Literary Terms
Ms. Turnwald
H. English III
Allegory
Story or poem that
has two levels.
The 1st level is the
story as it reads
literally. The 2nd is
where the story
acts as a symbol
with greater
meaning
• Examples: The
Crucible is an allegory
for McCarthyism.
“The Pit & The
Pendulum”
allegorically represents
hell, purgatory, &
heaven.
Alliteration
• Repetition of the same constant
sound in close proximity within a
text.
• Examples: “Peter Piper picked a peck
of pickled peppers.”
“A better butter makes a batter
better.”
Ambiguity
- When something is
capable of being
interpreted in more
than one way.
Often used by
writers to make
the reader decide
what happens in
the story.
• In “The Lady, or
the Tiger” the
author ends the
story without
telling which door
the main character
chose, leaving it to
the reader.
Analogy
• A comparison made between two
different things to show a similarity
between them.
• Example: Just as the sword is the
weapon of a warrior, a pen is the
weapon of a writer.
Antonym
- A word opposite in
meaning to
another.
Examples:
• Night/Day
• Full/Empty
• Vast/Miniscule
• Beautiful/Ugly
• Fascinating/Boring
Apostrophe
- Speaker of
character
rhetorically
addresses an
imaginary
character or
object. Helps the
audience
understand state
of mind.
Examples:
• Macbeth speaks to
the dagger he
believes is floating
in front of him.
• John Donne talks
to death in “Death
Be Not Proud”
Archetype
• A typical
character, setting,
plot, or action
which represents a
universal concept
or aspect of human
nature.
Examples:
• The Hero
• The Villain
• The Wise Friend
• The Damsel Saved
from Distress
• The Journey
Audience
The person reading a
text, listening to a
speaker, or observing
a performance.
Ex: A father reads
to his daughter.
(the daughter is the
audience)
Bias
A preference of
attitude that may
prevent impartial
judgment. Author
may prejudice the
audience in favor
of one side of an
issue.
• Example: When an
article uses all
positive or
negative language
about a subject
based on the
writer’s
interests/opinions.
Characterization
• Step by step
processing of
introducing and
describing a
character. Can
be direct or
indirect.
• EX: Gatsby lives
in West Egg
which tells us
he is from new
money.
Concrete Imagery
- Usage of
descriptive words
that involve little
or no abstraction
or meaning beyond
the literal one.
• EX: A flag is a flag.
A pencil is a pencil.
Conflict
A struggle between
two or more
opposing forces or
characters.
EXAMPLES: Two
characters about to
fight. A man battles
the forces of nature.
Connotation
- A meaning implied
by a word or text
apart from its
literal meaning.
Cultural/emotional
associations.
• A character
breeds doves and
the reader gathers
the connotation
that the character
is a peaceful
individual.
Context
The surrounding
word(s) and
sentence(s).
Information beyond
the words of a text
(economic, social,
cultural, historical,
etc.)
Knowing about
treatment of women
in Victorian England
provides context for
understanding Jane
Eyre.
Contradiction
- When two
statements don’t
seem to agree with
each other.
Counterargument
• An opposing point of view
to another argument.
• By addressing
counterargument before
your opponent brings it up
you may win favor for your
argument.
Deductive Reasoning
• To draw a
specific
conclusion from
general
principles or
premises.
• Example: All
birds have
feathers.
Robins are birds.
Robins have
feathers.
Dialogue
- Literary technique
where two or more
characters engage
in conversation
with each other.
Denotation
- The dictionary meaning
of a word.
EX: Love– (noun)
a profoundly tender,
passionate affection for
another person.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/
love
Duality
Opposite
Objects/Concepts
appearing within one
story/character.
Nature > Science
Good > Evil
Slavery > Freedom
Reality > Illusion
Inductive Reasoning
- Reasoning which
takes specific
information and
makes a broader
generalization
Example: A student
leaves for school at
7:30. The student is
always on time. The
student assumes
that if they always
leave at 7:30 he/she
will always be on
time.
Inversion
The reversal of the
normal word order
of words in a
sentence or phrase
in order to achieve
a specific effect
of meter.
Example:
Wordsworth wrote,
“To me alone there
came a thought of
grief.”
Irony
• Words you use to express something
other than /opposite of literal
meaning (verbal, situational,
dramatic)
Mood
Literary element
that evokes certain
feelings in readers
through words and
descriptions.
Example: When the
character was dying
I felt so distressed.
Onomatopoeia
The use of a word whose sound
imitates or suggests its meaning.
Examples:
BANG! Boom! Zip. Meow.
Oxymoron
• A figure of speech
that combines
opposite or
contradictory
terms in a brief
phrase.
Examples:
Seriously funny
Foolish wisdom
Original copies
Jumbo shrimp
Paradox
A statement that
may appear selfcontradictory but
actually contains a
truth.
“War is peace.”
-1984
“I must be cruel
to be kind.”
-Hamlet
Parallelism
The use of
components in a
piece of writing
that are
grammatically the
same, or similar in
their construction,
sound, or meaning.
Example:
“Weep, weep”
-Keats
“Easy come, easy go”
Paraphrase
• A restatement of a
text giving the
meaning in one’s
own words.
Parody
A work that makes
fun of another
work by imitating
some aspect of the
writer’s style .
Examples: Comedy
Central parodies
political speeches
frequently.
Personification
- A figure of speech
in which an object
or animal is given
human feelings,
thoughts, or
attitudes .
Examples:
The wind whispered
its secrets.
Time waits for no
man.
The dust danced
across the ray of
sun.
Perspective
Literary tool which serves as a lens
through which readers observe
characters and events.
Example: If the story is told from the
perspective of a child versus an adult
it changes the way we understand the
story.
Plot
• A series of related events in a story
or play, sometimes called the story
line. The structure of a novel
depends on the organization of the
plot.
• -Exposition –Conflict –Rising Action
-Climax –Falling Action -Resolution
Point of view
-The vantage point
from which the
writer tells a
story.
(first person, third person
limited, omniscient, and
objective)
Propaganda
- The spreading of
rumors, true or
false, or an idea in
order to influence
the opinion of
society or to
further/damage a
cause.
Examples:
• During war leaflets
were dropped with
messages for/against
certain forces.
• Ads that imply that
buying a product will
make you happy.
Realism
- A style of writing,
developed in the
nineteenth century, that
attempts to depict life
accurately, as it is real,
without idealizing or
romanticizing.
Ex: Mark Twain’s
“Adventures of Huck
Finn” portrays real
life in the South.
Rhetorical Devices
- Techniques writers
use to enhance
arguments and
make their writing
effective.
Romanticism
- A revolt against
rationalism that
affected literature
and other arts,
beginning in the late
eighteenth century
and remaining strong
throughout most of
the nineteenth
century.
Satire
A type of writing that ridicules short
comings of people or institutions in an
attempt to bring about a change
Ex: Twain’s “The Lowest Animal” and
“Advice to Youth”. Swift’s “A Modest
Proposal”.
Style
• The distinctive way in which a writer
uses language
Synonym
- A word having the
same or nearly the
same meaning as
another in the
language.
Examples:
• Small/tiny
• Large/huge
• Beautiful/gorgeous
• Terrible/awful
Syllogisms
- A logical scheme of
a formal argument
which references
something general
and from that
draws conclusions
about something
specific.
Theme
A broad idea,
message, or
underlying meaning
conveyed by a
work.
• The theme of
isolation’s negative
impact is
demonstrated in
Grendel.
Tone
• The attitude a writer takes toward
the subject of his/her work .
• “The Catcher in the Rye” has a
bitterly sarcastic tone.
Turn (Volta)
• A shift or dramatic change in
thought or emotion within a poem
(specifically the sonnet).
Understatement
Making a large issue
seem small. Often
used as a device in
satire.
Example: Mercutio says
that his injury is a
“scratch” though he is
actually bleeding to
death.
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