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| a simple character that is one-dimensional (shows on trait) |
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| a complex character that is multi-dimensional (displays many traits) |
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| a character that stays the same from the beginning to the end of a work |
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| a character that changes from the beginning to the end of a work |
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| the main character of a work |
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| the character that opposes the main character of a work |
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| a character that acts as an opposite to another character and, because of this, emphasizes the differences between them |
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| a storyteller of any kind |
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| the narrator tells a story from his perspective and refers to himself as "I" |
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| the narrator knows the actions, feelings, and motivations of only one or a handful of characters |
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| Third Person Omniscient POV |
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| the narrator knows all the actions, feelings, and motivations of all the characters |
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| the point in a plot when background information is revealed |
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| introduces the major conflict in a work |
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| the early part of the story which builds momentum and develops the story's main conflict |
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| the moment of the highest tension in the story |
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| the latter part of th narrative in which the protagonist responds to the events of the climax |
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| an ending that satisfactorily answers all questions raised over the course of the plot |
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| (man vs. man/fate/society/etc.) |
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| the use of a statement that implies its opposite |
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| a technique in which one understanding of a situation stands in sharp contrast to another |
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| a technique in which the author lets the audience or reader in on a character's situation while the character himself remains in the dark |
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| a concrete thing that is used to represent an abstract idea or concept |
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| a direct comparison between two unlike things |
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| an indiret comparison between two unlike things using "like" or "as" |
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| giving human attributes to animals, objects, or ideas |
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| the atmosphere of a work (as the reader experiences it) |
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| a writer's attitude toward his/her subject |
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| the dictionary definition of a word |
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| the implied, suggested, or "loaded" meaning attached to a word |
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| hints about what will happen later in the story |
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| an event or scene taking place before the present time in the narrative |
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| the time and place in which a story occurs |
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| the central, universal idea explored in a literary work |
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| a story with multiple levels of meaning - a literal level (what is ACTUALLY happening in the story) and a deeper, more symbolic level (commenting on religion, society, politics, etc.) |
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| the way the writer chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences |
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| a question asked to emphasize a point, with no answer really expected |
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| an appeal to a person's character, credibility, sincerity, or trustworthiness |
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| an appeal to a person's emotions |
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| an appeal to a person's sense and logic |
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| when events that are happening in nature (the setting) mimic what is happening in the plot of a story |
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| a comparison between two things in which the more complex is explained in terms of the more simple |
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| the association of two contrary terms side by side |
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| a statement that appears to be contradictory or absurd on the surface, but actually expresses a deeper truth |
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| an excessive overstatement or exaggeration |
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| anything out of its proper historical time |
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| a reference to the Bible (also called, more generally, religious allusion) |
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| a reference to Greek or Roman mythology |
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| a reference to an important historical event |
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| a reference to a famous work of literature |
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| writing that tells a story |
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| writing that tries to convince the reader of a particular point |
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| the author, speaker, or person whose perspective (real or imagined) is being advanced in a speech or piece of writing |
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| the speaker, voice, or character assumed by an author (the "mask" the writer wears when telling the story) |
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| grouping of lines in a poem |
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| two successive rhymed lines that are equal in length |
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| the pattern of rhyme in a poem |
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| repetition of similar sounds at the beginning of words |
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| repetition of similar vowel sounds in a sequence of nearby words |
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| repetition of similar consonant sounds in a sequence of nearby words |
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| the use of words that sound like the thing they refer to |
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| a pleasing arrangement of sounds |
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| the clash of harsh sounds within a sentence or phrase |
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| when there is a break at the end of a line of poetry indicated by a comma, period, semicolon, or other punctuation mark |
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| an abrupt break in the middle of a line of poetry |
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| a line of poetry that continues into the next line with no break |
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| a phrase or group of lines that is repeated at significant moments in a poem |
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| speech between two or more characters |
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| a record of a character's thoughts |
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| when a character in a play speaks directly to the audience, but the other characters on the stage cannot hear his words |
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| when a character, alone on the stage, speaks her thoughts aloud |
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| the major (larger) section into which a play is divided |
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| the smaller sections into which an act is divided |
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| instructions written into the script of a play, indicating stage actions, movements of performers, or production requirements |
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| a very handsome young man |
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| shield or protection; sponsorship |
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| fantastical; unreal; impossible; absurd |
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| delightful, blissful, heavenly |
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| very difficult; requiring the strength of Hercules |
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| airtight; secret; mysterious; magical |
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| having colors like the rainbow |
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| jolly; merry; good-humored |
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| full of confusing passageways; intricate; complicated |
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| using words sparingly; concise |
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| unnaturally drowsy; sluggish; dull |
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| inconstant; unstable; subject to rapid and unpredictable mood changes |
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| in love with oneself; excessively fascinated and gratified by one's own physical and mental qualities |
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| one who inflicts punishment for evil deeds |
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| long series of wanderings or travels |
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| song or hymn of praise, joy, or triumph |
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| assuming different forms or shapes |
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| heavy; dull; sullen; gloomy; melancholy |
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| to tease or excite a hope but prevent its fulfillment |
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| someone's source of inspiration, especially in artistic, creative endeavors |
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| brave resistance to authority or rebellion against the established order of the universe |
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| a prediction or message that is ambiguous and difficult to interpret |
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| refers to a repulsive or terrifying woman |
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| a seemingly endless, perhaps useless task |
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| to be caught between two equal dangers in which avoiding one means getting closer to the other |
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| a person's area of particular vulnerability |
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| anything that tempts a person away from safety and toward a destructive path |
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| Icarus/fly too close to the sun |
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| to fall or be destroyed because of lack of caution and excessive ambition |
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| a dog with three heads who stood at the gates of the underworld and let dead souls in but not out |
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| three women who had the power to decide how long people would live and what happened to them |
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| the priest in Troy and the Trojan War who warned of Greeks bearing gifts (the Trojan Horse) |
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| a curious, gifted woman who opened the box she was supposed to leave shut and let out all the evils of mankind except Hope |
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| anyone who rises above severe problems |
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