AP Lit Vocab Terms 85-98 Study Guide

Give Word

100

The alter ego of a character-the suppressed side of one’s personality that is usually unaccepted by society. ie. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson- Mr. Edward Hyde (hide) is Dr. Jekyll’s evil side

Doppelganger

200

The rewarding of virtue and the punishment of vice in the resolution of a plot. The character, as they say, gets what he/she deserves

Poetic justice

300

Used to describe a novel that tells its story through letters written from one character to another

Epistolary

400

Statement which seems to contradict itself. 

Paradox

500

When a speaker breaks off from addressing one party and instead addresses a third party; sometimes represented by exclamation “O”. A writer or a speaker, using an   apostrophe, detaches himself from reality and addresses an imaginary character in his speech.

Apostrophe

Give Definition

100

Antihero

Central character who lacks all the qualities traditionally associated with heroes.

200

Neutral language

Language opposite from emotive language as it is literal or even objective in nature

300

Epilogue

A short poem or speech spoken directly to the audience following the conclusion of a play, or in a novel the epilogue is a short explanation at the end of the book which indicates what happens after the plot ends

400

Allegory

The representation of abstract ideas or principles by characters, figures, or events in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form

500

Deus ex Machina

Term that refers to a character or force that appears at the end of a story or play to help resolve conflict. Word means “god from a machine.” In ancient Greek drama, gods were lowered onto the stage by a mechanism to extricate characters from a seemingly hopeless situation. The phrase has come to mean any turn of events that solve the characters’ problems through an unexpected and unlikely intervention.

Give Example of

100

Paradox

• Save money by spending it.
• If I know one thing, it's that I know nothing.
• This is the beginning of the end.
• Deep down, you're really shallow.
• I'm a compulsive liar.

200

Zeugma

(e.g., with weeping eyes and hearts)

300

Euphemism

• “Passed away” instead of “died”
• “Let go” instead of “fired”

400

Chiasmus

-  ‘Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds.'

500

Asyndenton

An asyndeton (sometimes called asyndetism) is a figure of speech in which coordinating conjunctions —words such as "and", "or", and "but" that join other words or clauses in a sentence into relationships of equal importance—are omitted.