Our Lexicon
There exists a specialized lexicon (language set) used to describe literary techniques.
Mastering this lexicon makes discourse more precise and efficient—it’s a way for us all to
stay on the same page. Your capacity to use our class lexicon accurately will be a crucial part
of your grade in several assignments.
What follows is a list of terms we should be familiar with by the end of the semester. Many
of them you know already, some you may not. Some definitions will shift or grow more
complex over the semester as you learn what they mean to a writer. Keep this list of terms
on hand during discussions and workshops. Take note of definitions as they are provided
and make sure to employ this language in your reading journal and comments in class and
on paper.
Allegory
Alliteration
Ambiguity
Assonance
Caesura
Character - Round v Flat, Dynamic v Static, Stock vs Stereotype
Characterization
Climax
Connotation & Denotation
Consonance
Creativity
Dialogue
Diction
Elegy
Enjambment
Foot
Foreshadowing
Found Poem
Image
Line & Line fold
Metaphor
Motif/Theme
Ode
Plot
Point of View (1st, 2nd, 3rd limited, close, and omniscient)
Rhyme (Full/Slant, End/Internal)
Rhythm
Rising/Falling Action
Setting
Simile
Sonnet
Stakes
Stanza
Syllable & Syllabic Verse
Symbol
Syntax
Tone
Voice