English I EOC vocabulary

alliteration

repetition of the beginning consonant sound (ex: rough and ready, Peter Piper)

allusion

reference to something outside of the work, usually mythical, Biblical, or historical

anecdote

short summary of a funny event

antagonist

the person or thing that opposes the protagonists; sometimes called the villain

archetype

a recurring and familiar pattern in literature, like a journey or a wise old man

aside

when a character in a play speaks to the audience and not to the other characters

assonance

repetition of internal vowel sound, as in "how now brown cow

autobiography

a story about a person written by that person

ballad

poem which tells a story of a person from the past and is often set to music

biography

an author's account or story of another person's life

characterization

the way an author reveals his characters; can be done directly or indirectly

clich�

a word or phrase that is so overused, like "busy as a bee" or "I slept like a log

climax

high point in a story, point of most intense interest, and point of no return

conflict

the problem or complication in a story, usually between a person and something else...either another person, a force of nature, fate, or the person himself

connotation

all the emotions or feelings a word arouses, such as negative feelings about 'pig'

denotation

the literal, dictionary definition of a word

dialogue

conversation carried on by the characters in a work of literature

dramatic POV

a play, in which all events are told in dialogue

end rhyme

rhyming words that appear at the ends of two or more lines of poetry

epic poetry

a long narrative poem about the adventures of an almost superhuman character

epithet

a word or phrase used in place of a person's name to help characterize the person

exposition

the part of a story or play that explains the background or makes conflict clear

falling action

the action that takes place in a story after the climax and that resolves the conflict

fantasy

highly imaginative writing that contains elements not found in real life

fiction

prose writing that tells about imaginary characters and events

figurative language

writing or speech not meant to be taken literally; similes, metaphors, and personification are examples of this

first person point of view

told from the perspective on one character in the story; designated by the pronoun 'I'

flashback

when a story's sequence is interrupted and a character goes back to an earlier time

foreshadowing

the use of clues that suggest events yet to come

free verse

poetry that is not written with a regular pattern of rhythm and rhyme

genre

a French word meaning form or type

hero

a character whose actions are inspiring or noble, and who overcomes difficulties

haiku

a Japanese form of poetry with three lines of 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables

historical fiction

stories that center upon or incorporate some significant historical events

hyperbole

exaggerating or stretching the truth for literary effect. "My shoes are killing me!

iambic pentameter

a metrical pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables common in poetry and in Shakespearean plays. The line contains ten syllables in the pattern ~/~/~/~/~/

imagery

words that describe sights, sounds, movements and recreate sensory experience

irony

when something is different than it is supposed to be or thought to be; kinds include verbal, dramatic, and situational

lyric poetry

poetry that expresses the observations and feelings of a single speaker

metaphor

comparison of two unlike things without using like or as

mystery

a story that involves the reader in guessing who committed the crime or deed

myth

a fictional tale that explains the actions of gods or heroes, or the causes of natural phenomenon, or both. These can be Greek, Norse, Roman, or Celtic in origin.

narrative poetry

poems that tell a story

non-fiction

prose that explains ideas or is about real people, places, objects, or events

omniscient POV

when the story is told from the perspective of someone outside of the events but who knows and reveals all the character's thoughts and feelings

onomatopoeia

the use of words that imitate sounds, as in buzz, hiss, or murmur

oxymoron

two words used together that contradict each other, as in icy fire or sweet sorrow

paradox

a statement that seems to be contradictory but that actually presents a truth

parallelism

repetition of phrases that have similar grammatical patterns

personification

giving human characteristics to a non-human thing or substance

plot

the sequence of events in a literary work

point of view

the perspective from which a story is told; types are first person, third person limited, omniscient, stream of consciousness, and dramatic

poetic justice

when a character 'gets what he deserves'

prologue

the opening lines of a drama that give background information

prose

the ordinary form of written language, not poetry, drama, or song

protagonist

the main character in a literary work who drives the plot forward

pseudonym

the assumed or false name of an author

pun

a play on words when a word has more than one meaning

refrain

the regularly repeated group of lines in a poem or song

rhyme

repetition of sounds at the ends of words

science fiction

fictional stories that center upon scientific elements

second person

designated by the pronoun 'you'; this does not exist in storytelling

setting

time and place of a literary work

simile

a comparison of two unlike things using the word like or as

soliloquy

speech delivered by a character when he is alone on stage

sonnet

fourteen lines of iambic pentameter -- a very common form of poetry

stream of consciousness

a narrative technique, or point of view, that presents thoughts as if they were coming straight from a character's mind, with story events and character feelings combined

stanza

a unit or group of lines in poetry that are separated by spaces

style

an author's unique way of writing that involves word choice and sentence patterns

symbol

something seen that stands for something unseen, as a rose for love, flag for a country

theme

central truth or idea in a story

third person POV

when the story is told from the perspective of someone outside of the events of the story but who only reveals one character's thoughts

tone

the writer or speaker's attitude towards the subject of the work

tragedy

a type of story that portrays the fall of a noble person, usually due to a tragic weakness or flaw in his/her character