English 11 Final Exam Literature Review
Puritan
(1472-1750) Focused on work and church.
Enlightenment
(1750-1800) Influenced heavily by science and logic. Benjamin Franklin is a common writer for this literary movement.
Romanticism
(1800-1840) Typical writers like Hawthorne and Melville belong to this literary movement. The main focus is emotion and nature.
Transcendentalism
(1840-1855) Based in New England, believed that intuition and the individual conscience "transcend" experience and thus are better guides to truth than are the senses and logical reason
Realism
(1850-1915) A literary movement that began during the nineteenth century and stressed the actual as opposed to the imagined or the fanciful.a concern with faithfully depicting subject matter or representing real life accurately in literature; to portray life realistically (hence the name), and people as they were
Naturalism
(1880's-1940)It is more pessimistic than Realism, primarily; writers believed that larger forces were at work: Nature, Fate, and Heredity. Their writing was inspired by hardships, whether it was war, the frontier, or urbanization.
Modern Age
(1915-1946) This movement deals with writing which could be found in most high school English classes. Fitzgerald and Hemingway are among the most important writers of this time period. Influenced by Jazz culture of the 1920s
Contemporary
(1946-present) Current literature which is shaped by all writing from the past. A mixture of different styles and cultures.
aphorism
A brief, cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life.
Regionalism
A movement in which writers represented a certain geographical region. all about "local flavor" or "local color." "Local Color" means a reliance on minor details and dialects. They usually wrote about the South or the West. More often than not, these stories were full of humor and small-town characters.
Literature of Discontent
Along the lines of Naturalism, the social problems of this period were seen as a force to deal with. Many groups, from women to freed slaves, started expressing their discontent with the way things were. They started addressing these issues in their writing
Stephen Foster
America's best loved song composer in the 19th century
James Fenimore Cooper
America's first novelist
Artemus Ward
American author and humorist of nineteenth century who uses cacography, faulty logic, faulty coordination, immature choppy sentences, and poor paragraph development for a humorous effect. He also used dialect effectively. AKA Charles Farrar Browne.
Will Rogers
American author and humorist who was part Native American and famous for his homespun philosophy.
Herman Melville
American author who wrote America's only epic, Moby Dick
Carl Sandburg
American author, humorist, and Pulitzer Prize winner. He earned this prize in history for his biography of Lincoln and in literature for his "Complete Poems."
Stephen Vincent Benet
American poet and short story writer who received the Pulitzer Prize for "John Brown's Body"; also wrote "A Creed for Americans" and "American Names"
James Russell Lowell
American poet, critic, editor, and diplomat that is associated with the Fireside Poets. His most famous work as "A Fable for Critics".; first author to successfully write in Yankee dialect
Daniel Webster
American statesman and senator from Massachusetts leading up to Civil War period. Part of a debate with Senator Hayne entitled "Liberty and Union" stresses his belief that the Union must be more powerful than the states.
Henry David Thoreau
American transcendentalist who was against a government that supported slavery. He wrote down his beliefs in Walden. He started the movement of civil-disobedience when he refused to pay the toll-tax to support the Mexican War.
Spirituals
Anonymous songs expressing faith, hope, and freedom composed by slaves and plantation workers
anecdotes
Brief, often amusing stories
Imagists
British and American poets early in the 20th century that advocated the use of free verse, common speech patterns, and clear concrete images as a reaction to Victorian sentimentalism; they were from a strand of modernism
imagery
Description that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste)
Washington Irving
First American short story writer to become famous worldwide; wrote about American folklore; "Rip Van Winkle" and "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" most famous works; Geoffrey Crayon
Ray Bradbury
Modern author known for writing science fiction and tales of fantasy
Fanny Crosby
Most beloved hymn writer on the nineteenth century
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Most popular American poet of the nineteenth century; only American poet to be honored at Westminster Abby
Emily Dickinson
One of America's most loved poets; wrote almost two thousand poems, most of which were published posthumously
Josh Billings
Pen name of American humorist Henry Wheeler Shaw also known for using cacography, faulty logic, poor grammar, and plays on words. He was inspired by Artemus Ward and his faith in the Scriptures.
Mark Twain
Pen name of Samuel L. Clemens. This famous author used his life on the river as a source for writing. His most famous works are The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
John Greenleaf Whittier
Quaker poet who also wrote hymns; his masterpiece celebrated the New England countryside and family life
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Romantic movement; themes dealt with sin and guilt; Wrote The Scarlett Letter and "The Great Carbuncle"
Mark Twain
Samuel Clemens; American poet, novelist, short story writer and playwright.
modern poetry
The image = central to poetry Poets choose everyday words over flowery, sentimental language. Fragmentation and re-combination
Walt Whitman
Trancendentalist; considered America's first modern poet; introduced free verse
Stephen Crane
Writer, poet, journalist; realist, naturalist, impressionist; "The Open Boat"
static character
a character that stays the same throughout the story
dynamic character
a character that undergoes some transformation during the story
personification
a comparison in which human qualities are given to an inanimate object or an animal
implied metaphor
a comparison is hinted at but not clearly stated
simile
a comparison of two things using like, as, than, or resembles
metaphor
a direct comparison of two unlike things
Sonnet
a fourteen line poem with a specific rhyme scheme
The Knickerbockers
a group of America's first great imaginative writers; named after fictional character Diedrich Knickerbocker who was created by Irving
stanza
a group of lines arranged together
line
a group of words on one line of a poem
Ralph Waldo Emerson
a leading transcendentalist writer, and the real founder of the movement. trained as a unitarian minister. encouraged americans to form an intellectual deceleration of independence. a practical philosopher, wrote fresh and vibrant essays that enriched thousands of lives. urged american intellectual patriotism and independence.
extended metaphor
a metaphor that goes several lines or possibly the entire length of the work
irony
a method of expression in which the intended meaning of the words used is the direct opposite of their usual sense; used for humor or sarcasm
rhyme scheme
a pattern of rhyme (usually end rhyme, but not always); this pattern is shown with letters
symbolism
a person, place, thing, or event that has meaning in itself also represents something else
refrain
a phrase or sentence which is repeated at intervals
concrete poem
a poem in which the words are arranged to create a picture that relates to the content of the poem
narrative poem
a poem that tells a story
allusion
a reference in a literary work to mythology, history, literature,or something famous
ballad
a short narrative song written in stanzas; written to be sung or recited and tells a story of some exciting episode; has the rhyme scheme of abcb
lyric poem
a short poem in first person point of view that expresses an emotion, idea, or describes a scene
refrain
a sound, word, phrase or line repeated regularly in a poem
conceit
a strongly exaggerated simile or metaphor
external conflict
a struggle between a character and an outside force
internal conflict
a struggle that takes place in the character's mind
couplet
a two line stanza
assonance
a type of alliteration in which repeated vowel sounds are in a line or lines of poetry
consonance
a type of alliteration in which the repeated consonant sounds are anywhere in the words
end rhyme
a word at the end of one line rhymes with a word at the end of another line
internal rhyme
a word inside a line rhymes with another word on the same line
trochee
an accented syllable followed by an unaccented one
dactyl
an accented syllable followed by two unaccented ones
omniscient point of view
an all-knowing author is the narrator who comments freely on the actions and characters as he is able to delve into the minds of all characters and tell what they think or feel
simile
an expressed comparison of unlike things in which the words like, as, resembles, or similar to are used
idiom
an expression in which the literal meaning of the words is not the meaning of the expression
short story
an imaginative prose narrative written to give the reader entertainment and insight; intended to be read in one sitting
metaphor
an implied comparison in which one thing is described in terms of another
personification
an object, something natural, or an animal is given life-like qualities
exposition
background information which introduces the setting, characters and establishes the mood
man vs nature
conflict between an individual adn the natural world
man vs society
conflict between an individual and larger groups
man vs man
conflict between people
man vs technology
conflict with the forces of man-made technology
man vs fate
conflict with what seems to be an uncontrollable problem such as destiny
man vs self
conflict within a character with themselves
alliteration
consonant sounds repeated at the beginnings of words
dramatic irony
contrasting what a character says and what a reader or audience knows to be true
octameter
eight feet
hyperbole
exaggeration often used for emphasis
Pearl S. Buck
first American women to receive the Nobel Prize for literature
pentameter
five feet
tetrameter
four feet
Fireside Poets
group of poets who wrote poems that people enjoyed sharing with family and friends
symbols
have meanings in themselves but also represent other things as well
approximate rhyme
imperfect rhyme, close rhyme, near rhyme
William Bradford
known as the father of American History
O Henry
known for suprise endings, irony, and dialect; William Sidney Porter; "The Cop and the Anthem"
imagery
language that appeals to the senses
round character
major character; lots of details given
Edgar Allan Poe
master storyteller and poet; introduced the detective story and science fiction; many of his works are mystery or about the macabre; part of Romantic period
flat character
minor character; little details given
cacography
misspellings or bad handwriting
F. Scott Fitzgerald
modern author who wrote about the pleasure-seeking generation of the Roaring Twenties
ee cummins
modern poet known for his unconventional form
Free Verse Poetry
no repeating patterns of syllables, no rhyme, conversational, modern; it differs from prose only in that it is written in lines
Sarah Orne Jewett
novelist, essayist, and short story writer from Maine; known for local color and descriptions of life in nineteenth century New England; "The Town Poor"
monosyllabic foot
one accented syllable
monometer
one foot
Thornton Wilder
one of America's most well-known playwrights; wrote "Our Town" for which he won the Pulitzer Prize; " The Unerring Instinct"
iamb
one unaccented followed by an accented syllable
rising action
part of the story where complications arise
free verse
poetry having no metrical pattern
situational irony
presenting a discrepancy between appearance and reality or between expectation and fulfillment
resolution
reveals the final outcome of the story
verbal irony
saying the opposite of what is meant
heptameter
seven feet
falling action
shows the results of the decision or action taken at the turning point of the story
hexameter
six feet
local color writing
sketches and short stories portraying the life of a particular geographical location;rich in picturesque details reflecting the scenery, quaint customs, and dialect of a region
plot
the arrangement of incidents or events which can be divided into a beginning, middle, and end.
objectve point of view
the author presents the characters in actions with no comment, allowing the reader to come to his own conclusions about them
indirect characterization
the author shows the character in action and lets the reader make their interpretations
limited point of view
the author tells teh story from the viewpoint of one character using either the first or third person
direct characterization
the author tells the reader about the characters directly
conflict
the central source of tension and drama that makes stories interesting
antagonist
the character or force in conflict
dialogue
the conversation between characters
rhyme
the correspondence of sounds
protagonist
the main character
theme
the meaning of the story
point of view
the method of presenting the reader with the materials of the story; the perspective from which it is told.
speaker
the narrator of a poem
foot
the pattern in a line of poetry consisting of one accented syllable and one or two unaccented syllables
rhythm
the recurrence of motion or sound; can be created by meter, rhyme, alliteration and refrain
satire
the ridicule of human folly or vice with the purpose of correcting it or for a humorous effect
surprise ending
the unexpected twist at the end of the story which goes contrary to the reader's expectations
dialect
the words and pronunciations which are peculiar to a people in a certain section of a country or a certain class of people
tone
the writer's or speaker's attitude toward his subject and in turn the response which the writer intends for his readers
characters
those who make the plot happen
trimeter
three feet
climax
turning point of the story
spondee
two accented syllables
dimeter
two feet
anapest
two unaccented syllables followed by an accented one
blank verse
unrhymed iambic pentameter
meter
when the rhythm occurs at regular intervals; a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables
setting
where and when the story takes place
diction
word choice
syntax
word order
onomatopoeia
words that imitate the sound they name