of a piece of writing; it's the emotions a selection arouses in a reader.

Tone

the author's attitude toward a subject.

Theme

the subject of a talk, a piece of writing, a person's thoughts, or an exhibition; a topic.

Plot

the main events of a play, novel, movie, or similar work, devised and presented by the writer as an interrelated sequence.

Exposition

the part of a play or work of fiction in which the background to the main conflict is introduced.

Rising action

a series of events build toward the point of greatest interest.

Climax

the most intense, exciting, or important point of something; a culmination or apex.

Falling Action

the part of a literary plot that occurs after the climax has been reached and the conflict has been resolved.

Resolution

the part of a story's plot line in which the problem of the story is resolved or worked out.

Verbal Irony

when words express something contrary to truth or someone says the opposite of what they really feel or mean. Verbal irony is often sarcastic.

Situational irony

actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was expected.

Dramatic Irony

The audience knows something that the people in the story don't.

Dynamic Character

character who undergoes an important inner change, as a change in personality or attitude

Static Character

character who undergoes little or no inner change

Protagonist

Main character in a story

Antagonist

the opposing force that brings conflict and is instrumental in the development of the protagonist

Round Characters

Complex characters that change throughout the story

Flat Characters

characters that stay the same throughout the whole story

Simile

a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (as brave as a lion)

Metaphor

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Personification

the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form

person vs person

A person against another person external conflict

Person VS Self

Internal conflict, Person fighting against their own emotions

Person VS Nature

person fighting against a natural disaster

Person VS Society

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