act -one of the principal divisions of a theatrical work.
alliteration -in prosody, the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of several words in close succession ( midnight moment’s forest allusion is used to link concepts that reader already has knowledge of with concepts of discussed in the story. It’s a figure of speech that draws upon the ready stock of ideas or emotion already associated with the presented topic
ambiguity Use of words that allow alternative interpretations. In factual, explanatory prose, ambiguity is considered an error in reasoning or diction; in literary prose or poetry, it often functions to increase the richness and subtlety(delicacy) of language and to imbue(fill) it with a complexity that expands the literal meaning of the original statement.
Anachronism an error in chronology, especiallya chronogical misplacing of persons, events, objects or customs in regard to each other
anticlimax when sth which would appear to be difficult to slove in a plot is sloved through sth trivial
Anti-hero A protagonist of a drama or narrative who is notably lacking in heroic qualities. Henry Fielding's Tom Jones (1749).
antithesis A rhetorical device in which irreconcilable (incompatible) opposites or strongly contrasting ideas are placed in sharp juxtaposition (comparison) and sustained tension, as in the phrase “they promised freedom and provided slavery.”
apostrophe figure of speech in which an absent person, a personified inanimate being, or an abstraction is addressed as though present. Apostrophes are found frequently among the speeches of Shakespeare's characters, as when Elizabeth in Richard III addresses the Tower of London
archetype a basic, original model , pattern which copies are made , a prototype , a preson to be followed e.g. mother, hero
aside An actor’s speech heard by the audience but supposedly not by other characters.
assonance Identity or similarity in sound between internal vowles in neighboring words e.g. quite right
beast epic popular genre in various literatures, consisting of a lengthy cycle of animal tales that provides a satiric commentary on human society
bildungsroman A class of novel in German literature, the author presents the psychological, moral and social shaping of a personality of a protagonist e.g CH. Dickens ‘’ Great expectactions’’ black comedy-is a sub-genre of comedy and satire in which topics and events that are usually regarded as taboo are treated in a satirical or humorous manner while retainting their seriousness.
blank verse Unrhymed verse, specifically unrhymed iambic pentameter,
burlesque In literature, comic imitation of a serious literary or artistic form that relies on an extravagant incongruity(inconsistency) between a subject and its treatment . Geoffrey Chaucer’s 14th-century “The Tale of Sir Thopas
canon a body of writings estabilihed as authentic. Term usually refers to biblical writings accepted as authorized.
caricature A representation characterized by exaggeration. The effect is usually produced by means of deliberate oversimplification and often ludicrous(absurd)distortion (misrepresentation)of characteristics.
catharsis The purification or purgation of the emotions (especially pity and fear) primarily through art. The term, was used as a metaphor by Aristotle (Poetics) to describe the effects of true dramatic tragedy on the spectator. Aristotle states that the purpose of tragedy is to arouse “terror and pity” and thereby effect the catharsis of these emotions.
climax The point of highest dramatic tension or a major turning point in the action of a play, story, or other literary composition. In the structure of a play the climax, or crisis, is the decisive moment, or turning point, at which the rising action of the play is reversed to falling action.
comedy of humors each character has a particular sense of humor, features and behaviors which was used to exaggerate in a play. 4 humors: phlegm(phlegmatic); blood( sanguine); black(melancholic); yellow bile(choleric)
comedy of manners Witty, cerebral form of drama that satirizes the manners and fashions of a particular social class or set. A comedy of manners is concerned with social usage and the ability (or inability) of certain characters to meet social standards. Often the governing social standard is morally trivial but exacting. The plot of such a comedy, usually concerning an illicit love affair or similarly scandalous matter, is subordinate to the play’s brittle atmosphere, witty dialogue, and pungent commentary on human foibles. e.g. pride and prejudice
comic relief comic episode or interludes, which aim is to relieve from tension caused by the introduction or occurrence of a comic element, as by an amusing human foible
conceit use of such metaphor as a literary characteristic, esp. in poetry. It invites the reader into more sophisticated understanding of an object of comparision. Use in metaphysical poetry
consonance repetition of identical or similar consonants or consonant patterns as arhyming device e.g. strong/string convention an arangmeent between the writer and reader which allows various freedoms and restrictions
couplet Two successive lines of verse marked usually by rhythmic correspondence, rhyme, or the inclusion(presence) of a self-contained utterance
complication A situation or a detail of character that enters into and complicates the main thread of a plot.
crisis The decisive moment in the course of the action of a play or other work of fiction.
cycle1. A group or series of works (such as poems, plays, novels, or songs) that treat the same theme. E.g. Trojan War cycle(the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Aeneid).
decorum consistency with cannons of poetry. Action, character, thought and language all need to be appropriate to each other ( Wordsworth)
detective story Type of popular literature dealing with the step-by-step investigation and solution of a crime, usually murder.
deus ex machina A person or thing that appears or is introduced into a situation suddenly and unexpectedly and provides an artificial or contrived(unnatural) solution to an apparently insoluble difficulty.
diction in original meaning refers to the writter’s or speaker’s distinctive vocabulary choice and style expression
didacticism an artistic philosophy that emphasizes instructional and informative qualities in literature and other types of art. D. art intends not primarily to ‘’entertain’’ or to pursue subjective goals
dirge any composition resembling such a song or tune in character, a poem of lament for dead or solemn, mournful music
disintegrated soul-no go back when it’s too late, no hope
doggerel a low, or trivial , form a verse, loosely constructed and often irregular, but effective because of its simple mnemonic rhyme and loping meter
dramatic irony A plot device; a type of IRONY that is produced when the audience’s or reader’s knowledge of events or individuals surpasses that of the characters. The words and actions of the characters therefore take on a different meaning for the audience or reader than they have for the play’s characters. This may happen when, for example, a character reacts in an inappropriate or foolish way or when a character lacks self-awareness and thus acts under false assumptions.William Shakespeare (as in Othello’s trust of Iago),
elegy the subject of a poem are death, war , love and similar themes. Apoem of mourning for an individual or a lament for some tragic event
ellipsis The omission of one or more words that are understood but that must be supplied to make a construction semantically complete, as in “No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be” from T.S. Eliot’s poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.”
emblem-an object, the figure of an object , symbolizing and suggesting another object, or an idea, by natural aptness or by association; a figurative representation; a typical designation; a symbole e.g. cross- suffering, death, crucifixion
epic Long narrative poem in an elevated style that celebrates heroic achievement and treats themes of historical, national, religious, or legendary significance The setting is vast in scope, covering great nations, the world, the universe, the action is important to the history of a nation or people e.g. Paradise lost
exposition at the beginning of the play the dramatist is often commited to giving a certain amount of essential information about the plot and the events which are to come
epilogue or epilog 1. The conclusion or final part of a nondramatic literary work that serves typically to round out or complete the design of the work—also called afterword. 2. A speech often in verse addressed to the audience by one or more of the actors at the end of a play,
epiphany A literary work or section of a work presenting , usually symbolically, such a moment of revelation and insight. A sadden appearance, manifestation
epistolary novel, A novel told through the medium of letters written by one or more of the characters. Originating with Samuel Richardson’s Pamela
exemplum An anecdote or short narrative used to point to a moral or sustain an argument. Exempla were used in medieval sermons and were eventually incorporated into literature in such works as Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Nun’s Priest’s Tale” and “The Pardoner’s Tale.”
eye rhyme In poetry, an imperfect rhyme in which two words are spelled similarly but pronounced differently (such as move and love, bough and though, come and home, and laughter and daughter)..
farce a kind of comedy which is full of strange characters, exaggerated behavior, suprising and comic elements e.g. Niana
figurative language- language which was figure of speech e.g. metaphor, simile, alliteration. It must be distinguished from literal language.
flashback 1. A literary or theatrical technique that involves interruption of the chronological sequence of events by interjection of events or scenes of earlier occurrence, often in the form of reminiscenceflat and round characters
f.ch- readymade character , not complex ,does not change when the action develop, predictable, usually dark hero e.g. Scooby doo, sociopath, Sh. Holmes
r.ch-has a complex of featrures and can change his attitude and behavior, the most interesting character, unpredictable e.g. Elizabeth Bennet/ Mark Darcy
foot- a way of measuring meter in poetry using a series of stressed syllables that is prepared establishes a poetic foot.
Foreshadowing The organization and presentation of events and scenes in a work of fiction or drama so that the reader or observer is prepared to some degree for what occurs later in the work. This can be part of the general atmosphere of the work, or it can be a specific scene or object that gives a clue or hint as to a later development of the plot.
four levels of meaning- the litteral or historical meaning, the moral meaning, the allegorical meaning, the anagogical meaning, introduced by Dante
free verse does not have a strict pattern or rhyming
genre -A distinctive type or category of literary composition, such as the epic, tragedy, comedy, novel, and short story.
gothic novel a novel in which supernatural heroes and an atmosphere of unknown terror pervades the action. The setting is often a dark , mysterious castle, e.g Dracula, Frankenstein Greek tragedy The form of drama produced in ancient Greece by the authors Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles. The dramas had a fairly rigid structure consisting of an introductory prologos; a parodos, which marks the entrance of the chorus; several episodes constituting the main action of the play; and the exodus, or conclusion, which follows the last song of the chorus.
haikuAn unrhymed Japanese poetic form consisting of syllables arranged in three lines containing five, seven, and five syllables, hamartia An inherent defect of character, or the error, guilt, or sin of the tragic hero in a literary work. Othello’s jealousy or Hamlet’s irresolution The hero’s suffering and its reverberations are disproportionate to the flaw. An element of cosmic collusion among the hero’s flaw, chance, and other external forces is essential to bring about the catastrophe.
historical novel A novel that has as its setting a period of history and that attempts to convey the spirit, manners, and social conditions of a past age with realistic detail and fidelity to historical fact. Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace (1865–69),
hubris In classical Greek ethical and religious thought, overweening presumption suggesting impious disregard of the limits governing human action in an orderly
humors [The four main fluids present in the human body according to the theory of physiology The humors were blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile.
hyperbole figure of speech that is an intentional exaggeration for emphasis or comic effect.
iamb or iambus In prosody, a metrical foot consisting of one short syllable (as in classical or quantitative verse) or one unstressed syllable (as in modern or accentual verse) followed by one long or stressed syllable, as in the word be
imagery Representation of objects, feelings, or ideas, either literally or through the use of figurative language; specifically, the often peculiarly individual concrete or figurative diction used by a writer in those portions of text where a particular effect (such as a special emotional appeal or a train of intellectual associations) is desired. In “The Second Coming,” William Butler Yeats invokes a powerful image of encroaching anarchy:Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart . . .
in medias res In or into the middle of a narrative or plot without the formality of an introduction or other preliminary. interior monologue in dramactic and nondramatic fiction, narrative technique that exhibits the thoughts passing through the minds of the protagonist interlude a time between, break ,pause
iamb-contains an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable
iambic pentameter-
imagery-a common term of variable meaning, imagery includes the ‘’mental pictures’’ that readers experience with a passage of literature. If signifies all the perceptions referred to in a poem, whether by litteral description , allusion, simile, or metaphor. Imagery is not limited to visual imagery; it also includes auditory( sound), tactile(touch), thermal(heat and colt), olfactory(smell), gustatory (taste), and kinesthetic sensation (movement).
in medias res- in the middles of things – story begins not at the beginning so flashback s is used to go back to the previous
interior monologue- in dramatic and normatic fiction, narrative technique that exhibits the thoughts passing through the minds of the protagonists. These ideas may be either loosely related impressions approaching free association or more rationally structured sequences of thought and emotion.
internal rhyme Rhyme between a word within a line and another word either at the end of the same line or within another line, Percy Bysshe Shelley’s “The Cloud”: I am the daughter of Earth and Water,
irony The use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning (as when expressions of praise are used where blame is meant).
Jeremiah long literary work , in which author laments the state of society.
Künstlerroman Class of BILDUNGSROMAN, or apprenticeship novel, that deals with the youth and development of an individual who becomes—or is on the threshold of becoming—a painter, musician, or poet. The classic example is James Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916)
lament A nonnarrative poem expressing deep grief or sorrow over a personal loss. The form developed as part of the oral tradition along with heroic poetry and exists in most languages. Examples include Deor’s Lament
leitmotif motif that is recovered, repeated motif
limerick A popular form of short, humorous verse, often nonsensical and frequently ribald. It consists of five lines, rhyming aabba, and the dominant meter is anapestic, with two feet in the third and fourth lines and three feet in the others. litotes A figure of speech by which conscious understatement is used to create emphasis by negation; examples are the expressions “not bad!” and “no mean feat.” Litotes is responsible for much of the characteristic stoicism of Old English poetry and the Icelanders’ sagas.
lyric A verse or poem that can, or supposedly can, be sung to the accompaniment of a musical instrument (in ancient times, usually a lyre) or that expresses intense personal emotion in a manner suggestive of a song. Lyric poetry expresses the thoughts and feelings of the poet and is sometimes contrasted with narrative poetry and verse drama, which relate events in the form of a story. Elegies, odes, and sonnets are important types of lyric poetry. ELEGY; ODE; SONNET.
pentameter a line of verse consisting of five metrical feet.
trimeter, a line of three metrical feet per line
tetrameter a line of four metrical feet hexameter a line of six metrical feet
masculine rhyme In verse, a monosyllabic rhyme, or a rhyme that occurs only in stressed final syllables (such as claims, flames or rare, despair).
melodrama A play characterized by extravagant theatricality, subordination of characterization to plot, and predominance of physical action. Also, the genre of dramatic literature constituted by such plays.
metaphor A figure of speech in which a word or phrase denoting one kind of object or action is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them
meter a regular pattern of stressed syllables in a line of poetry
metonymy Figure of speech that consists of using the name of one thing for something else with which it is associated (as in “I spent the evening reading Shakespeare” or “lands belonging to the crown” or “demanding action by city hall”).
mimesis Imitationthe idea that art imitate the nature
mise en scene- it’s about how the play is organized, the setting, the plot, the French term for the staging or visual arrangement of a dramatic production , comprising scenery, properties, costume, lighting, and human movement
moral-is a message conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. Morals have typically been more obvious in children’s literature, sometimes even being introduced with phrase, ‘’The moral of a story is …’’ e.g. Jan Brzechwa
motif A usually recurring salient thematic element, especially a dominant idea or central theme.
narrative verse A verse or poem that tells a story. It is often contrasted with lyric verse and verse drama. The main forms of narrative verse are the epic and the ballad, both of which are products of the oral tradition.
point of view The perspective from which a story is presented to the reader. The three main points of view are first person, third person singular, and third person omniscient
novel [Italian novella novella] A fictional prose narrative of considerable length and a certain complexity that deals imaginatively with human experience through a connected sequence of events involving a group of persons in a specific setting.
novel of manners Work of fiction that re-creates a social world, conveying with finely detailed observation the customs, values, and mores of a highly developed and complex societyPride and prejudice
objective correlative a set of object, a situation , a chain of events which shall be the formula of particular emotion( lady Macbeth- walking dreamer
onomatopopeia- a litteraly technique of using words represent the sounds e.g. murmur, buzz
oxymoron A word or group of words that is self-contradicting, as in bittersweet or plastic glass. Romeo and Juliet: Why, then, O brawling love! O loving hate!
Palimpsest Writing material such as parchment that has been used one or more times after earlier writing has been erased or partly erased.
parable a short simple story with a message, a secondary hiding meaning of the plot e.g. bible parables
paradox. An apparently self-contradictory statement, the underlying meaning of which is revealed only by careful scrutiny. The purpose of a paradox is to arrest attention and provoke fresh thought. The statement “Less is more
parody- a piece of work that imitates the style of another work. It can be amusing, mocking or an exaggeration of the work.
pastiche or pasticcio 1. A literary, artistic, musical, or architectural work that imitates the style of previous work. 2. A musical, literary, or artistic composition made up of selections from different works, or a usually incongruous medley of different styles and materials.
pathos An element in artistic representation evoking pity or compassion. personification Figure of speech in which human characteristics are attributed to an abstract quality, animal, or inanimate object.
picaresque novel An early form of the novel, usually a first-person narrative, relating the adventures of a rogue or lowborn adventurer (Spanish: pícaro) who drifts from place to place and from one social milieu to another in an effort to survive
prologue or prolog. The preface or introduction to a literary work. 2. A speech, often in verse, addressed to the audience by one or more of the actors at the opening of a play.
protagonist /antagonist the main/ villain character in a literary work e.g. a poem, play
pun a ply of two words similar in sound but different in meaning
plot The plan or the main story of a literary work (such as a novel, play, short story, or poem); also known as narrative structure. Plot involves a considerably higher level of narrative organization than normally occurs in a story or fable
potboileris a term used to describe a poor quality novel, play, opera, or film, or other creative work that was created quickly to make money to pay for the creator's daily expenses
poetic licence-the freedom to change facts, not to obey the usual rules the right to break up with
quatrain [French, a derivative of quatre four] A verse unit of four lines.
realism The theory or practice in art and literature of fidelity to nature or to real life and to accurate representation without idealization of the most typical views, details, and surroundings of the subject. Realism rejects imaginative idealization in favor of a close observation of outward appearances. The word has also been used critically to denote excessive minuteness of detail or preoccupation with trivial, sordid, or squalid subjects in art and literature.
refrain A phrase, line, or verse that recurs regularly at intervals throughout a poem or song, especially at the end of each stanza or division. They appear in literature as varied as ancient Hebrew, Greek, and Latin verse, popular ballads, and Renaissance and Romantic lyrics. Three common refrains are the chorus, recited by more than one person; ‘The Lady of Shalott’ Lord A. Tennyson
resolution 1. The division of a prosodic element into its component parts (such as the division of the components of a long syllable in ancient Greek and Latin verse into two short syllables). Also, the substitution in Greek or Latin prosody of two short syllables for a long syllable. Compare CONTRACTION. 2. A product of prosodic resolution. 3. The point in a play or other work of literature at which the chief dramatic complication is worked out.
revenge tragedy Drama in which the dominant motive is revenge for a real or imagined injury; it was a favorite form of English tragedy in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras and found its highest expression in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
rhyme or rime A type of echoing produced by the close placement of two or more words with similarly sounding final syllables. Rhyme is used by poets (and occasionally by prose writers) to produce sounds that appeal to the ear and to unify and establish a poem’s stanzaic form. roman à clef [French, literally, novel with a key] A novel that has the extraliterary interest of portraying identifiable, sometimes real people more or less thinly disguised as fictional characters. satire A usually topical literary composition holding up human or individual vices, folly, abuses, or shortcomings to censure by means of ridicule, derision, burlesque, irony, or other methods, sometimes with an intent to bring about improvement.
science fiction Fiction dealing principally with the impact of actual or imagined science upon society or individuals, or more generally, literary fantasy including a scientific factor as an essential orienting component.
simile Figure of speech involving a comparison between two unlike entities. In the simile, unlike the metaphor, the resemblance is explicitly indicated by the words “like” or “as.” A simile in literature may be specific and direct or more lengthy and complex, as in the following speech by Othello from William Shakespeare’s Othello: Never, Iago. Like to the Pontic Sea,
slanth rhyme- rhymes created out of words with similar but not identical sounds. In most of these instances, either the vowel segments are different while the consonants are identical, or vice versa. This type is also called approximate rhyme, inexact rhyme, half rhyme, off rhyme, analyzed rhyme, or suspended rhyme( e.g. William Butler Yeats)
slapstick- low comedy in which humor depends almost entirely on physical actions and sight gags. The aantics of the three stogges and the modern fourth stooge, Adam Sandler, often fall into this category
soliloquy In drama, a monologue that gives the illusion of being a series of unspoken reflections. The actor directly addresses the audience or speaks thoughts aloud, either alone upon the stage or with the other actors keeping silent. To be or not to be” soliloquy in Hamlet.
sonnet A fixed verse form of Italian origin consisting of 14 lines that are typically five-foot iambics rhyming according to a prescribed scheme; also, a poem in this patternThe other major form is the Shakespearean (or English) sonnet. The Petrarchan sonnet characteristically treats its theme in two parts. The first eight lines, the octave, state a problem, ask a question, or express an emotional tension. The last six lines, the sestet, resolve the problem, answer the question, or relieve the tension. The octave is rhymed abbaabba. The rhyme scheme of the sestet varies; it may be cdecde, cdccdc, or cdedce. English sonnet, composed of three quatrains, each having an independent rhyme scheme, and is ended with a rhymed couplet.
stock character A character in a drama or fiction that represents a type and that is recognizable as belonging to a certain genre. Most of the characters in the commedia dell’arte are stock characters. In Roman and
stream of consciousness Narrative technique in nondramatic fiction intended to render the flow of myriad impressions—visual, auditory, physical, associative, and subliminal—that together with rational thought impinge on the consciousness of an individual. The stream-of-consciousness novel commonly uses the narrative techniques of INTERIOR MONOLOGUE. Probably the most famous example is James Joyce’s Ulysses (1922).
sublime In literary criticism, grandeur of thought, emotion, and spirit that characterizes great literature. It is the topic of ON THE SUBLIME, an incomplete treatise attributed to Longinus. The author of On the Sublime defines sublimity as “excellence in language,” the “expression of a great spirit,” and the power to provoke “ecstasy.”
synesthesia or synaesthesia -" syn- together + -esthesia (as in anesthesia)] The evocation or transposition of one sense (such as sound) by another (such as vision). The device is much used in both poetry and common speech. In one of the poems from Façade, for example, Edith Sitwell refers to “The enormous and gold-rayed rustling sun.” Tiger! Tiger! Burning bright
synecdoche Figure of speech in which a part represents the whole, as in the expression “hired hands” for workmen or, less commonly, the whole represents a part, as in the use of the word “society” to mean high society. synecdoche is an important poetic device for creating vivid imagery. An example is Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s line in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” “The western wave was all aflame,” in which “wave” substitutes for “sea.”
tall story- a story which is untrue and unbelievable
tercet A unit or group of three lines of verse, usually containing rhyme, as in William Shakespeare’s “The Phoenix and the Turtle”.
Theater of the Absurd a form of drama that emphasizes the absurdity of human existence by employing disjoined, repetitious, meaningless dialogue, purposeless and confusing situations, and plots that lack realistic or logical development
tragedy A drama of a serious and dignified character that typically describes the development of a conflict between the protagonist and a superior force (such as destiny, circumstance, or society) and reaches a sorrowful or disastrous conclusion. tragic hero- is the main character in a tragedy. The modern use of the term usually involves the notion that such a hero makes an error in his or her actions that leads to his or her downfall or flaw. be'traj-i-"käm-€-dÈ\ A literary genre consisting of dramas that combine tragic and comic elements with the tragic predominating. Also, a drama of this genre. Samuel Beckett’s Endgame (1958
trimeter \"trim-€-t€r\ In prosody, a line of three feet (as in modern English verse) or of three metra, or pairs of feet (as in classical iambic verse). A line of pure iambic trimeter is scanned – – – – – –.
trope-
three unites of drama- a unity of action ( a play should have one main action that it follows, with one or few subplots), unity of time( no more than 24 h) unity of place ( a play should cover a single physical space and should attempt to compress geography, nor should the stage represent more than one place)
verisimilitude The semblance of reality in dramatic or nondramatic fiction. The concept implies that either the action represented must be acceptable or convincing according to the audience’s own experience or knowledge or, as in the presentation of science fiction or tales
of the supernatural, the audience must be enticed into willingly suspending disbelief and accepting improbable actions as true within the framework of the narrative.
verism- the artistic preference of contemporary everyday subject metter instead of heroic or legendary in art and literature
Verse paragraph – a group of lines (often blank verse) which forms a unit
exposition - the introductory material that creates the tone, gives the setting, introduces the characters, and supplies other facts necessary to understanding" a work of literature
vicarious participation-as an audience you experience the action- participating indirectly
villain A character in a story or play who opposes the hero. A villain is also known as an ANTAGONIST.