Ap Literature Vocabulary 1.

Allusion-An allusion is a figure of speech that makes reference to an event or element of another story, play, work of art, or movie. For examples, a lot of stories have allusions to the Bible. 2. Apostrophe- a literary sense means to address an abstraction, an absent or dead individual, or an inanimate object that are not physically present. 3. Clich-A term for a trite or obvious remark, phrase, expression or idea that has been overused losing lost its originality through continual use. 4. Denouement- a literary term that refers to the events that happen at the end of a story after the climax. The denouement is also sometimes called the resolution. 5. Diction- Choice and use of words in speech or writing. 6. Didactic- literature or other types of art that is instructional or informative. This term refers to texts that are overburdened with instructive and factual information, sometimes to the detriment of a reader's enjoyment. 7. Empathy- The imaginative projection into another's feelings, a state of total identification with another's situation, condition, and thoughts. 8. Hyperbole- an extravagant exaggeration. It is a figure of speech that is a grossly exaggerated description or statement. In literature, such exaggeration is used for emphasis or vivid descriptions. 9. Malapropism- the act or habit of misusing words to comic effect. This usually results from ignorance or from confusion of words similar in sound but different in meaning, mainly polysyllabic words. 10. Metaphor- a type of figurative language in which a statement is made that says that one thing is something else but, literally, it is not. In connecting one object, event, or place, to another, a metaphor can uncover new and intriguing qualities of the original thing that we may not normally notice or even consider important. 11. Narrator- one who tells a story, the speaker or the voice of an oral or written work. Although it can be, the narrator is not usually the same person as the author. 12. Oxymoron- a figure of speech in which two contradictory words or phrases are combined to produce a rhetorical effect by means of a concise paradox. 13. Parallelism- an arrangement of the parts of a composition so that elements of equal importance are balanced in similar constructions. This arrangement may be applied to words, phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs, or complete units of compositions. Parallelism is a rhetorical device. 14. Pathos- are feelings drawn from sorrow, sadness, pity, suffering and tragedy. They a play on the remorse side of the emotions, misery, grief, and bathos. 15. Personification- A figure of speech where animals, ideas or inorganic objects are given human characteristics. 16. Realism- the theory of writing in which the familiar, ordinary aspects of life are depicted in a matter of fact, straightforward manner designed to reflect life as it actually is. Realism often

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presents a careful description of everyday life, often concerning itself with the lives of the socalled middle or lower classes. Rhetorical questions- one asked solely to produce an effect or to make a statement, but not expected to receive an answer. The purpose to such a question, whose answer is obvious, is usually to make a deeper impression upon the hearer or reader than a direct statement would. Romance- A novel or other prose narrative depicting heroic or marvelous deeds, pageantry, and romantic exploits. Satire- the use of humor and wit with a critical attitude, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule for exposing or denouncing the frailties and faults of mankinds activities and institutions, such as folly, stupidity, or vice. This usually involves both moral judgment and a desire to help improve a custom, belief, or tradition. Simile- a type of figurative language, language that does not mean exactly what it says, that makes a comparison between two otherwise unalike objects or ideas by connecting them with the words "like" or "as." The reader can see a similar connection with the verbs resemble, compare and liken. Understatement- understating something to place emphasis on it.