25 Important Literary Terms for AP Lit

Symbol/Symbolism

A thing that represents or stands for another thing like an object that represents an abstract idea Purpose: Employing symbolism is a way for a writer to attach meaning to an object or action, some symbol within the piece that goes beyond the face-value of the symbol itself. Symbols rep-resent something more than their literal meanings. Example: Consider the phrase "a new dawn." It literally refers to the beginning of a new day. However, figuratively speaking, the beginning of a new day signifies a new start. Symbol in 1984: Paperweight

Attitude

An author's attitude, or tone, is simply his or her feelings about the subject he or she is writing about. Example 1: (Sincere:) She rose from her chair when I came in and exclaimed with a smile: "Wow! Nice outfit!" Example 2: (Sarcastic:)

Allusion

An indirect or passing reference to an event, person, place, or artistic work. Purpose: Allusion allows the audience to connect the characteristics of one object/concept to another. More often than not, an allusion in a literary work refers to some feature of another, previous literary work. Example: One everyday example of an allusion is "This place is a Garden of Eden." Literally, the place probably isn't evocative of the biblical Garden of Eden in the Book of Genesis, but the intended meaning is that the setting is a paradise.

Hyperbole

An intentionally exaggerated statement or claim not meant to be taken literally but creating a desired humorous effect. Purpose: A hyperbole involves exaggeration in order to create emphasis. Unlike other figurative language devices, hyperbole creates emphasis through the humorous effect that is created by the author's overstatement. Example: One of the best examples is the phrase "I'm dying to..." One is literally not dying to see someone or do something, but the exaggeration intends to show affection or intense longing while maintaining a humorous tone.

Rhetorical Strategies for Persuasion

Aristotle's "ingredients for persuasion" - otherwise known as "appeals" - are known by the names of ethos, pathos, and logos. They are all means of persuading others to take a particular point of view. Ethos is an appeal to ethics, and it is a means of convincing someone of the character or credibility of the persuader. Pathos is an appeal to emotion, and is a way of convincing an audience of an argument by creating an emotional response. Logos is an appeal to logic, and is a way of persuading an audience by reason.

MOOD

As a literary device, mood is the emotional feeling or atmosphere that a work of literature produces in a reader. All works of literature produce some sort of emotional and psychological effect in the audience; though every reader may respond differently to the same work of literature there is often a similar type of mood produced. For example, in a thriller most readers will feel some sort of suspense, while dramatic novels may produce a sense of sentimentality. Authors use many different factors to create mood, including setting, theme, voice, and tone.

Compare and contrast

Comparison is a rhetorical or literary device in which the writer compares or contrasts two people, places, things, or ideas. a. Example 1: "When I Have Fears" by John Keats "Before high-pil'd books, in charact'ry Hold like rich garners the full-ripened," i. Keats compares writing poetry to reaping and sowing, which act as the in-significance of a life and dissatisfied creativity.

Imagery

Despite "image" being a synonym for "picture", images need not be only visual; any of the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell) can respond to what a poet writes. Examples: "And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells" & "His body was tubular/And tapered/And smoke-blue,/And as he passed the wharf"

Diction

Diction, choice of words, especially with regard to correctness, clearness, or effectiveness. Any of the four generally accepted levels of diction—formal, informal, colloquial, or slang—may be correct in a particular context but incorrect in another or when mixed unintentionally.

Implication

Implication is the act of a speaker or a piece of writing implying some-thing, that speaker or piece of writing has conveyed, suggested, or hinted at it without stating it outright. • "It was after we started with Gatsby toward the house that the gardener saw Wilson's body a little way off in the grass, and the holocaust was complete."- reader makes inference that he died.

Structure

Narrative structure, a literary element, is generally described as the structural framework that underlies the order and manner in which a narrative is presented to a reader, listener, or viewer. The narrative text structures are the plot and the setting. Examples: written in couplets, quatrains or sestets. There can be a narrative poem written in blank verse, continuous structure.

Point of View (POV)

Point of view is the angle of considering things, which shows us the opinion, or feelings of the individuals involved in a situation. In literature, point of view is the mode of narration that an author employs to let the readers "hear" and "see" what takes place in a story, poem, essay etc.

Setting

Setting is an environment or surrounding in which an event or story takes place. It may provide particular information about placement and timing, such as New York, America, in the year 1820. Setting could be simply descriptive like a lonely cottage on a mountain. Social conditions, historical time, geographical locations, weather, immediate surroundings, and timing are all different aspects of setting. It has its three major components; social environment, place and time. Moreover, setting could be an actual region, or a city made larger than life, as James Joyce characterizes Dublin in Ulysses, or it could be a work of imagination of the author as Vladimir Nabokov creates imaginative place, space-time continuum in Ada.

Syntax

Syntax a set of rules in a language, dictating how words from different parts of speech are put together in order to deliver a complete thought.

Personification

The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristic to a non-human or the representation of an abstract quality in human form. Purpose: A writer might employ personification in order to apply human characteristics to something nonhuman, thus furthering the writer's use of imagery and figurative language Example: "The wind whispers" is a fitting example of personification. The wind doesn't actually whisper, but the human action of whispering characterizes well the sounds that the wind can make.

Irony

The expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite of what the writer intends to achieve a humorous effect or to add emphasis. Purpose: A writer utilizes irony to show that the words they use do not necessarily represent their intended meaning. Further, irony can be manifest as a situation that does not pan out the way that the audience, speaker, or characters believe it will. Example: A common example of irony is the nickname "Tiny" for a large man. We know and see that a large man is not, in fact, tiny, yet we employ the nickname ironically.

Selection of Detail

The specific words, incidents, images, or events the author uses to create a scene or narrative

Style

The style in writing can be defined as the way a writer writes and it is the technique which an individual author uses in his writing. It varies from author to author and depends upon one's syntax, word choice, and tone. It can also be described as a voice that readers listen to when they read the work of a writer.

Figurative language

The use of figures of speech to be more effective, persuasive and impactful. Figures of speech include metaphors, similes, and allusions that go beyond the literal meanings of the words to provide the reader with a new insight. a. Example 1: Simile i. Makes a comparison that shows similarities between two different things by using words such as "like" or "as," making it a direct comparison. b. Example 2: Personification i. A thing, idea, or an animal is given human attributes. The non-human ob-jects are

Theme

Theme is defined as a main idea or an underlying meaning of a literary work that may be stated directly or indirectly. Difference between a Theme and a Subject It is important not to confuse a theme of a literary work with its subject. Subject is a topic which acts as a foundation for a literary work while a theme is an opinion expressed on the subject. For example, a writer may choose a subject of war for his story and the theme of a story may be writer's personal opinion that war is a curse for humanity. Usually, it is up to the readers to explore a theme of a literary work by analyzing characters, plot and other literary devices.

Tone

Tone, in written composition, is an attitude of a writer toward a subject or an audience. Tone is generally conveyed through the choice of words or the viewpoint of a writer on a particular subject. Examples: joyful, serious, humorous, sad, threatening, formal, informal, pessimistic, and optimistic.

Metaphor and Simile

While both similes and metaphors are used to make comparisons, the difference between similes and metaphors comes down to a word. Similes use the words like or as to compare things—"Life is like a box of chocolates." In contrast, metaphors directly state a comparison—"Love is a battlefield."

Analogy

a comparison between two things, typically for the purpose of explanation or clarification. Examples • Life is like a race. The one who keeps running wins the race and the one who stops to catch a breath loses. • Just as a sword is the weapon of a warrior, a pen is the weapon of a writer.

Motif

is an object or idea that repeats itself throughout a literary work. Motif and Theme. In a literary work, a motif can be seen as an image, sound, action or other figures that have a symbolic significance and contributes toward the development of theme. Motif and theme are linked in a literary work but there is a difference between them. In a literary piece, a motif is a recurrent image, idea or a symbol that develops or explains a theme while a theme is a central idea or message.

Satire

the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.