ENGLISH EXAM Literary Terms
Static Character
A character that doesn't change throughout the story
personification
A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes
Epiphany
A sudden flash of recognition where a person suddenly understands the true meaning or essence of something previously unknown or not understood.
Allegory
A technique in which an author uses concrete elements of the story (persons, places, things) to represent/imply abstract concepts that have a deeper meaning such as faith, courage, evil etc. symbolic story
Verisimilitude
The appearance of truth or reality in a literary work. For writing to hold our interests it must possess at least a semblance of believability.
metaphor
a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity
simile
a figure of speech that expresses a resemblance between things of different kinds (usually formed with 'like' or 'as')
fiction
a literary work based on the imagination and not necessarily on fact, not real
flashback
a transition (in literary or theatrical works or films) to an earlier event or scene that interrupts the normal order of the story
hyperbole
extravagant exaggeration, a figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor
dynamic character
one whose character changes in the course of the story
foreshadowing
predicting the future in a sly way
nonfiction
prose writing that is not fictional, it is real
imagery
the ability to form mental images of things or events
mood
the feeling set by the characters in the book; the feeling of the surrounding atmosphere
theme
the moral of the story, the lesson the character, or the reader learned
point of view
the perspective of the person or narrator who is telling the story, 1st person, 3rd person omniscient, and 3rd person limited
conflict
the problem in the story between characters, nature, and the character's self
plot
the sequence of events in a story
setting
the time and place the story takes place in
round character
this character is fully developed - the writer reveals good and bad traits as well as background
Flat Character
this character seems to possess only one or two personality traits - little or no background is revealed
alliteration
use of the same consonant at the beginning of each stressed syllable in a line of verse
onomatopoeia
using words that imitate the sound they mean... bang, pop, boom
sensory language
writing or speech that appeals to one or more of the senses
