Literary Terms

a formal speech praising person who has died

the emotional atmosphere of a work

a situation that requires a person to decide between two things

a narrative passed down from the past, containing historical elements and usually supernatural

harsh, inharmonious, or discordant sounds

the use of humor to emphasize human weakness

an indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant

the word choices made by a writer

a detail, image, or character type that occurs frequently in literature

the one who tells the story (first or third person, limited or omniscient)

long narrative poem written in elevated style about an adventure

a standard theme, element, or dramatic situation that reoccurs

a characters incentive or reason for behaving in a certain manner

the deliberate representation of something as lesser in magnitude

a variety of speech characterized by its own particular grammar

a comparison of two things using  "like" or "as"

a word formed from the imitation of natural sounds

the attitude of a writer toward the subject or audience

the moment in a work in which is a very significant change occurs

the subject treated in a paragraph or work

the implied or associative meaning of a word

the choices a writer makes; the combination of distinctive features of a literary work

example of personification 

the use of figures of speech to create vivid images that appeal to one of the sences

a story that concerns an unreal world or contains unreal characters

a real or fictional episode

the presentation of material so a reader can be prepared for future work

earlier event into the normal chronological order of a narrative

a conclusion one draws based on premises or evidence

light verse consisting of five lines of regular rhythm

a concise statement that expresses succinctly a general truth or idea

a major category or type of literature

a central idea

the everyday speech of a particular country or region

a story or narrated account

the primary position taken by a writer or speaker

a work in which the protagonist is engaged in a significant struggle and which ends in ruin

an object that is used to represent something else

language employing one or more figures of speech

the repetition of initial sounds in successive or neighboring words

the specialized language or vocabulary of a particular group

an expression that has been overused to the extent that its freshness has worn off 

a play on words

a brief story that leads to a moral, often using animals as characters

the art of presenting ideas in a effective manner

an expression in a  certain language that cannot be understood from the literal meaning

a statement of the meaning or main point of literary work

a reference to something that the author assumes the reader will recognize

use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning

comparison of two different things that are similar in some way

the point of highest interest in a literary work

an expression in which two words that contradict each other are joined

the customary way language or its elements are used

placing two elements side by side to present a comparison or contrast

a traditional story presenting supernatural characters and episodes that explain natural events

 define paraphase

the word, phrase, or clause to which pronoun refers

reflects the characteristics of romanticism (lit. movement 18th century)

conversation between two or more people

the vantage point from which a story is told

the arrangement or framework of a sentence, paragraph, or entire work

direct comparison of two different things

the quality in a work that promise the reader to feel pity

the time place and environment in which an action takes place

the action of a narrative or drama

an apparently contradictory statement that actually contains some truth

intentional exaggeration to create an effect

a humorous imitation of a serious work

harsh, cutting language or tone intended to ridicule 

a moment of sudden revelation or insight

a question requiring thought to answer or understand