Ashley Fischer, Kevin Delaney, and Alex Eng
Chapter 3
Connotation & Denotation
Key Terms
Denotation: The basic denotation or dictionary meaning of a word. (Page 41)
Example: A home is the place in which someone lives.
Connotation: What a word suggests beyond its basic dictionary definition; a word’s overtones
of meaning. (Page 41)
Example: A home can suggest security, love, comfort, and family.
AP Questions
Page 51
Desert Places
By: Robert Frost
1.
Which of the following does not have the connotations of loneliness?
a. “empty spaces” (line 13)
b. “smothered in their lairs” (line 6)
c. “blanker whiteness” (line 11)
d. “desert places” (line 16)
e. “between stars” (line 14)
2. The connotative meaning of the title “Desert Places” is…
i. Ironic
ii. Metaphorical
iii. Understatement
a. I only
b. II only
c. III only
d. I and II only
e. I, II, and III
Chapter 4
Imagery
Key Terms
Imagery: The representation through language of sense experience. (Page 55)
Example: But an image may also represent a sound (auditory); a smell (olfactory); a taste
(gustatory); touch, such as hardness, softness, wetness, or heat and cold (tactile); an internal
sensation, such as hunger, thirst, fatigue, or nausea (kinesthetic).
AP Questions
Page 60
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
By: Emily Dickenson
1.
The second stanza includes all of the following EXCEPT…
a. Simile
b. Alliteration
c. Repetition
d. First Person Narrative
e. Paradox
2. The poem draws its imagery from all of the following EXCEPT…
a. “And Finished knowing” (line 20)
b. “like a Drum” (line 6)
c. Onomatopoeia
d. The coffin
e. “And Mourners” (line 2)
3. In lines 3 and 6, the repetition serves to…
i. Illustrate the sound of a heartbeat
ii. Enhance the auditory imagery
iii. Keep a similar rhythm throughout the poem
a. I only
b. I and II only
c. III only
d. II and III only
e. I, II, and III
Janessa, Kayla, Ryan & Michelle
Chapter 5
Figure of speech: Any way of saying something other than the ordinary way.
Figurative language: Language using figures of speech.
Simile: Means of comparing things that are essentially unlike; expressed by the use of some
word or phrase (like, as, than, similar to, resembles, seems)
** also: extended simile
Metaphor: Used as a means of comparing things that are essentially unlike; comparison is not
expressed but is created when a figurative term is substituted for or identified with the literal
term
-Either named of implied literal and/or figurative terms
**also: extended metaphor
Personification: Consists in giving the attributes of a human being to an animal, an object, or a
concept.
Apostrophe: Consists in addressing someone absent or dead or something nonhuman as if that
person were present and alive and could reply to what’s being said (similar to personification)
Synecdoche: The use of the part for the whole.
Metonymy: The use of something closely related for the thing actually meant.
Similes and Metaphors
Simile
(like, as, seems, etc)
Metaphors
(is, are, etc)
Poet
Conford
Form 1
Francis
Form 2
Frost
Form 3
Dickinson
Form 4
Dickinson
Literal Term
Named
Guitarist
Guitarist
Named
Life
Named
Leaves
Implied
It [snow]
Implied
It [snow]
Figurative Term
Named
Conqueror
Man with woman
Named
Hound
Implied
[snake] hissed
Named
Wool
Implied
[flour] sifts
Figurative Language:
1.) affords us imaginative pleasure
2.) is a way of bringing additional imagery into verse, of making the abstract concrete,
and making poetry more sensuous
3.) is a way of adding emotional intensity to otherwise merely informative statements
and of conveying attitudes along with information
4.) is an effective means of concentration, a way of saying much in brief compass
Comparing like things:
-Simile, metaphor
Comparing unlike things:
-Metonymy, synecdoche
i.e. redhead (red hair), tongues (languages), boiling kettle (water in the kettle)
Chapter 6: Key Terms & Concepts
Symbol - something that means more than what it is; functions literally and figuratively at the
same time
Allegory - a narrative or description that has a second meaning beneath the surface; involves a
system of related comparisons and places more emphasis on images for their ulterior meanings
1)How is a symbol used in poetry? How does its use enrich a poem?
A symbol by definition is something that means more than what is literally is. It functions
literally and figuratively at the same time. It allows the author to explore all meanings possible
for his/her main idea. A symbol can be helped along through image and metaphor, but it is
important to remember they are not the same term. A symbol can be general or specific at the
same time, but more often than not it is general. Ex from the book describing symbol): It is like
an opal that flashes out different colors when slowly turned in the light.
2)What’s the danger in “meaning-hunting?”
Sometimes poems’ purposes do not always have hidden meanings and may be aimed solely to
describe. Hunting for hidden meanings when there are none will yield only false purposes,
contorting the true purpose of the poem, and distract attention from the actual prose at hand.
3) How is allegory connected to a symbol? Similarities? Differences?
An allegory is a narrative or description that has a second meaning beneath the surface. Both
symbol and allegory retain ulterior motives for the author’s manipulation in poems. A symbol
and an allegory can both be present in the entire poem and be the purpose of. However allegory
is the entire storyline where a symbol can be just a small section.
Allegory example: Allegory of a Cave by Plato
Symbol example: Heart of Darkness by J.Conrad-symbol= darkness? devils?
AP questions:
To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time
1)What kind of emotion is being expressed towards the rosebuds?
a) Simplicity, they are beautiful to look at
b) Anxiousness, they are wilting
c) Frustration at the amount of weeds
d) Alacrity, rosebuds are the speaker’s favorite flower
e) None of the above
2) What is achieved in the 3rd stanza?
a) comic relief
b) breath of youth
c) youth is fleeting
d) youth is gone
e) All of the above
3) Fire and Ice: What do “fire” and “ice” symbolize?
a) Malcontent, innocence
b) Detrimental, fragile
c) Crime/punishment, Reward
d) Hell, Heaven
e) A and B
Sam Siporin, Rachel Slack, Stephanie Piech, Ilana Specter
Chapter 7
Terms:
Paradox- A contradiction that in some way expresses the truth.
Understatement (litotes)- Saying less than one means in order to place emphasis
on his or her claim.
Overstatement (hyperbole)- Exaggeration of a situation to express the truth and
cause the reader to become more interested.
Irony:
Situational- Discrepancy between what happens and what one would expect.
Verbal- Saying the opposite of what you mean.
Dramatic- Discrepancy between what the speaker means and what the
poem itself actually means.
Sarcasm- bitter speech intended to hurt the feelings of another
Satire- A ridicule of human vices in a piece of literature.
Concepts:
~ The connection of these major concepts is the fact that they address either more,
less or the opposite in relation to the idea they are supporting.
~ Irony is the most difficult to master concept as it is often implied in a false
sense. The result of this could be a total breakdown of the readers
understanding of the text.
~ When one uses Paradox or Irony, while they can create confusion if not used
properly, if used correctly can be a major asset to a work of literature by
expressing ideas in a whole new intellectual way.
Chapter 8
Terms:
Allusion- A reference to something in history or in another past piece of literature
that the author expects the reader to know.
Concepts:



One piece of literature that it is quintessential to know (and we are always reminded of
this) is the Bible, as numerous references come from these stories that the author assumes
we all know.
By using an allusion the author is able to reinforce his own idea and emotions without a
huge elaborate explanation. He can simply compare it to something similar in another
text.
The flaw that exists in a poet’s use of allusion is his knowledge compared to those around
him. Everyone may not understand the same allusions, therefore a choice must be made
by the one writing the poet as to what he thinks people would understand.
AP Style Multiple Choice Questions:
For questions 1-3 see the poem “The History Teacher” on page 125 in Sound and Sense.
1. Which of the following devices were used in the fifth stanza:
I.
Situational Irony
II.
Hyperbole
III.
Paradox
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
I and II
I only
I, II, III
III only
I and III
2. What do lines 18-19 reveal about the teacher?
A. He feels superior compared to his surroundings.
B. He enjoys a life of comfort.
C. His past experiences make him desire reform.
D. He is very angered and depressed.
E. He is an environmentalist and cares about nature
3. The numerous historical references serve as which of the following literary devices?
A. Verbal Irony
B. Litotes
C. Hyperbole
D. Paradox
E. Apostrophe
For questions 4-5 see the poem “Miniver Cheevy” on page 142 in Sound and Sense.
4. What do the illusions of Thebes, Camelot, Priam and the French Medici family reveal
about Miniver’s inner desires?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
He is not content with the life he has been born into.
He wishes for a life of grandeur.
He yearns to live in the Renaissance times.
Both A and B
All of the above
5. The speaker’s tone towards Cheevy’s desires can best be expressed as:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Resentful and Flippant
Sarcastic and Cruel
Sympathetic and Understanding
Shallow and Pedantic
Gentle and Morose
Chapter 9 “Meaning and Idea”
Terms:
-Prose Meaning- meaning of a poem that could be expressed in a paraphrase
-Total Meaning- the experience a poem communicates
Notes:
-Prose Meaning- could be a short story description, statement of emotion, or
presentation of human character
- The reader should suspend disbelief and be accepting to different ideas to get the
total meaning.
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening - Robert Frost
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
1. All of the following literary devices are present in the poem, EXCEPT:
a. Repetition
b. Personification
c. Hyperbole
d. Litotes
e. Alliteration
2. There is a shift in the tone of the poem in stanza(s):
a. II
b. III
c. IV
d. II and IV
e. None
3. The fourth stanza serves to:
a. Provide a conjecture as to where the speaker is planning to travel
b. Explain the speaker’s reason for leaving the woods
c. Give insight into the future of the speaker
d. Qualify the preceding three stanzas
e. Describe the speaker’s realization that the stop in the woods was in vain.
Chapter 10 “Tone”
Terms:
- Tone= writer or speaker’s attitude towards a subject, the reader, or him/herself; the
emotional coloring of the work.
Notes:
- Tone determines how a piece of writing should be interpreted.
- Tone is a product of all elements of poetry, inclusive of: connotation, imagery,
metaphor, irony, understatement, rhythm, sentence structure, and formal pattern.
Love
Anonymous
There's the wonderful love of a beautiful maid,
And the love of a staunch, true man,
And the love of a baby that's unafraid-All have existed since time began.
But the most wonderful love, the love of all loves,
Even greater than the love for Mother,
Is the infinite, tenderest, passionate love
Of one dead drunk for another.
4. How does the last line of the poem effect its tone?
a. The tone shifts from quixotic to capricous
b. The tone stays the same
c. The tone shifts from romantic to humorous
d. It affirms the poet’s maudlin attitude
e. It reflects the poets self consciousness
5. How does the glorification of love contribute to the poem’s ultimate tonal shift?
a. It emphasizes the speaker’s infatuation
b. It accentuates the ironic subject of the poem
c. It conveys the speaker’s bitterness towards love
d. It illuminates the speaker’s lack of recent sexual encounter
e. It downplays the subject of the author’s love
Chapters 11 and 12
By Natasha Calabria, Caitlin Drummond, Casey Gorman, and Melissa Heisler
Chapter 11 – Musical Devices
Terms

Alliteration - the repetition at close intervals of the initial consonant sounds of accented syllables or
important words. Important words and accented syllables beginning with vowels may also be said to
alliterate with each other inasmuch as they all have the same lack of an initial consonant sound.

Anaphora - Repetition of an opening word or phrase in a series of lines.

Assonance - the repetition at close intervals of the vowel sounds of accented syllables or important
words

Consonance - the repetition at close intervals of the final consonant sounds of accented syllables or
important words.

Refrain - a repeated word, phrase, line, or group of lines, normally at some fixed position in a poem
written in stanza form.

Rhyme a) Approximate Rhyme (also known as imperfect rhyme, near rhyme, slant rhyme, or oblique
rhyme) - A term used for words in a rhyming pattern that have some kind of sound
correspondence but are not perfect rhymes. Approximate rhymes occur occasionally in
patterns where most of the rhymes are perfect, and sometimes are used systematically in
place of perfect rhyme.
b) End Rhyme - rhymes that occur at the ends of the lines.
c)
Feminine Rhyme - a rhyme in which the repeated accented vowel is in either the second or
third-last syllable of the words involved.
d) Masculine Rhyme (also known as single rhyme) - a rhyme in which the repeated accented
vowel sound is in the final syllable of the words involved.
Concepts
1. Verbal musical devices allow the poet to better communicate emotion and information.
2. All music and art is created through the use of repetition and variation.
3. Musical poetry is created through the poet’s arrangement of sounds and accents.
4. Musical devices sound beautiful on their own, but must serve a coherent purpose to create meaning.
Chapter 12 – Rhythm and Meter
Terms

Accented – Also sometimes referred to as stressed. A syllable given more prominence in
pronunciation than its neighboring syllables.

Blank Verse – Unrhymed iambic pentameter.

Caesuras – A speech pause occurring within a line.
o
Grammatical Pause – A pause introduced into the reading of the line by a mark of
punctuation
o
Rhetorical Pause – A natural pause, unmarked by punctuation, introduced into the
reading of a line by its phrasing or syntax.

End-Stopped Line – A line that ends with a natural speech pause, usually marked by
punctuation.

Foot – The basic unit used in the scansion or measurement of metrical verse. A foot usually
contains one accented syllable and one or two unaccented syllables.
Examples

Name of Foot
Adjective Form
to-day, the sun
Iamb
Iambic
dai-ly, went to
Trochee
Trochaic
in-ter-vene, in the dark
Anapest
Anapestic
mul-ti-ple, col-or of
Dactyl
Dactylic
true-blue
Spondee
Spondaic
o
Iamb – A metrical foot consisting of one unaccented syllable followed by one accented
syllable.
o
Trochee – A metrical foot consisting of one accented syllable followed by one
unaccented syllable.
o
Anapest – A metrical foot consisting of two unaccented syllables followed by one
accented syllable.
o
Dactyl – A metrical foot consisting of one accented syllable followed by two unaccented
syllables.
o
Spondee – A metrical foot consisting of two syllables equally or almost equally accented.
Free Verse – Nonmetrical poetry in which the basic rhythmic unit is the line and in which
pauses, line breaks, and formal patterns develop organically from the requirements of the
individual poem rather than from established poetic forms.

Meter – The regular patterns of accent that underlie metrical verse; the measurable repetition of
accented and unaccented syllables in poetry.
Monometer
Dimeter
Trimeter

one foot
two feet
three feet
Tetrameter
Pentameter
Hexameter
four feet
five feet
six feet
Metrical Variations – Departures from the basic metrical pattern.
o
Extrametrical Syllables – In metrical verse, extra unaccented syllables added at the
beginnings or endings of lines; these may be either a feature of the metrical form of a
poem or occur as exceptions to the form. In iambic lines, they occur at the end of the
line; in trochaic, at the beginning.
o
Substitution – In metrical verse, the replacement of the expected metrical foot by a
different one.

Prose Poem – Usually a short composition having the intentions of poetry but written in prose
rather than verse.

Rhetorical Stresses – In natural speech, as in prose and poetic writing, the stressing of words or
syllables so as to emphasize meaning and sentence structure.

Rhythm – Any wavelike recurrence of motion or sound.

Run-On Line – A line which has no natural speech pause at its end, allowing the sense to flow
uninterruptedly into the succeeding line.

Stanza – A group of lines whose metrical pattern (and usually its rhyme scheme as well) is
repeated throughout a poem.

Syllabic Verse – Verse measured by the number of syllables rather than the number of feet per
line.

Truncation – In metrical verse, the omission of an unaccented syllable at either end of a line.
Concepts
1. The two main types of poetry are free verse and metrical verse.
2. Excellent poetry can be written without using meter, and perfectly metrical poetry can be worthless.
3. Meter and rhythm are not the same thing, but complement or counterpoint each other to contribute to
the meaning.
AP Style Questions
Read “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks (pg. 188) and answer the questions that follow.
1. The rhyme(s) used in this poem can be described as:
I.
masculine
II.
feminine
III.
internal
a)
I only
b)
III only
c)
I and II only
d)
I and III only
e)
I, II, and III
2. The use of alliteration and rhyme add to the poem’s
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
description of an immoral life
jazzy feel
emphasis of bad grammar
all of the above
a and b only
Read “Break, break, break” by Lord Tennyson (pg. 219-220) and answer the questions that follow.
3. This poem can best be described as:
I.
iambic
II.
anapestic
III.
trochaic
a) I only
b) I and III only
c) III only
d) I and II only
e) II and III only
4. Metrical variations in this poem reflect
a) The seaside setting
b) Normalcy of the depicted life
c) The theme of change in the poem
d) The changing attitude of the speaker
e) c and d only
5. The most similarity in meter is seen in
a) Stanzas 1 and 2
b) Stanzas 3 and 4
c) Stanzas 1, 2, and 3
d) Stanzas 2 and 4
e) Stanzas 1 and 4
Chapters 13 and 14
Rhythm Sound – Music of poetry, reinforcing meaning through sound
Onomatopoeia – Sound suggests the meaning of a word
Phonetic Intensives – Sound connects with the meaning
Euphonious – Harsh Sounding
Cacophonous – Pleasant Sounding
Synesthesia – The stimulation of two or more senses simultaneously (one sense of perception is
described in terms of another)
Structure – The arrangement of ideas, images, thoughts, and sentences in a poem
Form – External pattern of a poem (its shape)
Continuous - Lines that follow each other without formal grouping
Stanzaic – Written in a series of stanzas (same number of lines, usually same metrical pattern,
identical rhyme scheme)
Fixed – A traditional pattern that applies to a whole poem (sonnet, 14 lines of iambic pentameter,
3 quatrains and a concluding couplet)
Iambic Pentameter – Five verse feet consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed
syllable.
English sonnet consists of 3 quatrains and a couplet. Italian (Petrarchan) has an octave
followed by a sestet (eight lines followed by six lines)
Villanelle – A poem with five triplets and a final quatrain; only two rhyme sounds are permitted
in the entire poem, and the first and third lines of the first stanza are repeated, alternately, as the
third line of subsequent stanzas until the last, when they appear as the last two lines of the poem.
Avoids monotonous effect of repetition by varying the stress patterns and the meaning of the
repeated lines.
Eight O’Clock (p. 224):
1. The word “nighing” most nearly means:
a. Fearing
b. Nearing
c. Awaiting
d. Hating
e. sighing
2. In line four, “them” is referring to:
a. town
b. quarters
c. the people
d. markets
e. those that have been executed in the town
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night (p. 247):
3. Which of the following is found in the poem?
I.
II.
III.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
Simile
Iambic Pentameter
Oxymoron
I only
I and II only
I and III only
I II and III
II and III only
4. Where does the most profound shift in tone occur?
a. between the first and second stanzas
b. between the second and third stanzas
c. between the third and forth stanzas
d. between the forth and fifth stanzas
e. between the fifth and sixth stanzas
5. Line 13 employs which of the following literary techniques?
a. apostrophe
b. adage
c. litotes
d. paradox
e. hyperbole