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Literary Terms-1
Literary Terms-2
Literary Terms-3
Literary Terms-4
Literary Terms-5
100
It occurs when a statement or situation means something different from (or even the opposite of) what is expected.
What is irony
100
An oversimplified conception or image, usually of a group of people, giving them all a set of characteristics, without consideration for individual differences.
What is a stereotype
100
Example: Jumbo shrimp
What is an oxymoron
100
The highest point of intensity in a short story.
What is the climax
100

place, time & social environment of a story

What is setting?

200
A difference between what is said and what is meant.
What is verbal irony. Example: Oh, goody! It's time to do my homework.
200
The word sounds like what it describes.
What is onomatopeia
200
A humorous word or phrase that depends on a double meaning, either from a second meaning of the same word, or from the meaning of another word with a similar sound.
What is a pun
200
A technique used in which a writer will plant clues or subtle indications about events that will happen later in the narrative.
What is foreshadowing
200
Something that stands for something more than itself.
What is a symbol
300
The implied attitude of the writer toward the subject or the audience.
What is the tone
300
Example: I'm going to die if I don't get to see Lady Gaga in concert this year.
What is hyperbole
300


A story or poem that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral.

What is an allegory

300
The insight about life that is revealed in a literary work.
What is theme
300
A difference between what happens and what would be expected to happen.
What is situational irony. Example: A student studies for days for an English test, but sleeps in the morning of the test, shows up late for class, and fails the test.
400
A statement that is self-contradictory but still speaks the truth.
What is a paradox
400
The specialized language, often technical terms, of a particular group or profession.
What is jargon
400

Another word for the post-resolution part of a plot pyramid

What is denouement?

400
A sudden perception, interpretation, or enlightenment experienced by a character in literature.
What is an epiphany
400
Example: He was no Michael Jordan, but he could shoot a basketball.
What is an allusion
500

The three rhetorical devices used to persuade

What are pathos, ethos, logos

500
A type of poem that does not have any regular, recurring pattern of rhythm or rhyme.
What is free verse
500

Shakespearean poetic structure containing a series of 5 unstressed by stressed pairings & 10 total syllables

What is iambic pentameter?

500
A relatively short narrative poem, written to be sung, with a simple and dramatic action
What is a ballad (rarely taught in school, but often comes up as a distractor on the exam)
500

Example: True friendship requires sacrificing personal comfort for another's well-being. 

What is a theme? (or universal theme)