10th grade Literary terms/Short stories unit

A set of beliefs, attitudes, and values grounded in the culture of ancient Greece and Rome.

A division into two contradictory groups

The struggle between opposing forces that is the basis of the plot in a dramatic/narrative literature

The main idea in a work of literature

Literary movement that involves love, adventure, quests, and triumphs.

Bringing a god on stage to solve a difficulty unsolvable by ordinary means; regarded as deficient skill in plot making

A reference to something in literature or history that the author expects the reader to know

Point of view that presents the thoughts or feelings of all characters in a work

Literature which emphasizes the imagination without conscious or rational control; dreamlike.

The repetition of an image, word, phrase, action,etc. that appears in various works throughout the same work

The narrative method used in a short story, novel, poem or nonfiction selection

A change for the worse; to have everything and then lose it all.

Sees literary works as objects in their own right; analyzes interplay & relationships between a text's verbal elements.

The actions and events that take place in a dramatic or narrative work

Something that conforms to a fixed or general pattern without individual distinguishing marks or qualities.

Combinations of sounds and words which are pleasant to the ear

Repetition of initial consonant sounds within a line of poetry

A story within a story

Implies a comparison between two unlike things that have something in common, but does NOT use “like” or “as”

A character in fiction who develops or changes as a result of the action of the plot.

Far-fetched metaphor comparing two unlike objects with powerful effect by arousing feelings of surprise/shock/ amusement

Placing dissimilar scenes side by side to indicate differences or to give the reader additional information

Line of poetry in which the grammatical structure and the sense reach completion on the end of a line of poetry

One character struggles against the forces of nature

When people say one thing but mean another

The perspective from which a story is told.

Conflict that takes place inside a character’s mind and/or being

The character or force against which the protagonist is pitted

The person who writes a short story, novel or play

Beginning in the middle of things

The literal or dictionary definition of a word

Criticism that emphasizes the role of class and ideology of working people.

A story in which people, things, and events have another meaning

A person, place or object that represents something beyond itself

A comparison between two unlike things that have something in common (Uses "LIKE" or "AS")

A conflict that involves other characters, society and nature

Statement or situation which seems contradictory, but proves valid upon closer inspection

One sensory experience is used to describe another

A writer’s choice of words

A pause or break in (within) the rhythmical progress of a line of poetry.

Two characters struggle against one another

Repeating of sounds, words, etc.

A figure of speech where a word or phrase is used to represent something else with which it is closely associated.

The central character in a short story, novel or play

 A contrast between appearance and actuality

The words and phrases that recreate vivid sensory experiences for the reader

Writing that appeals to the senses

Writing that holds up to ridicule/contempt the weaknesses/wrongdoings of humanity w/ hope to bring about change

A character defined by a single idea or quality.

The arrangement of words and elements in a sentence

A harsh combination of sounds

One character struggles against God or a higher force

The teller of the story

the startling discovery that produces a change from ignorance to knowledge

A change in emphasis, judgement, or attitude; a change in place or position

Criticism analyzing literature in terms of mental processes.

A character who does not develop or change as a result of the action in a story.

when a character directly addresses the reader instead of leaving up the imaginary barrier btwn the actors & audience

A literary device in which a part of something represents the whole or it may use a whole to represent a part.

The name of a short story, novel, poem, play, essay, etc.

Combination of words which imitate sounds

A plot within a plot

Literary movement that emphasized trust of individual, intuition, & nature, while rejecting societal norms

A phrase to describe the unwarranted attaching of human emotions to nature; when nature empathizes with mankind

Language not intended to be interpreted in a literal sense

The emotional response or connection created by a word

Giving human qualities to something that is not human

Character who contrasts with another to accentuate distinctive qualities

To show beforehand or foretell

“run-on” lines which carry the completion of a statement from one line to another without rhetorical pause

The time and place of the action of the story

One character struggles against society

Exaggeration to make a point

Overused phrase that has lost its freshness

Structural arrangement of composition by which one element of equal importance is developed/similarly phrased w/ another

The people and animals that participate in a literary work

The variety of language spoken in a definite place by a distinct group of people 

Similarity in sound between vowels followed by different consonants

The techniques used by writers to develop their characters

Arrangement of words in a manner which best expresses individuality of the author and the idea intent of his/her mind

The use of symbols

When the reader or viewer is aware of information of which the characters are not aware

A character that has three dimensional complexity of real people.

An emotional cleansing effect a tragic drama has on an audience

A figure of speech characterized by strongly contrasting words, clauses, sentences, or ideas

A conversation, a scene or event that happened before the beginning of the story or at an earlier point in the story

When a character or reader expects one thing to happen but something entirely different does

Having the appearance of truth

Repetition of consonant sounds that are preceded by different vowel sounds

Having a definite pattern or organization within literature

Insight or revelation gained when one suddenly understands the essence of something

Literature that tells a story

kind of novel that focuses on the psychological/moral growth of its main character from his/her youth to adulthood.

Literature portraying speech & behavior of characters from lower socioeconomic class; portrays from "real" life.

Final unraveling of a plot in fiction/Last part of plot