Topics: Business › Organization
Type: Narrative Essays
Sample donated: Woodrow Rowe
Last updated: May 3, 2019
allegory
a prose or poetic narrative in which the characters, behavior, or setting demonstrate multiple levels of meaning or significance
alliteration
the sequential repetition of a similar initial sound
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allusion
a reference to a literary or historical event, person, or place
anapestic
a metrical foot in poetry that consists of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed one: “Twas the NIGHT before CHRISTmas”
anaphora
the regular repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases or clauses
anecdote
a brief story or tale told by a character in a piece of literature
antagonist
any character or force that is in opposition to the main character, or protagonist
antithesis
the juxtaposition of sharply contrasting ideas in balanced or parallel words
apostrophe
an address or invocation to something that is inanimate
archetypes
recurrent designs, patterns of action, character types, themes, or images which are identifiable in a wide range of literature
assonance
a repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds
asyndeton
a style in which conjunctions are omitted
attitude
the sense expressed by the tone of voice and/or mood of a piece of writing
ballad
a narrative poem that is, or originally was, meant to be sung
ballad stanza
a common stanza form, consisting of a quatrain (stanza of four lines) that alternates four-beat (iambic tetrameter) and three-beat (iambic trimeter) lines: “In SCARlet TOWN where I was BORN/ there LIVED a FAIR maid DWELLin'”
blank verse
the verse form that most resembles common speech, consisting of unrhymed lines in iambic pentameter
caesura
a pause in a line of verse, indicated by natural speech patterns rather than specific metrical patterns
caricature
a depiction in which a character’s characteristics or features are so deliberately exaggerated as to render them absurd
chiasmus
a figure of speech by which the order of the terms in the first of two parallel clauses is reversed in the second: “Pleasure is a sin, and sometimes sin’s a pleasure.
“
colloquial
ordinary language, the vernacular
conceit
a comparison of two unlikely things that is drawn out within a piece of literature, particularly a piece of extended metaphor within a poem
connotation
what is suggested by a word, apart from what it implicitly describes
consonance
the repetition of a sequence of two or more consonants, but with a change in the intervening vowels: “pitter-patter, pish-posh”
couplet
two rhyming lines of iambic pentameter that together present a single idea or connections: “So long as men can breathe or eyes can see/So long lives this and this gives life to thee.”
dactylic
a metrical foot in poetry consisting of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable: “Everywhere, everywhere, Christmas tonight.”
denotation
a direct or specific meaning, often referred to as the dictionary meaning of a word
dialect
the language and speech idiosyncrasies of a specific area, region, or group of people
diction
the specific word choice an author uses to persuade or convey tone
dramatic monologue
a monologue set in a specific situation and spoken to an imaginary audience; soliloquy
elegy
a poetic lament upon the death of a particular person, usually ending in consolation
enjambment
the continuation of a sentence from one line or couplet of a poem to the next
epic
a poem that celebrates, in a continuous narrative, the achievements of mighty heroes and heroines, often concerned with the founding of a nation or developing of a culture
exposition
that part of the structure that sets the scene, introduces or identifies characters, and establishes the situation at the beginning of a story or play
extended metaphor
a detailed or complex metaphor that extends over a long section of a work, also known as a conceit
fable
a legend or short story often using animals as characters
falling action
that part of plot structure in which the complications of the rising action are untangled; also known as the denouement
farce
a play or scene in a play or book that is characterized by broad humor, wild antics, and often slapstick or physical jokes
flashback
retrospection, where an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronology of the narrative
foreshadowing
to hint at or to present an indication of the future beforehand
formal diction
language that is lofty, dignified, and impersonal
free verse
poetry that is characterized by varying line lengths, lack of traditional meter, and non-rhyming lines
genre
a type or class of literature such as epic or narrative poetry or belles lettres
hyperbole
overstatement characterized by exaggerated language
iambic
a metrical foot in poetry that consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable: “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?/Thou art more lovely and more temperate.”
idyll
a short poem describing a country or pastoral scene, praising the simplicity of rustic life
imagery
any sensory detail or invocation in a work; also, the use of figurative language to evoke a feeling, call to mind an idea, or describe and object
informal diction
language that is not as lofty or impersonal as formal diction; similar to everyday speech
in medias res
“in the midst of things”; refers to opening a story in the middle of the action, necessitating filling in past details by exposition or flashback
irony
a situation or statement characterized by significant difference between what is expected or understood and what actually happens or is meant
jargon
specialized or technical language of a trade, profession, or similar group
juxtaposition
the location of one thing as being adjacent or juxtaposed with another, to create a certain effect
limited point of view
a perspective confined to a single character, whether a first person or a third person
litote
a figure of speech that emphasizes its subject by conscious understatement: “Last week I saw a woman flayed and you would hardly believe how it altered her appearance for the worse.”
loose sentence
a sentence grammatically complete and usually stating its main idea before the end
lyric
originally designated poems meant to be sung to the accompaniment of a lyre; now any short poem in which the speaker expresses intense personal emotion rather than describing a narrative or dramatic situation
message
a misleading term for theme; the central statement or idea of a story, misleading because it suggests a simple, packaged statement that pre-exists and for the simple communication of which the story was written
metaphor
one thing pictured as if it were something else, suggesting a likeness or analogy between them
meter
the more or less regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry
metonymy
a figure of speech in which an attribute or commonly associated feature is used to name or designate something: “The White House announced today,” “The pen is mightier than the sword.
“
mood
a feeling or ambiance resulting from the tone of the piece as well as the writer/narrator’s attitude and point of view
motif
a recurrent device, formula, or situation that often serves as a signal for the appearance of a character or event
narrative structure
a textual organization based on sequences of connected events, usually presented in a straightforward, chronological framework
narrator
the character who “tells” the story, or in poetry, the persona
occasional poem
a poem written about or for a specific occasion, public or private
ode
a lyric poem that is somewhat serious in subject and treatment, is elevated in style, and sometimes uses elaborate stanza structure, which is often patterned in sets of three; often written to praise or exalt a person, quality, characteristic, or object
omniscient point of view
also called unlimited focus; a perspective that can be seen from one character’s view, then another’s, then another’s and can be moved at any time
onomatopoeia
a word capturing or approximating the sound of what it describes: “buzz,” “clank”
overstatement
exaggerated language also called hyperbole
oxymoron
a figure of speech that combines to apparently contradictory elements: “jumbo shrimp,” “deafening silence”
parable
a short fictional story that illustrates an explicit moral lesson through the use of analogy
paradox
a statement that seems contradictory but may actually be true: “fight for peace”
parallel structure
the use of similar forms in writing for nouns, verbs, phrases, or thoughts: “Jane likes reading, writing, and skiing,” NOT “Martha takes notes quickly, thoroughly, and in a detailed manner.”
parody
a work that imitates another work for comic effect by exaggerating the style and changing the content of the original
pastoral
a work that describes the simple life of country folk, usually shepherds who live a timeless, painless life in a world full of beauty, music, and love; also called an eclogue, a bucolic, or and idyll
periodic sentence
a sentence that is not grammatically complete until the end: “The child, who looked as if she were being chased by demons, ran.”
personification
treating an abstraction or nonhuman object as if it were a person by endowing it with human qualities
persona
the voice or figure of the author who tells and structures the story and who may or may not share the values of the actual author (e.
g. adult Scout in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ Watson in ‘Sherlock Holmes’)
Petrarchan sonnet
a sonnet form that divides the poem into one section of eight lines (octave) and a second section of six lines (sestet) usually following the abba abba cde cde rhyme scheme; also called an Italian sonnet
plot
the arrangement of the narration based on the cause-effect relationship of the events
protagonist
the main character in a work, who may or may not be heroic
quatrain
a poetic stanza of four lines
realism
the practice in literature of attempting to describe nature and life without idealism and with attention to detail
refrain
a repeated stanza or line(s) in a poem or song
rhetorical question
a question that is simply asked for stylistic effect and is not expected to be answered
rhyme
the repetition of the same or similar sounds, most often at the ends of lines
rhythm
the modulation of weak and strong elements in the flow of speech
rising action
the development of action in a work, usually at the beginning
sarcasm
a form of verbal irony in which apparent praise is actually harshly or bitterly critical
satire
a literary work that holds up human failings to ridicule and censure
scansion
the analysis of verse to show its meter
setting
the time and place of the action in a story, poem, or play
Shakespearean sonnet
a sonnet form that divides the poem into three units of four lines each and a final unit of two lines, usually abab cdcd efef gg; also called an English sonnet
shaped verse
another name for concrete poetry, poetry that is shaped to look like an object
simile
a direct, explicit comparison of one thing to another, using the words ‘like’ or ‘as’
soliloquy
a monologue in which the character in a play is alone and speaking only to himself or herself
speaker
the person, not necessarily the author, who is the voice of a poem
stanza
a section of a poem demarcated by extra line spacing
couplet
two-line stanza
tercet
three-line stanza
quatrain
four-line stanza
cinquain
five-line stanza
sestet
six-line stanza
heptatich
seven-line stanza
octave
eight-line stanza
stereotype
a characterization based on conscious or unconscious assumptions that some aspect, such as gender, age, ethnic or national identity, religion, occupation, marital status, and so on, are predictable accompanied by certain character traits, action, and even values
Everyman character
main character that actually represents all people
stock character
character who appears in a number of stories or plays such as the cruel stepmother, the femme fatale, etc.
structure
the organization or arrangement of the various elements in a work
style
a distinctive manner of expression
symbol
a person, place, thing, event, or pattern in a literary work that designates itself and at the same time figuratively represents or “stands for” something else
synecdoche
when a part is used to signify a whole: “All hands on deck,” “He stole five hundred head of longhorns.”
syntax
the way words are put together to form phrases, clauses, and sentences
terza rima
a verse form consisting of three-line stanzas in which the second line of each rhymes with the first and third of the next, in the form ababcb
theme
a generalized, abstract paraphrase of the inferred central or dominant idea or concern of a work
tone
the attitude a literary work takes toward its subject and theme
tragedy
a drama in which a character (usually good and noble and of high rank) is brought to a disastrous end in his or her confrontation with a superior force due to a fatal flaw in his or her character
trochaic
a metrical foot in poetry that is the opposite of iambic, with the first syllable stressed and the second not: “BY the SHORES of GITCHee GUMee,/BY the SHINing BIG-Sea-WATer”
turning point
the third part of plot structure, the point at which the action stops rising and begins falling or reversing; also called the climax
villanelle
a verse form consisting of 19 lines divided into six stanzas – five tercets and one quatrain; the first and third lines of the first tercet rhyme, and this rhyme is repeated through each of the next four tercets and in the last two lines of the concluding quatrain
voice
the acknowledged or unacknowledged source of the words of the story; the “person” telling the story or poem