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| The term for any specific category of literature based on some loose set of stylistic criteria. Eg. mystery novels |
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| The problem in any piece of literature and is often classified according to the nature of the main characters. |
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| A literary work's point of highest tension. |
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| A division of a poem; equivalent to a paragraph in prose. |
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| A device in a narrative by which an event or scene taking place before the present time in the narrative is shown. |
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| To begin in the middle of a sequence of events/the story. |
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| An unexpected, artificial, or improbable character, device, or event introduced suddenly in a work of fiction or drama to resolve a situation or untangle a plot. |
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| A narrative composed of loosely connected incidents, each one more or less self-contained, often connected by a central character or characters. |
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| A literary style characterized by gloom and the supernatural, popular esp in the late 18th century. |
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| A genre of fiction which is usually satirical and depicts the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class who lives outside of society. |
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| A person, place, thing that is used in literature to represent something else. |
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| An ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. |
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| An ‘all‐knowing’ kind of narrator very commonly found in works of fiction written as third‐person narratives. |
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| A character assumed by an author within a literary work. |
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| The repetition of usually initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words or syllables |
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| When a writer makes a reference to another work of literature in writing. |
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| A second self, a second personality or persona within a person, who is often oblivious to the persona's actions. |
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| A sudden turn from the general audience to address a specific group or person or personified abstraction absent or present. |
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| The main character or lead figure in a novel, play, story, or poem. It may also be referred to as the 'hero' of a work. |
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| A literary character of great stature whose moral defect leads to tragedy but some self-awareness. |
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| When contradictory terms are combined to form words that mean something else |
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| A central character in a dramatic or narrative work who lacks the qualities of nobility and magnanimity expected of traditional heroes or heroines in romances and epics. |
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| A flaw in the character of the protagonist in a tragedy that brings the protagonist to ruin or sorrow. |
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| Figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them |
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| Unrhymed lines of ten syllables each, the even-numbered syllables bearing the accents or iambic pentameter |
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| Resemblance of consecutive vowel sounds |
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| Verse that lacks regular meter and line length but relies upon natural rhythms. |
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| The metrical analysis of poetry; the division of a line of poetry into feet by indicating accents and counting syllables. |
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| Two rhyming lines of verse in iambic pentameter. |
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| A common meter in poetry consisting of an unrhymed line with five feet or accents, each foot containing an unaccented syllable and an accented syllable. |
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| An often futuristic society that has degraded into a repressive and controlled state. |
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| This provides clues for the reader to be able to predict what might occur later on in the story. |
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| A poem of fourteen lines in iambic pentameter, conveying strong emotions. |
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| A narrator, whether in literature, film, or theatre, whose credibility has been seriously compromised. |
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| The measured arrangement of words in a line of poetry, as per syllable quantity or rhythmic value. |
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| Doubtfulness or uncertainty of intention or meaning. |
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| The use of vivid description, usually rich in sensory words, to create pictures, or images, in the reader's mind. |
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| The dictionary definition of a word |
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| The naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it. |
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| A figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as. |
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| Distinctive, sometimes picturesque characteristics or peculiarities of a place or period as represented in literature or drama, or as observed in reality. |
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| The style of speaking and writing as reflected in the choice and use of words. |
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| The arrangement and grammatical relations of words in a sentence. |
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| The use of an indirect, mild, or vague word or expression for one thought to be coarse, offensive, or blunt. |
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| A brief, pithy, unusually concise statement of a principle, truth, or sentiment. Notable more for its thought and wisdom than its wit. |
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| A word or phrase describes a persons personal or physical attributes. It either is part of the name of set person or replaces it. |
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| A figure of speech where animals, ideas, or inorganic objects are given human characteristics. |
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| Words said by a character in a play, novel, or poem. |
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| A dramatic or literary form of discourse in which a character talks to himself or herself or reveals his or her thoughts without addressing a listener. |
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| In drama, a speech directed to the audience that is supposedly is not audible to the other characters onstage at the time. |
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| In drama, a speech directed to the audience that is supposedly is not audible to the other characters onstage at the time. |
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| The author’s or speaker’s attitude or feeling toward a subject conveyed through the author’s choice of words |
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| The rhetorical contrast of ideas by means of parallel arrangements of words, clauses, or sentences |
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| The irony in which the implications of a situation, speech, etc, are understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play. |
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| The irony in which what is said is the opposite of what it meant. |
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| The irony in which the outcome turns out to be very different from what is expected. |
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| The irony in which fate, destiny, or a god controls and toys with human hopes and expectations; also, the belief that the universe is so large and man is so small that the universe |
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| A witty, ingenious, and pointed saying that is expressed tersely. |
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| The ridiculing of folly, stupidity, or vice; the use of irony, sarcasm, or ridicule for exposing or denouncing frailties and faults of mankind. |
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| The act of a person or thing that sets, the surroundings or environment of a story. |
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| A sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience. |
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| A variety of a language used by a group of speakers who live in a certain area. Eg. Southern. |
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| A subject which is commonly talked about or referenced in a literary work. |
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| A statement, or multiple statements that lead to an contradictory thought/situation. |
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| The suggestions and associations which people think of when they think of a word. |
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| The thing in a story or poem which deceives, frustrates, or works against the main character in some way. |
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| A recurring subject, theme, idea, etc. (not theme) |
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| The beginning of a story which provides some background and informs the reader about the plot, character, setting, and theme. |
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| Latin for 'Seize the day'; enjoy the present, as opposed to placing all hope in the future. |
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| A literary device used to induce a tender emotional response disproportionate to the situation at hand. |
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| An extreme exaggeration used as a literary device or figure of speech. |
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| The events which occur after the climax and usually end the story. |
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| The series of events that lead to the climax of the story. |
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| A character that rejects established norms and conventions, has been rejected by society, and has the self as the center of his or her own existence. |
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| A work of literature or item in a work that is completely symbolic of something different. |
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| Poetry composed for a particular event. |
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| An author who, in addition to reporting the events of a novel's story, offers further comments on characters and events, and who sometimes reflects more generally upon the signific |
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