Allusion- A reference in one literary work to a character or theme found in another literary work.
Apostrophe- A figure of speech wherein the speaker speaks directly to something nonhuman.
Assonance- The repetition of vowel sounds in a literary work, especially in a poem. Edgar Allen Poe's "The Bells" contains numerous examples.
Ballad- A story in poetic form, often about tragic love and usually sung. Ballads were passed down from generation to generation by singers. Two old Scottish ballads are "Sir Patrick Spens" and "Bonnie Barbara Allan." Coleridges, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" is a 19th century English ballad.
Cacophony/Euphony - Cacaphony is an unpleasant combination of sounds. Euphony, the opposite, is a pleasant combination of sounds. These sound effects can be used intentionally to create an effect, or they may appear unintentionally. The cacaphony in Matthew Arnold's lines "And thou, who didst the stars and sunbeams know,/Self-school'd, self-scann'd, self-honor'd, self-secure,/Didst tread on earth unguess'd at," is probably unintentional.
Caesura- A pause within a line of poetry which may or may not affect the metrical count (see #62. meter). In scansion, a caesura is usually indicated by the following symbol (//).
Conceit- A far-fetched simile or metaphor, a literary conceit occurs when the speaker compares two highly dissimilar things.
Connotation/Denotation- The denotation of a word is its dictionary definition. The word wall, therefore, denotes an upright structure which encloses something or serves as a boundary. The connotation of a word is its emotional content. In this sense, the word wall can also mean an attitude or actions which prevent becoming emotionally close to a person. In Robert Frosts "Mending Wall," two neighbors walk a property line each on his own side of a wall of loose stones. As they walk, they pick up and replace stones that have fallen. Frost thinks it's unnecessary to replace the stones since thay have no cows to damage each other's property. The neighbor only says "Good fences make good neighbors." The wall, in this case, is both a boundary (denotation) and a barrier that prevents Frost and his neighbor from getting to know each other, a force prohibiting involvement (connotation
Consonance- The repetition of consonant sounds with differing vowel sounds in words near each other in a line or lines of poetry.
Couplet- A stanza of two lines, usually rhyming. Sometimes these are the last two lines in a sonnet.
Diction- An author's choice of words. Since words have specific meanings, and since one's choice of words can affect feelings, a writer's choice of words can have great impact in a literary work. The writer, therefore, must choose his words carefully.
Elegy- A lyric poem lamenting death.
Didactic Literature- Literature designed explicitly to instruct
Epithet- In literature, a word of phrase preceding or following a name, which serves to describe the character.
Euphemism- a mild word of phrase which substitutes for another, which would be undesirable because it is too direct, unpleasant, or offensive.
Foot- The basic unit of measurement in a line of poetry. In scansion, a foot represents one instance of a metrical pattern and is shown either between or to the right or left of vertical lines
Free Verse- Unrhymed Poetry with lines of varying lengths, and containing no specific metrical pattern.
Figurative language- In literature, a way of saying one thing and meaning something else.
Figure of Speech- An example of figurative language that states something that is not literally true in order to create an effect. Similes, metaphors and personification are figures of speech which are based on comparisons. Metonymy, synecdoche, synesthesia, apostrophe, oxymoron, and hyperbole are other figures of speech.
Hyperbole- A figure of speech in which an overstatement or exaggeration
Iambic pentameter- A metrical pattern of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable.
Imagery- A word or group of words in a literary work which appeal to one or more of the senses: sight, taste, touch, hearing, and smell. The use of images serves to intensify the impact of the work.
Irony- Irony takes many forms. In irony of situation, the result of an action is the reverse of what the actor expected. Macbeth murders his king hoping that in becoming king he will achieve great happiness. Actually, Macbeth never knows another moment of peace, and finally is beheaded for his murderous act. In dramatic irony, the audience knows something that the characters in the drama do not. For example, the identity of the murderer in a crime thriller may be known to the audience long before the mystery is solved. In verbal irony, the contrast is between the literal meaning of what is said and what is meant. A character may refer to a plan as brilliant, while actually meaning that (s)he thinks the plan is foolish. Sarcasm is a form of verbal irony.
Local Color- A detailed setting forth of the characteristics of a particular locality, enabling the reader to "see" the setting.
Lyric Poem-A short poem wherein the poet expresses an emotion or illuminates some life principle.
Metaphor-A figure of speech wherein a comparison is made between two unlike quantities without the use of the words "like" or "as."
Meter-A regular pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables in a line or lines of poetry.
Metonymy-A figure of speech in which a word represents something else which it suggests.
Narrative Poem-A poem which tells a story. Usually a long poem, sometimes even book length.
Ode-A poem in praise of something divine or expressing some noble idea.
Paradox-A situation or a statement that seems to contradict itself, but on closer inspection, does not.
Personification-A figure of speech in which something nonhuman is given human characteristics.
Parallel Structure-A repetition of sentences using the same structure.
Rhyme-In poetry, a pattern of repeated sounds. In end rhyme, the rhyme is at the end of the line, as in these lines from
Eye rhyme is a form of rhyme wherein the look rather than the sound is important.
Rhyme Scheme-The arrangement of rhymes in a poem or stanza.
Rhythm-Recurrences of stressed and unstressed syllables at equal intervals, similar to meter. However, though two lines may be of the same meter, the rhythms of the lines may be different.
Scansion-A close, critical reading of a poem, examining the work for meter.
Simile-A figure of speech which takes the form of a comparison between two unlike quantities for which a basis for comparison can be found, and which uses the words "like" or "as" in the comparison.
Sonnet-A lyric poem of fourteen lines whose ryhme scheme is fixed. The rhyme scheme in the Italian form as typified in the sonnets of Petrarch is abbaabba cdecde.
Symbolism-A device in literature where an object represents an idea
Synecdoche-A figure of speech wherein a part of something represents the whole thing.
Synesthesia-One sensory experience described in terms of another sensory experience.
Theme-An ingredient of a literary work which gives the work unity. The theme provides an answer to the question What is the work about?There are too many possible themes to recite them all in this document. Each literary work carries its own theme(s). The theme of Robert Frost's "Acquainted with the Night" is lonliness. Shakespeare's "King Lear" contains many themes, among which are blindness and madness. Unlike plot which deals with the action of a work, theme concerns itself with a work's message or contains the general idea of a work.
Tone-Tone expressesthe author's attitude toward his or her subject. Since there are as many tones in literature as there are tones of voice in real relationships, the tone of a literary work may be one of anger or approval, pride or piety-the entire gamut of attitudes toward life's phenomena. Here is one literary example: The tone of John Steinbeck's short novel "Cannery Row" is nonjudgemental. Mr. Steinbeck never expresses disapproval of the antics of Mack and his band of bums. Rather, he treats them with unflagging kindness.
Understatement (litode)-A statement which lessens or minimizes the importance of what is meant. For example, if one were in a desert where the temperature was 125 degrees, and if one wee to describe thermal conditions saying "It's a little warm today." that would be an understamement. In Shakespeare's "Macbeth," Macbeth, having murdered his friend Banquo, understates the number of people who have been murdered since the beginning of time by saying "Blood hath been shed ere now."
Quatrain-A four-line stanza which may be rhymed or unrhymed. A heroic quatrain is a four line stanza rhymed abab. John Donne's "A Valediction Forbidding Mourning" is a poem of nine heroic quatrains: The following is the first stanza of the poem:
As virtuous men pass mildly away
And whisper to their souls, to go,
Whilst some of their sad friends do say,
The breath goes now, and some say, no:
Enjambment-The continuation of a syntactic unit from one line or couplet of a poem to the next with no pause.
Slant Rhyme-A partial or imperfect rhyme, often using assonance or consonance only, as in dry and died or grown and moon.