Fiction
stories that are at least partially made up or imagined. if factual info is included (possibly historical), it is not the most important part
narrator
a being who records the events of the story. he or she may not be a character in the story
participant narrator
writes in the first person (I). may be major (important) or minor (observer) character
nonparticipant narrator
writes in the third person
unreliable narrator
when a story is told by someone unknown
free indirect narration
when a character's thoughts and word choice are filtered through a third person narrator
charater
an imagined person who inhabits a story
round (dynamic) character
more complicated with more than one feature; they do change
flat (static) character
defined by one feature; does not change
diction
choice of words in a literary work
symbol
visible object or action that suggests some further meaning in addition to itself
symbolic action
an act whose significance goes beyond its literal meaning (it may signify rebirth, forgiveness, sacrifice, vengeance, etc.)
plot
all of the events that happen in a story
exposition
starts the story; intro to set the scene
complication
introduces conflict
crisis
conflicts that lead to the highest, most tense point in the story
climax
the absolute highest point in the story
d�nouement (resolution)
the end of the story
figurative language (figure of speech)
when a speaker uses a word differently than its dictionary meaning. usually used to draw attention or emphasis
similie
a comparison of two like things, typicially indicated by "like" or "as". (other options for connectives are "than" or a verb like "resembles"). the things compared need to be dissimilar in kind. usually only highlights one particular similarity.
metaphor
a statement that one thing is something else that it is not, in a literal sense
implied metaphor
a metaphor that does not use the verb to be
mixed metaphor
when someone combines two incompatible metaphors - the result does not make sense. usually unintentional and done with cliches (dead metaphors)
foreshadowing
hint to the reader of what comes later. characters might not be aware
epiphany
a moment of revelation/discovery and changes in views
setting
time and place
atmosphere
a mood or feeling that pervades a literary work;created with physical setting and word choice and character's perspective
synecdoche
when a part stands in for the whole
style
traits or characteristics an author uses
parallel structure
rhetoric and how we craft language to be influential. gives rhythm. sentence level and repetition of phrase or sentence structure
image
a word or sequence of words that refer to any sensory experience (seeing-visual, hearing-auditory, touching-tactile, etc.). a direct or literal recreation of physical experience. add immediacy to literary language
imagery
all of the images of a literary work taken together
personification
a figure of speech in which a thing, an animal, or an abstract term is given human characteristics. puts the nonhuman world in human terms
epigraph
quote of writer written at the beginning of a work; sets the tone of the piece that follows
terza rima
3 line stanza; chain rhyme
rhyme scheme
denoting the rhyme pattern using letters
stanza
sectioned off lines within poetry; like a paragrpah
alliteration
the repetition of consonant sounds (sally sells seashells)
refrain
phrase, line, or set of lines repeated during a poem, usually at the end of the stanza
catalexis
when the last syllable of a line is dropped
headless line
dropping first syllable of a line
heroic verse
iambic rhymed couplets
internal rhyme
when 2 or more words rhyme within a single line or verse
lyric poetry
thoughts and feelings of a speaker in a short, lyrical word
song
poem performed musically
ballad
song that tells a story
end-stopped line
ending a line in a poem with punctuation
free verse
poem with no regular meter or line length
blank verse
poem without rhyme scheme
elegy
poem of mourning an individual or event
assonance
the repetition of a vowel sound (sound of a clown)
hudibrastic
iambic tetrameter (AABB); represents parody and satire
single rhyme (masculine)
when only one syllable matches
double rhyme (feminine)
when both of the last syllables match
stage directions
tells the actor what to do at certain times; usually in italics
unities
the idea that plays are unified in time, place, and action; the idea of how a play should be
soliloquy
a spech by a lonely character on stage who is thinking outloud; mostly seen in plays
dramatic conflict
a central struggle between 2 or more forces in a play (hope vs. despair)
theme
a general point of truth about life or humanity; related to dramatic conflict
dramatic irony
a literary technique, originally used in Greek tragedy, by which the full significance of a character's words or actions are clear to the audience or reader although unknown to the character
meter
the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line; gives poetry its rhythm
foot
a combination of stressed (/) and unstressed (-) syllables; the most basic unit of a poem's meter
types of feet
iamb, dactyl, trochee, anapest
iamb
-/
trochee
/-
anapest
--/
dactyl
/--