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English Literary Terminology
Word of the Day
Setting up your notebooks…
Have a separate section for “Word of the Day” so it is easily found at the beginning of class.
Date each entry so you can tell if you miss one.
Copy down the word and definition carefully!! Copy the example provided or create your own.
You will have periodic quizzes on these words (spelling and meaning) so be prepared!
Act
The major division of a play or film. The end of an act may see a significant change in plot, theme or character.
Example – the climax of a Shakespearean play usually occurs in Act III.
Alliteration
A series of words all containing, or beginning with the same consonant sound.
Example: “She sells seashells by the sea shore.”
Allusion
A reference to a person, place or event from another literary work. The reader must recognize the work for the allusion to be successful.
Example – Calling a miserly person a “Scrooge” refers to A Christmas Carol by Dickens.
Analogy
Explaining a complex idea or thought by using a simpler concept that is familiar to the reader
Example – The human brain is like a computer, so books would be the software programs.
Anecdote
A short account of a particular incident of an interesting or amusing nature, often biographical.
Example – “Last year when I was trying out for a play…”
Antagonist
The force or character that opposes the main character. May or may not be the “villain” of the plot
Example – the antagonist in Snow White is her step-mother, the queen
Aside
Usually seen in stage directions, it is where a character talks to the audience but is not heard by the other characters.
Example – In Ferris Bueller, Ferris talks with the
Assonance
The repetition of vowel sounds usually to create emphasis when read orally.
Example: “Did you look in your book before grabbing a new worksheet?”
Atmosphere
The overall mood or emotional effect created by the setting, imagery and dialogue.
Example – In a horror story, characters speak in short sentences to show nervousness
Biography
A written account of another person’s life.
Example – Malcolm X is his life story.
Character
The main subject of a literary work. It can also refer to the subject’s behavior or beliefs or interactions.
Example – Hermione Granger is the main female character in the Harry Potter series
Character - Dynamic
A character who undergoes a significant change in behavior, beliefs or values
Example – The Grinch undergoes a significant change as his heart grows and he begins to care about the people in Whoville
Character - Flat
A character with one or two traits Example – Timon and Pumba are flat
characters in The Lion King.
Character – Round
A character whose main traits are displayed in the text.
Example – Harry Potter is a round character
Character – Stock/Stereotype A character who is recognizable due
to its repeated use in specific types of texts. Is also a character recognizable due to its familiarity and predictability.
Example – A Western movie has a bartender, a bandit and a sheriff/the absent minded professor or the old unmarried librarian
Characters - Static
Characters that do NOT change, grow, or mature during the story. They are exactly the same way at the end of the story as they were at the beginning.
Characterization The portraying or describing of a character
made by the author. There are two types of characterization: Direct Characterization: where the author tells
the reader exactly what the character is like. Example: “Suzy was a shy girl.”
Indirect Characterization: where the reader must make assumptions about the character based on his/her actions within the story. Example: “Suzy hid behind her mother’s legs as the guest arrived.”
Chronology
The sequence of events that are found within the literary work.
Example – In The 3 Little Pigs, the wolf attacks the houses in order.
Cliché
An over-used expression that should not be used in formal works.
Example – “Generation Gap”; “cute as a button”; “ugly as sin”.
Cause and Effect
A type of writing which describes actions and their consequences
Example – If we flick the switch, the light turns on
Comparison
Using similar character traits to show contrast
Example – Both Cruella DeVille and Jafar are cruel.
Conflict
The problems within the story that help to advance the plot. Man vs Man Man vs Self Man vs Society Man vs the Environment (Nature) Man vs Supernatural
Connotation
The extended meaning of a word, its implied meaning or suggested meanings.
Example – Home – where you live; where your family is, where you feel loved, etc.
Context
Looking at an unknown word or idea and using surrounding words to determine its meaning
Example – The taper was lit on the table, burning brightly in its holder between the dinner plates.
Contrast
Using differences between characters or ideas for effect.
Example – Darth Vader and his son are dressed oppositely.
Conventions
Sentence structure, usage, grammar and mechanics.
Example – There, their, they’re are frequently incorrectly used conventions.
Denotation
The literal or dictionary meaning of a word; stated in the text.
Example – Lucid means “clear and easy to understand”
Dialect
A writing style that mimics the speech patterns of a certain area.
Example – To show your character is from the South, you could use “Hi, y’all”.
Dialogue
The spoken or written words between two or more characters.
Example – Bob said, “Hello, Sally.” Sally said, “Go away, Bob.”
Diction
The specific choice and use of words by a writer.
Example – Using “stupendous” instead of the word “great”.
Epic
A long narrative poem that has the hero fulfilling a quest successfully.
Example – “Beowulf” is the first English epic.
Essay
A prose discussion of a topic that must be proven but is concise
Example – “A Modest Proposal” by Johnathan Swift
Expository/Explanatory Essay
An essay whose purpose is to provide information.
Example – An essay on the rules of soccer.
Fantasy
A writing style that discusses unexplainable or unfamiliar scences.
Example – Harry Potter and the Philosoper’s Stone is a fantasy novel.
Figurative Language
When the author uses literary techniques to take the meaning of the written word beyond “face value”
Example: “Some examples of figurative language are metaphor, simile, personification, and imagery.”
Flashback
A reference to an event that took place prior to the start of a story
Example – When the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge through the past.
Foreshadowing
An earlier hint or suggestion in the text of a future event or occurance.
Example – In Finding Nemo, it is foreshadowed that Nemo will experience negative consequences if he touches the boat.
Genre
A category or type of writing.
Example: “Some common genres are horror, suspense, sci-fi, or romance.”
This can also refer to the format of writing. Example: short story, essay, poetry.
Haiku
A style of Japanese poetry where the poem is divided into 3 lines with 17 syllables; usually deals with nature
Example:The red dog ate meatBut the blue dog eats cookiesHe is so bulbous
Homonym
Two words that sound alike but have different meanings
Example – Week vs weak
Humour
Any element, device or technique that causes laughter or amusement
Example – A guy walked into a bar: Ouch!
Hyperbole
A purposeful overstatement or exaggeration for effect or emphasis.
Example – If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times.
Iamb
Most common rhythm, one unstressed syllable then one stressed
Example – loveLY, hunGRY
Idiom
An expression that is not easily translated into another language.
Example – Kitsch is a German word that can mean trashy or worthless, but also charming.
Imagery
The use of vivid images to paint a picture in the head of the reader. The author often refers to the five senses.
Example: “From the sky red, blue, and white streamers danced down through the gentle smoke from the fireworks.”
Inferential Meaning
Assumptions are made based on textual evidence.
Irony A situation where something is said but the
reader can see a different meaning.
There are three main types of irony: situational irony - when the opposite of what is
expected happens, dramatic irony - when the audience knows what
is happening but the characters do not, verbal irony - when one thing is said but it
means another.
Jargon
Vocabulary that is used in a specialized line of work or play.
Example – Boxers use expressions like uppercut and KO
Limerick
A humorous poem of five lines with the rhyme pattern of AABBA
Example:There was an Old Man with a beard,Who said, “It is just as I feared!”Two Owls and a Hen,Four Larks and a Wren,Have all built their nests in my beard!
Literal Meaning
Facts and information stated directly without interpretation required.
Example: This dog is brown and large.
Metaphor
A comparison where something is said to be something else.
Example: “He is a pig at supper time.”
Mnemonic
Using the first letter of phrases to aid memory; common abbreviations
Example – NASA: National Aeronautical Space Administration
Monologue
A monologue is a speech made by one actor/person speaking his or her thoughts aloud or directly addressing a reader, audience, or character. The person need not be alone on stage but the other characters do not speak.
Motivator
An opening sentence intended to grab the readers attention.
Example – The world may as well end tomorrow.
Mood
The feeling that is established in the reader by what they have read.
Example: “A story can be dark and suspenseful or happy and exciting.”
Narrative
A form of writing that tells a story.
Example: “Novels and short stories are examples of narratives.”
Narrator
The teller of the story, sometimes the author, sometimes first person.
Example – Princess Bride is told by the grandfather to the grandson.
Onomatopoeia
Words are made to sound like the things they describe.
Example: “Boom”, “Bang”, “Buzz”
Oxymoron
Bringing together two opposite words yet when they are put together they make sense.
Example: “Winning the competition was a bittersweet moment for Jen.”
Example – Jumbo Shrimp
Parallelism A sentence that contains several
elements that have equal stress and importance.
Example: “She likes cooking, jogging, and reading.”
Example: Incorrect: “The dog ran across the yard, jumped over the fence, and down the alley he sprinted.” Correct: “The dog ran across the yard, jumped over the fence, and sprinted down the alley.”
Paraphrase
A restating of a text to highlight the important aspects; usually shorter.
Example – In The Hobbit, Bilbo goes on a grand adventure and defeats a dragon.
Personification
Non-human things are described as if they were human.
Example: “The trees whispered in the night wind.”
Plagiarism
The copying of an author’s work by another author without credit.
Example – He looked over her shoulder to plagiarize her essay.
Plot The progress or flow of the story. There are 6 parts:
Exposition – this is the introduction of the story where we meet main characters, learn background information, and figure out what type of mood the author is trying to establish.
Initial Incident – this is the first problem/conflict in the story that gets things going.
Rising action – all the events in the story that help develop character or build suspense. This leads to the climax of the story.
Plot continued… Climax – This is the highest point in the
story where the fate of the protagonist IS known. There may still be small conflicts but the major conflicts are resolved.
Falling action/Denouement – This is the tying up of loose ends where all conflicts are resolved and the story ends.
Conclusion – This is the type of ending the story has happy, unhappy, surprise, or indeterminate.
Point of View From whose perspective the story is told. Types of points of view:
First person – the narrator is recounting their personal experiences. (“I”, “we”)
Objective – Camera POV; narrator external to the events, no internal emotions, thinking; events or actions only.
Limited Omniscient – Narration told through the eyes of ONE character and know his/her thoughts
Omniscient – God POV; narration of outside events but can see into the hearts and minds of 2 or more characters
Protagonist
The primary character of the plot, usually responsible for resolving the central conflict.
Example – Brutus in Julius Caesar or Viola in Twelfth Night
Prologue
An introduction to a literary work, given before the plot starts to help establish mood or setting.
Example – Most Shakespearean plays use this to help the audience understand what will happen.
Prose
The writing of complete sentences and paragraphs in various types of literature. IT IS NOT POETRY. Poetry is written in VERSE whereas essays and stories are written in prose.
Pun
A connotative or alternate use of a word for effect, usually humorous.
Example – The dying man said, “You will soon find me a grave man.”
Repetition
The technique of repeating the most important words, phrases or ideas for emphasis, impact or focus.
Example – The judge said, “You will be hanged by the neck until you are dead, dead, dead.”
Rhetorical Questions
A question that is posed but does not require an answer because it is understood; used for effect.
Example – If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
Rhyme
The use of identical sounds between words, syllables, or phrases. End Rhyme – the rhyming words are
found at the end of the lines Example – George was a twit.
He daily had a fit.
Rhythm
A patterned repetition of sound in a poem.
Example - I like to see itlap the milesAnd lick thevalleys up
Setting
The total environment for the action of a fictional work. Setting includes time period (such as the 1890's), the place (such as downtown Warsaw), and social/historical circumstance (such as during the Crimean War).
Simile
The use of the words “like” or “as” to compare two unlike things.
Example – His voice was like thunder.
Stage Directions
The instructions for directors, actors and technicians in a play, usually found in italics or parentheses.
Example – Enter Portia (dressed as a Doctors of Laws) from Merchant of Venice.
Stanza
A group of verses in a poem, set off by a space in printed text.
Example – A song’s chorus is usually a stanza by itself.
Suspense
The audience will begin to ask “What is next?” from the plot line.
Example – tension and uncertainty are used for suspense creation
Symbol
An object or idea that has more than one meaning or stands for something else.
Example – A heart can be used to show the concept of love, as well as the color red.
Synonym
A word that has the same meaning as a related word.
Example – Instead of using “happy”, a writer uses “content”, or “joyful”.
Synopsis
A summary of the main points of the literary work in full sentences, including subplot or other terms.
Example – This is not a synopsis: Moby Dick sees a guy kill a white whale.
Terminator
The final sentence of an essay that completes it.
Example – Even though the world may end, we must find the will to live.
Theme
What the author wants to teach the audience about life; the main point the author wishes to convey in the work.
Example – The theme of Julius Caesar is that duty and honour are lasting while fame and glory are fleeting.
Thesis
A position that is for or against an argument that is proven with examples and explanation.
Example – A thesis about schools is: Homework will allow more success than
studying alone.
Tone
The author’s attitude toward his subject
Example – In “Gore”, Sarah Ellis is fearful of her subject
Formal tone – using traditional, correct language
Informal tone – using casual, colloquial forms
Transition
A word that moves the reader from one idea to another
Example – Firstly, in conclusion, in addition, futhermore
Understatement
The use of irony to represent something as less than it is
Example – Mr. Jones gave a small gift of 1 million dollars to the school
Verse
The unit of poetry that is made up of lines, usually into stanzas.
Example – In blank verse, there are no stanzas, only lines.
Voice
The creation of a personal style of writing based on manner and choice.
Example – Professional, critical, casual, friendly.
Wit
Clever, amusing remarks, or the person who makes them.
Example – History repeats itself; historians repeat each other – Guedally.
