Literary Terms

the use of humor to emphasize human weakness

the vantage point from which a story is told

the everyday speech of a particular country or region

harsh, cutting language or tone intended to ridicule 

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

the art of presenting ideas in a effective manner

an apparently contradictory statement that actually contains some truth

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

a characters incentive or reason for behaving in a certain manner

intentional exaggeration to create an effect

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

a central idea

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

light verse consisting of five lines of regular rhythm

a situation that requires a person to decide between two things

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

the time place and environment in which an action takes place

an object that is used to represent something else

long narrative poem written in elevated style about an adventure

the attitude of a writer toward the subject or audience

example of personification 

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

the emotional atmosphere of a work

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

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

the action of a narrative or drama

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

 define paraphase

harsh, inharmonious, or discordant sounds

a statement of the meaning or main point of literary work

the deliberate representation of something as lesser in magnitude

a moment of sudden revelation or insight

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

a play on words

the specialized language or vocabulary of a particular group

a word formed from the imitation of natural sounds

a variety of speech characterized by its own particular grammar

a real or fictional episode

a humorous imitation of a serious work

use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning

a major category or type of literature

direct comparison of two different things

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

a story that concerns an unreal world or contains unreal characters

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

the point of highest interest in a literary work

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

a formal speech praising person who has died

the word choices made by a writer

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

language employing one or more figures of speech

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

the word, phrase, or clause to which pronoun refers

a question requiring thought to answer or understand

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

the primary position taken by a writer or speaker

the implied or associative meaning of a word

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

a standard theme, element, or dramatic situation that reoccurs

the subject treated in a paragraph or work

comparison of two different things that are similar in some way

the customary way language or its elements are used

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

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

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

a concise statement that expresses succinctly a general truth or idea

the repetition of initial sounds in successive or neighboring words

conversation between two or more people

a story or narrated account