English 30-1 Key Term

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Allusion

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A reference to some person, place or event with literary, historical, geographical, biblical, mythical or cultural significance

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Analogy

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A comparison of ideas or objects which are essentially different but alike in one significant way.

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Antagonist

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The force that opposes the main character in his attempt to solve a problem and thus to resolve the conflict he is involved in.

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Anticlimax

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An outcome of a situation or series of events that, by contrast to what was anticipated, is ludicrous or disappointing. The anticlimax can often create a humorous effect.

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Archetype

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A representation of an element of universal human experience; something recognized by all.

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Atmosphere

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The general over-all feeling of a story conveyed in a large part by the setting and the mood.

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Archaic

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Language of the past

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Autobiography

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The life story written by the subject herself.

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Ballad

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A narrative poem with many specific characteristics. A few structural considerations are rhythm, rhyme, repetition, and chorus

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Biography

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Non-fiction that records the life or an individual, not written by the person

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Blank Verse

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Poetry that has rhythm but not rhyme

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Characterization

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The portrayal in a story of an imaginary person by what he says or does, by what others say about him or how they react to him, and by what the author reveals directly or through a narrator

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Cliche

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An expression so often used that it has lost its freshness and effectiveness.

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Climax

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The point of highest interest or dramatic intensity in a story. Usually marks a turning point.

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Coincidence

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A striking occurrence of two or more events at one time apparently by mere chance

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Conflict

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The struggle between two opposing forces, ideas or beliefs which form the basis of a story's plot

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Connotation

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An emotional coloration/association in addition to the explicit or denotative meaning of any specific word or phrase

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Context

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The whole paragraph or sentence surrounding a word or expression

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Couplet

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A pair of lines in a poem which rhyme

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Denotation

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The literal, dictionary definition of a word

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Denouement

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The unraveling of the plot of a story, following the climax, in which the writer explains how and why everything turned out the way it did (FALLING ACTION)

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Dialect

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The language used in a particular region

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Dichotomy

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The division into two opposing parts

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Drama

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A story with a plot and conflict, acted upon a stage in front of a camera or over the radio. Types include comedy, tragedy, horror, fantast, ect.

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Episode

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Part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program.

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Essay

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A short non-fiction work on one topic.

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Fantasy

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A tale involving such unreal characters and improbable events that the reader is not expected to believe it.

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Figurative Language

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Stuff like Simile, Metaphor, Allusion; Imagination is needed to complete meaning

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Flashback

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A device by which a weiter interrupts the main action of a story to recreate a situation or incident of an earlier time as though it were occurring in the present.

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Flat Character

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A character presented with little traits.

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Foreshadowing

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The dropping of important hints by the author to prepare the reader for what is to come and to help the reader anticipate the outcome

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Free Verse

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Poetry that has no rhythm or rhyme

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Hackneyed

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Statements or words which are worn out as an expression or comment

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Imagery

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A general term for any representation of a particular thing with its attendant and evocative detail.

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Incident

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One of the events that make up the total action or plot of a work of fiction

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Internal Rhyme

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A line of poetry in which a word in the middle rhymes with a word at the end of the line.

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Irony

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A mode of expression in which the author says one thing and means the opposite. The term also applies to a situation, or the outcome of an event, that is the opposite of what might be expected or considered appropriate

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Juxtaposition

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An act or instance of placing two things close together or side by side. This is often done in order to compare/contrast the two, to show similarities and differences.

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Local

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The particular place in which the action in a work of fiction occurs

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Mood

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The frame of mind or state of feeling created by a pieve of writing

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Moral

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The lesson taught by a literary work. FOUND IN ESCAPE FICTION

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Motif

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A recurring object, concept, or structure in a work of literature.

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Motivation

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Reasons given in a narrative for the character behaviour the way they do.

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Narration

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An account or story of an event, or series of events, whether true or imaginary

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Narrative Poetry

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A poem which tells a story

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Narrator

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The person in a poem, SS, or novel who tells what is happening

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Paraphrase

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A restatement of a poem or piece of prose in your own words

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Pathos

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That quality in prose that evokes in the reader a feeling or pity and compassion

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Plot

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the series of events or episodes that make up the action in a work of fiction

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Point of View

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The method used by the short story writer to tell his story; the position psychological as well as physical, from which he presents what happens and the characters involved in it

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Protagonist

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Usually the main character, who faces a problem and, in his attempt to solve it, becomes involved in a conflict with an opposing force

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Quatrain

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A four-line stanza, commonly used in the English/Shakespearean sonnet

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Realism

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The faithful portrayal of people, scenes, and events as they are, not as the writer would like them to be.

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Resolution

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The events following the climax in a work of fiction; sometimes called the falling action.

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Rising Action

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The series of incidents in a story which provide suspense and lead to the outcome

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Round Character

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A complex character, like a real person- possessing both good and bad qualities

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Satire

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A piece of writing that criticizes manners, individuals, or political and social institutions by holding them up to ridicule (IRONY)

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Sentimentality

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A superabundance of emotion in a story; the author of a sentimental story is consciously manipulating the reader through selective use of detail and stereotypes

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Setting

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The time in place in which a story takes place

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Stereotype

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A "stock" character in a story, presented according to certain widely accepted ideas of how sich a person should look, thing or act

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Style

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The distinctive manner in which a writer uses language, her conscious choice and arrangement of words

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Suspense

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A feeling of excitement, curiosity, or expectation about eh outcome or a work of fiction

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Symbol

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An object that stands for, or represents an idea, belief, superstition, social or political institution

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Theme

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The idea, general truth, or commentary on life or people brought out through a story

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Tone

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The feeling conveyed by the author's attitude toward his subject and the particular way in which he writes about it

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Unity

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An arrangement of parts of material that will produce a single, harmonious design or effect in a literary work.

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Verisimilitude

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The state of being true to life.