Individuality & Conformity Unit
Vocabulary Definitions
• The vocabulary terms from this class will be roughly 50% content
vocabulary and 50% useful words from the literature we read.
• To be a successful student, you must be able to take your own notes that
will help you to study and learn.
• You will be quizzed over these vocabulary words every week, and they will
also appear on your tests and projects.
• You may choose to write down the exact definition from the PowerPoint,
or to write a shorter or longer definition that uses your own words.
• You should include an example for each term that will help you to
memorize it. This can be a name, sentence, phrase, mnemonic, or even a
picture.
Week 1
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Individualism: the belief that the needs of each person are
more important than the needs of the whole society/group;
the actions or attitudes of a person who does things without
being concerned about what other people will think
Collectivism: the belief that the needs of a whole
society/group are more important than the needs of a single
person
Conformity: Behavior that is the same as that of most other
people in your society/group; behavior that meets other
people’s expectations
Prudent: wise
Transient: short-lived; not lasting a long time; fleeting
Usurp: to take something that does not belong to you
Tyrant: a ruler who uses their absolute power to take
advantage of people; a cruel, oppressive ruler
Absolve: to declare someone free from guilt, blame, or
responsibility
Week 2
1.
Direct characterization: when the author describes a
character (TELLS)
2. Indirect characterization: when the reader learns about a
character through their words, actions, thoughts, or interaction
with others (SHOWS)
3. Irony: when there is a contrast between expectation and reality
4. Verbal Irony: saying the opposite of what you mean
5. Dramatic Irony: Occurs when the reader knows
something the character doesn’t
6. Situational Irony: when what happens is the opposite of
what the reader or character expected
7. Ambiguity: when something can be read, understood, or
interpreted in more than one way (adjective form = ambiguous)
8. Repress: to control someone/something; to prevent
someone/something from reaching their full potential
Week 3
1.
2.
3.
4.
Text: a written work, such as a story, article, poem, book, or play
Textual evidence: a specific example or quotation from the text
that supports your argument
Concrete detail: (CD) a fact, example, or claim
Parenthetical documentation: (P-DOC) a citation inside
parentheses () that comes at the end of a sentence with textual
evidence. In MLA format, it includes the author’s last name and
the page number where the information appeared.
Ex: Lily says, “Poor Miss May” (Kidd 51).
5.
Commentary: (CM) A sentence explaining why the CD or textual
evidence is important.
6.
Summarize: to give a shorter statement of the main idea
in your own words
Paraphrase: to restate someone else’s ideas in your own
words
Direct quotation: using someone else’s language word-forword
7.
8.
Week 4
1. Arbitrary: based on random choice or personal
whim, rather than any reason or rule
2. Degrade: to lower in quality, status, or rank
3. Oppress: to crush or burden with the abuse of
power or authority
4. Assert: to behave in a way that expresses your
confidence, importance, or power
5. Comply: to follow a rule; to act according to
expectations
6. Solidarity: a feeling of unity based on common
goals and interests
7. Benign: gentle, kind, harmless
8. Pathological: harmful; so extreme that it is
abnormal or possibly caused by disease
Week 5
1. Alliteration: repetition of beginning sounds
– Jamba Juice, school spirit
2. Parallelism: Using similar grammatical structures in repeated
phrases, sentences, or lines
– I came, I saw, I conquered
– The bigger they are, the harder they fall
3. Inversion: changing word order to emphasize the words at the end
of the sentence
4. Figurative language: language that has a meaning other than its
literal meaning – simile, metaphor, #6 & 7, etc.
5. Personification: describing a non-human entity as if it were human
6. Hyperbole: describing something as larger or more important than
it really is; exaggeration
7. Sensory detail: a detail that appeals to one of the five senses (sight,
smell, taste, touch, or sound)
8. Imagery: language that creates an image in the reader’s mind
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Week 6
Assonance (n): repetition of vowel sounds (making
bacon pancakes)
Consonance (n): repetition of consonant sounds
Allegory (n): A story that has both a literal meaning (its
plot) and a symbolic meaning (something it represents
or stands for)
Paranoia (n): extreme, irrational distrust or suspicion
of others
Persecution (n): hostility or ill treatment, often due to
being different
Afflict (v): to cause pain or harm to someone
Construe (v): to understand or interpret something in a
particular way, such as clues, words, or actions
Hysteria (n): a situation in which many people behave
or react in an extreme or uncontrolled way because of
fear, anger, etc.
Week 7
1. Drama: literature written to be performed; plays
2. Dialogue: conversation between 2 or more
characters
3. Monologue: a speech by one character which other
characters can hear
4. Soliloquy: a speech by one character which is not
heard by other characters
5. Aside: a short comment made by a character to the
audience, which other characters cannot hear
6. Overture: an introduction to the rest of the play
7. Stage directions: directions that tell the director and
actors what to do; not meant to be read aloud.
Week 8
1.
Essay writing terms