AP Literature Terms Quiz

A long speech made by a character in a play while no other characters are on stage.

Comment made by stage performer intended to be heard by audience but not by other characters.

Emotional breakdown or climax consisting of overwhelming feelings or extreme emotional change

A story within a story, within sometimes yet another story

A way of speaking that is characteristic of a social group or inhabitants of a certain area

In a tragedy, the quality within the hero or heroine which leads to his or her downfall

Attitude a writer takes toward the subject of a work, the characters in it, or the audience

The use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in a plot

The central character in a story, the one who initiates or drives the action.

A figure of speech that compares two unlike things, using words such as like, as , than, etc.

Use of fancy language to describe the trivial or switch from serious thought to a trivial one

A style of writing that portrays the inner (often chaotic) workings of a character’s mind.

When meaning of character’s words, actions are unknown by character but understood by audience

A quotation or aphorism at the beginning of a literary work suggestive of the theme.

A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, etc. 

Figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory terms in a brief phrase.

Callingout to an imaginary, dead, or absent person, place, thing, or personified abstract idea

Willingness of a reader to ignore minor inconsistencies or unbelievable behavior in fiction.

Deliberately suggesting two or more different, and sometimes conflicting, meanings in a work

Comedy in which ridiculous, stereotyped characters are involved in silly, unlikely situations

Unpleasant sounds in jarring juxtaposition of harsh letters or syllables which sound grating

Opponent who struggles against or blocks the hero, or protagonist, in a story.

Reference to someone or something from history, literature, religion, politics, etc.  

When words appearing at the ends of two or more verses have similar final consonant sounds

A recurring image, word, phrase, action, idea, object, or situation used throughout a work 

Literature emphasizing a particular setting, including customs, clothing, dialect, landscape

A statement which appears contrary to common sense, yet can be seen as true

A figure of speech in which a part represents the whole. 

Play on words based on multiple meanings of words that sound alike but mean different things.

Repetition of same or similar sounds at the beginning of words close together

Sentence which uses a conjunction with NO commas to separate items in a series. “X and Y and Z”

Work in which characters, settings, etc. stand for other people, events, abstract ideas 

a work that makes fun of another work by imitating some aspect of the writer’s style.

The choice of words, phrases, sentence structures, and figurative language in a literary work

Substitution of an comfortable or inoffensive expression to replace an unpleasant one

The emotional tone or background that surrounds ascene

The use of words whose sounds echo their sense

Comparison between two unlike things WITHOUT the use of like, as, than, or resembles

Excessive pride or ambition that leads to a character’s downfall

Central character who lacks all the qualities traditionally associated with heroes

Figure of speech that uses an incredible exaggeration or overstatement, for effect. 

Poetry written without rhymes, but which retains a set metrical pattern like iambic pentameter

Presentation of essential information about what has occurred prior to beginning of the play.

A work that uses mockery, humor/ wit to critique and change human nature and institutions

Person, place, thing, or event that has meaning in itself and also stands for something more

An idealized model of a person, object, or conceptfrom which similar instances are patterned

When the intended meaning of a statement differs from the apparent meaning

Harmony or beauty of sound which provides a pleasing effect to the ear

A character who acts as contrast to another character

A word or phrase, often a figure of speech, that has become lifeless because of overuse

Writing that records the thinking that goes on inside a character’s head

Use of language to evoke a picture or concrete sensation of a person, thing, place, experience

Category of literary work which may refer to both the content of a given work and to its form