Lit Terms Mash ( very over due)

• Allegory- a tale/ story written to make a point about an idea or event
• Alliteration- repetition of similar sounds in a group of words
• Allusion- reference to a person, place, event... etc
• Ambiguity- something uncertain as to interpretation
• Anachronism- something that shows up in the wrong place or time 
• Analogy- comparison between things for emphasis
• Analysis- dividing and scrutinizing a work or idea
• Aphorism- a pointed statement expressing a wise observation on life
• Apologia- justification or defense for a piece of writing; apology
• Apostrophe- when a dead person or inanimate object is addressed directly
• Argument(ation)- convincing a reader by proving the truth or falsifying another
• Assumption- taken for granted; act of assuming
• Audience- intended readers, viewers, etc...
• Characterization- the way an author reveals a character's personality 
• Circumlocution- using many words when few could have been used
• Cliché-  over used phrase or situation
• Climax- decisive point of a novel; usually most intense/ interesting part
• Colloquialism- informal language 
• Comedy- descriptive word used to portray amusing/funny events
• Conflict- problem within the novel that creates stress
• Connotation- wordy definition
• Contrast- opposing elements used together for emphasis
• Denotation- simple definition; book definition
• Denouement- conclusion of a novel
• Dialect- the language specific to a group of people or region
• Dichotomy- break between two opposing things
• Diction- choice and use of words
• Epic- narrative poem; hero usually on a quest 
• Epigram- witty aphorism
• Epitaph- brief inscription on a tombstone
• Euphemism- placing a mild word in place of an offensive one
• Evocative- calling forth sensations or memories usually through descriptive language
• Exposition- introduction of a story
• Fable- short story with fictional characters used to teach life lessons
• Fallacy- a  false, misleading notion/argument
• Falling Action- everything after the climax in a novel
• Farce- ridiculous comedy
• Figurative language- colorful language using many similes and metaphors
• Flashback- when author "flashes" back to past events
• Foil- a person/thing that when compared makes another seem better
• Folk tale- story passed on by mouth
• Foreshadow- hinting at what is to come but not giving it away completely
• Free Verse- poem with an irregular pattern and no rhyming scheme
• Genre- a category or class of literature with a specific form, technique or language
• Hyperbole- exaggerated statement used to make a point
• Imagery- vivid description; usually coveys images through different senses
• Inference- conclusion made with out complete evidence
• Irony- contrast between what is said and what is actually meant
• Juxtaposition- intentionally placing a word or phase near another to contrast one another
• Lyric- poem with musical qualities
• Metaphor- comparing two different things imaginatively
• Mode of Discourse- argument, persuasion, narration, description
• Motif- reoccurring feature in a novel
• Myth- fictional story told to explain mysterious that could not be explained
• Narrative- story/ description of events
• Narrator- one who tells a story
• Novella- short story
• Omniscient POV- all knowing narrator
• Oxymoron- two contradicting words/phrases put together to create an effective paradox
• Pacing- tempo
• Parody- imitation or mockery of something well known
• Pathos- appeal to emotion (sadness, pity, etc...)
• Personification- giving non human things human like qualities
• Plot- the structure to the story; the "story" of the story
• Point Of View- the view that the audience has on a piece of literature
• Pun- a play on words
• Purpose- the end result that the author wanted
• Refrain- chorus
• Requiem- a song, chant.... etc. meant for the dead
• Resolution- see denouement
• Repetition- an idea restated 
• Rhetoric- use of language in order to persuade
• Rhetorical Question- question asked to get the reader thinking, never actually requires an answer
• Satire- similar to a parody but deals with wrongdoings 
• Setting- time and/or place of the story, novel, etc
• Simile- comparison between two different things using a specific word of comparison
• Soliloquy- an extended speech given by a character alone with his thoughts
• Spiritual- a religious folk song
• Speaker- narrator
• Stereotype- a cliche; an over generalization
• Suspension of Disbelief- not believing in something in order to enjoy it completely
• Symbol- something that stands for something else, usually an object
• Synesthesia- using one sense to convey another
• Synecdoche- name changing
• Syntax- word usage and arrangement in a sentence
• Theme- a story's message; its main idea
• Thesis- the main idea that is presented by an author and is argued for or against
• Tone- the atmosphere and mood of the work
• Tongue in Cheek- "dry" humor
• Tragedy- a theme that is taken to the end of the novel and had some fatal/lasting conclusion
• Understatement- saying less than you mean for emphasis
• Vernacular- everyday speech
• Zeitgeist- feeling of a particular part of history
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