allusion... implicit or explicit reference to something in previous literature or history

anecdote... short narrative, usually reporting amusing event in life of important person

antagonist... character or force that opposes the main character

apostrophe... address to dead or absent person or to a thing as if a reply were possible

archetype... theme, image, motive, or pattern that occurs so often in literature that it seems to be universal

catharsis... emotional release experienced by audience at end of successful tragedy

character... four main character types:

• flat -- qualities easily summed up in one or two traits
• round -- complex, many-sided figure
• static -- same sort of person at end as in beginning
• dynamic -- undergoes permanent change during course of story

climax... turning point or point of greatest tension in plot

complication... entanglement in a narrative or dramatic work that causes conflict

conflict... struggle between character and some obstacle or between internal forces

denouement... resolution or outcome of a plot

deus ex machina... ("god from the machine") unexpected or artificial way of resolving the plot

epic... long narrative (usually in verse) that records heroic material in an elevated style

explication... line-by-line unfolding of the meaning of a text

figurative language... words intended to be understood in a way other than literal

hubris... excessive pride or arrogance, often characteristic of tragic figures

hyperbole... figure of speech that exaggerates in service of the truth; overstatement

imagery... language that represents or appeals to the senses

irony... three types:

• verbal irony -- what is said is opposite of what is meant
• dramatic irony -- discrepancy between what character believes and what audience knows is true
• irony of situation -- incongruity between appearance and reality

metaphor... figure of speech that make implicit comparison between two unlike things

myth...

• (1) traditional story reflecting primitive beliefs, especially explaining mysteries of natural world
• (2) body of belief, not necessarily false, reflecting a writer's personal vision of reality

onomatopoeia... use of words whose sounds mimic their meanings (e.g. snake)

persona... literally a mask; the "I" or speaker of a work, usually a voice created by the author

point of view... four types:

• omniscient -- narrator knows all, is free to tell anything, including characters' thoughts
• limited omniscient -- narrator is limited to complete knowledge of one character
• first person -- story told by a character in first person ("I")
• objective -- narrator reports only what characters say or do, not their thoughts

protagonist... chief character in any literary work

simile... figure of speech that uses "like" or "as" to make explicit comparison

sonnet... fourteen line poem of which there are two types:

• Italian -- eight-line octave, six-line sestet
• English -- three four-line quatrains and final rhyming couplet

stream of consciousness... a character's unrestricted flow of thought, usually free associations presented without punctuation

symbol... object, person, situation, or action that in addition to literal meaning suggests other meanings as well

tone... prevailing attitude (e.g. ironic, genial, objective) as perceived by the reader

understatement... figure of speech in which speaker say less than what is meant