literary terms defined(2)

7/25/2019 Literary Terms Defined(2)

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Poetry Terms

Meterthe rhythmic pattern of a poem or lines of a poem

Types of meter:

Monometera one-foot line (Thus I / Passe by, / And die: /!

Dimetera t"o-foot line (#hen up aloft / I fly and fly / I see in pools / The shinin$s%y /!

Trimetera three-foot line

Tetrametera four-foot line

Pentametera fi&e-foot line

Hexametera si'-foot line

Iamb/Iambicli$ht follo"ed by hea&y stress (machine!

Trochhee/Trochaichea&y follo"ed by li$ht stress (paper!

Dactyl/Dactylichea&y follo"ed by t"o li$ht stresses ("heelbarro"!

Anapest/Anapestict"o li$ht follo"ed by one hea&y stress (Tennessee!

Spondee/Spondaic(not properly a meter but used "ith some freuency! t"o syllable

construction "ith no or eual inflection (blue moon!Caesuraa structural and lo$ical pause "ithin the line (usually "ithin a metrical foot!)

not part of the metrical pattern

Scansionthe mechanical notation of the metrical pattern of a poem) process of notin$

e&ery syllable in e&ery "ord

Allo"s for reco$nition and scrutiny of the pre&ailin$ pattern and its

&ariations

*yllables $i&en hea&y stress are indicated by a macron ( ! placed

o&er that syllable) syllables $i&en li$ht stress are indicated by a bre&e ( !placed

o&er that syllable

oota sin$le emphasis plus detailsone hea&y stress plus "hate&er li$ht stresses are

needed to ma%e up the chosen patternStan!aa $roup of lines in a poem that is separated by an e'tra amount of space from

other $roups of lines, or other stan+as

"lan# $erseunrhymed iambic pentameter

%hyme patterns:

CoupletT"o consecuti&e lines of poetry that usually rhyme) aa bb cc dd, etc

&uatraina four line stan+a, unified by a rhyme scheme) abab, cdcd, etc

Sesteta si' line stan+a, unified by a rhyme scheme) cddcee, cdecde, etc

'cta$ean ei$ht line stan+a, unified by a rhyme scheme) abbaabba, etc

Terceta three line stan+a, unified by a rhyme scheme) aaa, bbb, aba, cdc, etc

Ter!a %imaan interloc%in$ three-line rhyme scheme) aba bcb cdc ded, etc'dea formal or ceremonial lyric poem of a serious nature, "ith an ele&ated style and

elaborate &erse form

"allada poem which tells a story, usually in short rhyming verses with frequent

repetition of words or lines, intended to be sung or recited

Sonnetpoem of . lines, usually iambic pentameter *onnets may follo" a strict form

(see belo"! or combine or borro" from different forms

Italian or Petrarchan sonnet: abba abba cde cde (or some

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&ariation!) the first lines set out statement or premise, the follo"in$ 0 respond to

it

(n)lish or Sha#espearean sonnet: abab cdcd efef $$) three

uatrains and a final couplet

*illanelleA fixed form of poetry consisting of nineteen lines divided into six stanzas:

five tercets and a concluding quatrain. The first and third lines of the initial tercet rhyme;these rhymes are repeated in each subsequent tercet (aba) and in the final two lines of the

quatrain (abaa).

(nd %hymea rhyme that occurs in the last syllables of &erses

Internal rhymerhyme "ithin a line and another "ord, either at the end of the same line

or "ithin another line

Masculine rhyme"ords rhyme on a sin$le stressed syllable

eminine rhyme"ords of more than one syllable that end "ith a li$ht stress (buc%le

and %nuc%le!

True rhyme(tears and spears!

Slant rhyme(do"n and noon!

Sound

Alliterationthe repetition of consonant sounds at the be$innin$ of "ords

Assonancethe repetition of similar &o"el sounds in a sentence or a line of poetry

Consonancethe repetition of consonant sounds at the middle or end of "ords

Tone

Denotationthe dictionary definition of a "ord

Connotationthe personal and emotional associations called up by a "ord

i)ures of Speech

ApostropheAn address, either to someone who is absent and therefore cannot hearthe speaker or to something nonhuman that cannot comprehend. Apostrophe often

provides a speaker the opportunity to think aloud.

Hyperbolea boldly exaggerated statement that adds emphasis without in-tending to

be literally truemay be used for serious, comic, or ironic effect

+itotesa form of understatement that purposefully represents a thin$ as much less

si$nificant than it is, achie&in$ the ironic effect of con&eyin$ its si$nificance

Synecdochea part of somethin$ substituted for the "hole ("or%ers 1 hands, cars 1"heels!

Metonymya closely related term is substituted for an ob2ect or idea (the o&al office

1 the president, the $ra&e 1 death!

Synesthesiaone sensory experience described in terms of another sensory experience(seeing sounds or hearing colors)

Turnin) the linedefinin$/decidin$ "here one line ends and the ne't be$ins

Self,enclosed lineend-of-line pause is accentuated because the line is either an entiresentence or a phrase complete in terms of $rammar and lo$ic

(n-ambmentend-of-line/turnin$ of line interrupts a lo$ical phrase The effect is to

speed the line

(pistropheendin$ a series of lines, phrases, sentences, or clauses "ith the same "ord

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Anaphorarepetition of a "ord or "ords be$innin$ of lines in poetry

Drama Terms

Anagnorisis (or disclosure, discovery, recognition)

This term comes from Aristotles Poetics (330 BC) in which he outlines what he sees as

the basic elements of a tragedy. Anagnorisis is the recognition ordisclosure by a

character.

Amphitheater

An Amphitheater is a type of theater space used in ancient Greece. The orchestra was a

circular area at the bottom where the action took place. The theatron was a semicircular

sloping hillside that was terraced, and into which was placed benches capable of seating

about 15,000 people. Actors wore large masks to facilitate the rapid change of roles and

to communicate in the large space by capturing and emphasizing the essential qualities of

each character.

Aside

Words spoken by an actor directly to the audience, which are not "heard" by the

other characters on stage during a play. In Shakespeare's Othello, Iago voices

his inner thoughts a number of times as "asides" for the play's audience.

Bare Stage

Term used to refer to Shakespeares stage which was signified by minimal set pieces and

decoration.

Blocking

The placement and movement of the actors on stage moment by moment, usually planned

by the director.

Catharsis

The emotional effect a tragedy has on its audience. Aristotle coined the term in the

Poetics. Catharsis is the feeling an audience has while viewing a tragedy. Aristotle

argued that tragedy cleanses the emotions for the audience. An audience vicariously

experiences the tragic events along with the tragic hero.

ChorusA group of people who sang or danced in Greek drama, commenting on the action of the

play. By Elizabethan times the chorus was rarely used, in favor of a single character

delivering a prologue and an epilogue. Modern usage of the chorus is often a character

in the context of the play who comments on characters and events, thereby giving

additional perspective.

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Comic Relief

A humorous scene or passage inserted into an otherwise serious work. Comic relief

provides an emotional outlet and a change of pace for the audience. It also serves to

contrast and further heighten the seriousness of the work.

Closet DramaA play suited only for reading, not for acting. Most nineteenth-century English poetic

dramas (e.g., Coleridges, Shelleys Tennysons) fit into this category.

Deus Ex Machina

A Greek term meaning the God from the machine. (1) In Greek drama a god who

descends by a crane-like arrangement and solves a problem in the story, thus

allowing the play to end. (2) Any unexpected and improbable device (e.g., an unexpected

financial windfall) used to solve a problem and thus conclude the work.

Dramatic NaturalismThis idea was first theorized by Emile Zola, a French novelist and playwright. The

naturalists argued that plays should be a slice of life that demonstrates the effects of

heredity and environment. Naturalism was the first artistic movement to treat working

class characters with the same seriousness accorded the middle and upper classes. In the

20th century, naturalism is often used as a label for plays that seek to recreate the details

of everyday life.

Epilogue

The concluding section of a work. It is also the recitation by an actor of the concluding

section of a play that often requests appreciation and kind reviews.

Fourth Wall

A phrase that refers to the opening at the front of the stage. It is the imaginary wall

through which an audience looks into a room. To break the fourth wall means to step

outside of the stage space, either by directly addressing the audience or physically

stepping into the audience viewing space.

Globe Theater

Shakespeares theater held three thousand persons. The configuration of the stage meant

that no one was very far away from the action. There were no intermissions, and the

Globe served beer, wine and sold playing cards. The atmosphere was one of a sportingevent. The challenge for the performers was to keep the audience quiet through skillful

performances.

Groundlings

Term coined in Hamlet to refer to the spectators who attended performances at the Globe

theater who paid less to stand in the yard. The were not under the roof, and therefore

subject to the weather. They were often drunk and rowdy

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Hamartia

This Greek word is variously translated as error or shortcoming or weakness. It is

an error in judgment or an ignorance of certain facts that leads to the heros downfall or

reversal in fortune. It is often caused by the tragic flaw.

In Medias Res

Literally translated, in the middle of things.

Monologue

An extended narrative, which can be oral or written, delivered uninterrupted by one

person although it may be heard or witnessed by others.

Peripety

A reversal of fortune.

Prologue

An introductory statement preceding a literary work; in Greek tragedy the opening

section of a play.

Scenery

The carpentry and painted cloths (and projected images) used on a stage. Scenery may be

used to conceal parts of the stage, to decorate, to imitate or suggest locales, to establish

time or to evoke mood.

Soliloquy

A type of monologue performed onstage as part of a play in which a character reveals

their inner thoughts and feelings out loud while alone.

Spoken Decor

In Elizabethan theater, the idea that scenery was described in detail through words.

Because there were no elaborate set pieces, Shakespeares plays relied on descriptive

detail in speeches to set the scene.

Tragedy

A play written in an elevated, poetic style dealing with events that depict man as a victim

of destiny yet superior to it, both in grandeur and in misery. In drama a work thatpresents the downfall of its noble protagonist through some error in judgment or personal

weakness. According to Aristotles definition of tragedy in the Poetics, a tragedy

contains elements of the supernatural, a tragic hero who has a tragic flaw which leads to

his downfall, and catharsis for the audience.

Unity

This term generally means something like coherence, congruence; in a unified

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piece the parts work together and jointly contribute to the whole. Unity

suggestscompleteness or pattern resulting from a controlling intelligence. In the

Poetics, Aristotle says that a tragedy should have a unified action, and he mentions that

most tragedies cover a period of twenty-four hours.

Poetry Terms: Brief DefinitionsGo to Drama Termsor Fiction Terms

Try the Online Quiz on Poetry Termsto test your knowledge of these terms.oumight also like to try the Online Quiz on Prosody to test your knowledge ofscanning !oetry.

Alliteration: The re!etition of identical consonant sounds" most often the sounds#eginning words" in close !ro$imity. %$am!le: !ensi&e !oets" nattering na#o#s ofnegati&ism.

Allusion: 'nacknowledged reference and (uotations that authors assume theirreaders will recognize.

Anaphora:)e!etition of the same word or !hrase at the #eginning of a linethroughout a work or the section of a work.

Apostrophe: *!eaker in a !oem addresses a !erson not !resent or an animal"inanimate o#+ect" or conce!t as though it is a !erson . %$am!le:,ordsworth--/ilton0 Thou shouldst #e li&ing at this hour 1 %ngland has need ofthee

Assonance: The re!etition of identical &owel sounds in different words in close!ro$imity. %$am!le: dee! green sea.

Ballad:2 narrati&e !oem com!osed of (uatrains 3iam#ic tetrameter alternatingwith iam#ic trimeter4 rhyming $-a-$-a. Ballads may use refrains. %$am!les:5ackaroe" The 6ong Black 7eil

Blank verse:unrhymed iam#ic !entameter. %$am!le: *hakes!eare8s !lays

Caesura:2 short #ut definite !ause used for effect within a line of !oetry. 9ar!ediem !oetry: seize the day. Poetry concerned with the shortness of life and theneed to act in or en+oy the !resent. %$am!le: errick;s To the 7irgins to /ake

/uch of Time

Chiasmus (antimetabole): 9hiasmus is a crossing or re&ersal of twoelements< antimeta#ole" a form of chiasmus" is the re&ersal of the same words ina grammatical structure. %$am!le: 2sk not what your country can do for you< askwyat you can do for your country. %$am!le: ou ha&e seen how a man was madea sla&e< you shall see how a sla&e was made a man.

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Common meter or hymn measure3%mily Dickinson4: iam#ic tetrameteralternating with iam#ic trimeter. Other e$am!le: 2mazing Grace #y 5ohn=ewtonhtt!:11www.constitution.org1col1amazing>grace.htm

Consonanceis the counter!art of assonance< the !artial or total identity ofconsonants in words whose main &owels differ. %$am!le: shadow meadow

Couplet: two successi&e rhyming lines. 9ou!lets end the !attern of a*hakes!earean sonnet.

Diction:Diction is usually used to descri#e the le&el of formality that a s!eakeruses.

Diction 3formal or high4: Pro!er" ele&ated" ela#orate" and often !olysylla#ic

language. This ty!e of language used to #e thought the only ty!e suita#le

for !oetry =eutral or middle diction: 9orrect language characterized #y directness

and sim!licity.

Diction 3informal or low4: )ela$ed" con&ersational and familiar language.

Dramatic monologue:2 ty!e of !oem" deri&ed from the theater" in which as!eaker addresses an internal listener or the reader. ?n some dramaticmonologues" es!ecially those #y )o#ert Browning" the s!eaker may re&eal his!ersonality in une$!ected and unflattering ways.

End-stopped line:2 line ending in a full !ause" usually indicated with a !eriod orsemicolon.

Enambment (or enambement):2 line ha&ing no end !unctuation #ut runningo&er to the ne$t line.

E!plication: 2 com!lete and detailed analysis of a work of literature" often word-#y-word and line-#y-line.

"oot (prosody):2 measured com#ination of hea&y and light stresses. Thenum#ers of feet are gi&en #elow. monometer 3@ foot4 dimeter 3A feet4 trimeter 3feet4 tetrameter 3C feet4 !entameter 3 feet4 he$ameter 3E feet4 he!tameter orse!tenary 3 feet4

#eroic couplet:two successi&e rhyming lines of iam#ic !entameter< the secondline is usually end-sto!!ed.

#ymn meter or common measure: (uatrains of iam#ic tetrameter alternatingwith iam#ic trimeter rhyming a # a #.

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#yperbole (overstatement)and litotes 3understatement4: y!er#ole ise$aggeration for effect< litotes is understatement for effect" often used for irony.

$ambic pentameter:?am# 3iam#ic4: an unstressed stressed foot.The mostnatural and common kind of meter in %nglish< it ele&ates s!eech to !oetry.

$mage:?mages are references that trigger the mind to fuse together memories ofsight 3&isual4" sounds 3auditory4" tastes 3gustatory4" smells 3olfactory4" andsensations of touch 3tactile4. ?magery refers to images throughout a work orthroughout the works of a writer or grou! of writers.

$nternal rhyme: 2n e$act rhyme 3rather than rhyming &owel sounds" as withassonance4 within a line of !oetry: Once u!on a midnight dreary" while ?!ondered" weak and %eary.

&etaphor:2 com!arison #etween two unlike things" this descri#es one thing asif it were something else. Does not use like or as for the com!arison3see simile4.

&etaphysical conceit: 2n ela#orate and e$tended meta!hor or simile that linkstwo a!!arently unrelated fields or su#+ects in an unusual and sur!risingcon+unction of ideas. The term is commonly a!!lied to the meta!horical languageof a num#er of early se&enteenth-century !oets" !articularly 5ohn Donne.%$am!le: stiff twin com!asses11the +oining together of lo&ers like legs of acom!ass. *ee To is 9oy /istress

&eter: The num#er of feet within a line of traditional &erse. %$am!le: iam#ic!entameter.

'ctave:The first eight lines of an ?talian or Petrarchan sonnet" unified #y rhythm"rhyme" and to!ic.

'nomatopoeia. 2 #lending of consonant and &owel sounds designed to imitateor suggest the acti&ity #eing descri#ed. %$am!le: #uzz" slur!.

arado!:2 rhetorical figure em#odying a seeming contradiction that isnonetheless true.

ersoniication:2ttri#uting human characteristics to nonhuman things ora#stractions.

etrarchan sonnet:2 sonnet 3@C lines of rhyming iam#ic !entameter4 thatdi&ides into an octa&e 34 and sestet 3E4. There is a &olta" or turning of thesu#+ect matter #etween the octa&e and sestet.

yrrhic oot (prosody): two unstressed feet 3an em!ty foot4 Quatrain: a four-line stanza or !oetic unit. ?n an %nglish or *hakes!earean sonnet" a grou! of fourlines united #y rhyme.

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*erain:re!eated word or series of words in res!onse or counter!oint to themain &erse" as in a #allad.

*hyme:The re!etition of identical concluding sylla#les in different words" mostoften at the ends of lines. %$am!le: 5une--moon.

Double rhyme or trochaic rhyme: rhyming words of two sylla#les inwhich the first sylla#le is accented 3flower" shower4

+riple rhyme or dactylic rhyme:)hyming words of three or more

sylla#les in which any sylla#le #ut the last is accented. %$am!le:/aca&ity1gra&ity1de!ra&ity

Eye rhyme:,ords that seem to rhyme #ecause they are s!elled

identically #ut !ronounced differently. %$am!le: #ear1fear"dough1cough1through1#ough

,lant rhyme:2 near rhyme in which the concluding consonant sounds

are identical #ut not the &owels. %$am!le: sun1noon" should1food"slim1ham.

)hyme scheme: The !attern of rhyme" usually indicated #y assigning a

letter of the al!ha#et to each rhyme at the end of a line of !oetry.

*hyme royal: *tanza form used #y 9haucer" usually in iam#ic !entameter" withthe rhyme scheme a#a##cc. %$am!le: ,ordsworth8s )esolution and?nde!endence

,can (scansion):the !rocess of marking #eats in a !oem to esta#lish the!re&ailing metrical !attern. Prosody" the !ronunciation of a song or !oem" isnecessary for scansion. 3Go to the?ntroduction to Prosody!age or trythe scansion (uiz.4.

Anapest: unstressed unstressed stressed. 2lso called gallo!ingmeter. %$am!le: 8Twas the night #efore 9hristmas" and all through thehouse1 =ot a creature was stirring" not e&en a mouse.

Dactyl (dactylic) stressed unstressed unstressed.This !attern is more

common 3as dactylic he$ameter4 in 6atin !oetry than in %nglish !oetry.%$am!le: Grand go the years in the 9rescent a#o&e them1,orlds scoo!their arcs1 and firmaments row 3%mily Dickinson4

,pondee:stressed stressed. 2 two-sylla#le foot with two stressedaccents. The o!!osite of a !yrrhic foot" this foot is used for effect.

+rochee (trochaic): stressed unstressed. E!ample: +yger +yger

Burning bright

,estet:2 si$-line stanza or unit of !oetry.

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,hakespearean sonnet:2 fourteen-line !oem written in iam#ic !entameter"com!osed of three (uatrains and a cou!let rhyming a#a# cdcd efef gg.

,imile. 2 direct com!arison #etween two dissimilar things< uses like or as tostate the terms of the com!arison.

,onnet: 2 closed form consisting of fourteen lines of rhyming iam#ic !entameter.

*hakes!earean or %nglish sonnet: (uatrains and a cou!let" often with threearguments or images in the (uatrains #eing resol&ed in the cou!let. )hymescheme: a#a# cdcd efef gg

Petrarchan or ?talian sonnet: lines 3the octa&e4 and E lines 3the sestet4 ofrhyming iam#ic !entameter" with a turning or &olta at a#out the th line. )hymescheme: a##a a##a cdcdcd 3or cde cde4

,tan/a:2 grou! of !oetic lines corres!onding to !aragra!hs in !rose< the metersand rhymes are usually re!eating or systematic.

,ynaesthesia:2 rhetorical figure that descri#es one sensory im!ression in termsof a different sense" or one !erce!tion in terms of a totally different or e&eno!!osite feeling. %$am!le: darkness &isi#le green thought

,ynta!:,ord order and sentence structure.

0olta: The turning !oint of a Petrarchan sonnet" usually occurring #etween theocta&e and the sestet

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literary terms defined(2)

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