Definitions
A statement that says less than what is meant
Understatement
a scene that interrupts the normal chronological sequence of events in a story to depict something that happened at an earlier time
Flashback
Words which are inaccurate if interpreted literally but are used to describe. Similes and metaphors are common forms
Figurative Language
the author reveals to the reader what the character is like by describing how the character looks and dresses, by letting the reader hear what the character says, by revealing the character's private thoughts and feelings, by revealing the characters effect on other people (showing how other characters feel or behave toward the character), or by showing the character in action. Common in modern literature
Indirect characterization
Commas used without conjunction to separate a series of words, thus emphasizing the parts equally: instead of X, Y, and Z... the writer uses X, Y, Z... see polysyndeton.
Asyndeton
attributing human characteristics to an animal or inanimate object (personification).
Anthropomorphism
the assosiations and emotional overtones that have become attached to a word or phrase, in addition to its strict dectionary definition
Connotation
a form of discourse that uses language to create mood or emotion
Description
has only one or two personality traits. They are one dimensional, like a piece of cardboard. They can be summed up in one phrase.
flat character
Repetition of the same or similar consonant sounds in words that are close together
Alliteration
a twentieth century term used to describe poetry that uses intimate material from the poet's life.
Confessional Poetry
An unknown narrator tells the story, but this narrator zooms in to focus on the thoughts and feelings of only one character.
Third Person Point of View
a very short story told in prose or poetry that teaches a practical lesson about how to succeed in life
Fable
one who changes in some important way as a result of the story's action
dynamic character
takes place when there is a discrepancy between what is expected to happen, or what would be appropriate to happen, and what really does happen.
situational irony
device of repitition in which the same expression (single word or phrase) is repeated both at the beginning and at the end of the line, clause, or sentence. Voltaire: "Common sense is not so common."
Epanalepsis
a poem consisting of four lines, or four lines of a poem that can be considered as a unit
Quatrain
a way of speaking that is characteristic of a certain social group or of the inhabitants of a certain geographical area
Dialect
the repitition of words or phrases that have similar grammatical structures
Parallel Structure
Ability to create a variety of sentence structures, appropriately complex and/or simple and varied in length.
Syntactic Fluency
the use of language to evoke a picture or a concrete sensation of a person, a thing, a place, or an experience
Imagery
Story or poem in which characters, settings, and events stand for other people or events or for abstract ideas or qualities
Allegory
a poem that does not tell a story but expresses the personal feelings or thoughts of the speaker
Lyric Poem
the central character in a story, the one who initiates or drives the action.
Protagonist
is a paradox used in Zen Buddhism to gain intuitive knowledge: "What is the sound of one hand clapping?"
Koan