AP Literature Summer Study Guide v Diction Ø Style of speaking or writing determined by the choice of words by a speaker or a writer.

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1 AP Literature Summer Study Guide v Diction Ø Style of speaking or writing determined by the choice of words by a speaker or a writer. v Figurative language Ø Words or expressions with a meaning that is different from the literal interpretation v Shift/turn Ø To change the focus or tendency of v Allegory Ø A story with two levels of meaning. First, there's the surface of the story. Then there's the symbolic level, or the deeper meaning that the surface represents. v Antagonist Ø A character or a group of characters that stand in opposition to the protagonist or the main character. v Aside Ø A character's dialogue is spoken but not heard by the other actors on the stage v Caesura Ø A pause in a line of poetry that is formed by the rhythms of natural speech rather than by metrics Two types, feminine and masculine v Conceit Ø A kind of metaphor that compares two very unlike things in a surprising and clever way. Often, conceits are extended metaphors that dominate an entire passage or poem v Epiphany Ø Where a character has a sudden insight or realization that changes his or her understanding v Foreshadowing Ø A writer gives an advance hint of what is to come later in the story v Juxtaposition Ø Where two or more ideas, places, characters and their actions are placed side by side in a narrative or a poem for the purpose of developing comparisons and contrasts v Motif Ø Any recurring element that has symbolic significance in a story v Parallelism Ø The use of components in a sentence that are grammatically the same; or similar in their construction, sound, meaning or meter. v Plot elements

2 v Sarcasm Ø The literal meaning is different than what the speaker intends to say and is meant to mock with often satirical or ironic remarks with a purpose to amuse and hurt someone or some section of society simultaneously. v Simile Ø A figure of speech that makes a comparison, showing similarities between two different things and draws resemblance with the words like or as. v Synecdoche Ø A part of something represents the whole or it may use a whole to represent a part v Syntax Ø Determines how the chosen words are used to form a sentence v Point of view Ø The angle from which the story is told, depending on what that is, different information will be given Ø First person singular Uses the I pronoun to refer to the narrator usually the protagonist of the story, and this point of view allows the reader access to the character s inner thoughts and reactions to the events occurring. All of the action is processed through the narrator s perspective, and therefore this type of narrator may be unreliable. Ø First person plural This point of view is extremely uncommon in novels, as it uses we as the primary pronoun. This implies a group of people narrating the story at once there must be a sense of group identity, either facing a similar challenge together or placing themselves in opposition to another outside group Ø Second person

3 Uses the you pronoun to narrate the story. This point of view either implies that the narrator is actually an I trying to separate him or herself from the events that he or she is narrating, or allows the reader to identify with the central character. Ø Third Person Uses he and she as the pronouns to refer too different characters, and provides the greatest amount of flexibility for the author. There are two types Limited The reader is privy only to one main character s thoughts. In this way, it is similar to the first person singular point of view, since the focus stays tightly on one character. Omniscient Allows the author to delve into the thoughts of any character, making the narrator seem godlike Ø Alternating person Combines two or more of the above types of point of view v Connotation Ø A meaning that is implied by a word apart from the thing which it describes explicitly v Allusion Ø A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance. It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers v Apostrophe Ø When a speaker directly addresses someone or something that isn't present in the poem. The speaker could be addressing an abstract concept like love, a person (dead or alive), a place, or a thing v Assonance Ø The repetition of a vowel sound or diphthong in non-rhyming words. To qualify as assonance, the words must be close enough for the repetition of the sound to be noticeable v Characterization Ø Used step by step in literature to highlight and explain the details about a character in a story v Conflict Ø A literary element that involves a struggle between two opposing forces usually a protagonist and an antagonist v Euphony Ø The use of words and phrases that are distinguished as having a wide range of noteworthy melody or loveliness in the sounds they create. v Genre Ø A category of literary composition. Genres may be determined by literary technique, tone, content, or length. The distinctions between genres and categories are flexible and loosely defined, often with subgroups.

4 v Metaphor Ø A figure of speech which makes an implicit, implied or hidden comparison between two things that are unrelated but share some common characteristics v Onomatopoeia Ø A word, which imitates the natural sounds of a thing. It creates a sound effect that mimics the thing described v Parody Ø A humorous or satirical imitation of a serious piece of literature or writing v Protagonist Ø The central character or leading figure in poetry, narrative, novel or any other story. v Satire Ø A technique employed by writers to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society by using humor, irony, exaggeration or ridicule. It intends to improve humanity by criticizing its follies and foibles v Stereotype Ø A character, with generalized traits (characteristics that make the character a group representative rather than an individual)

5 v Style Ø The literary element that describes the ways that the author uses words the author's word choice, sentence structure, figurative language, and sentence arrangement all work together to establish mood, images, and meaning in the text. v Tone Ø 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. v Denotation Ø Literal or dictionary meanings of a word v Alliteration Ø Two or more words in a phrase or line of poetry share the same beginning sound. The words can be adjacent or can be separated by one or more words. Usually the beginning consonants in the words are used v Analogy Ø A comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared to another thing that is quite different from it. It aims at explaining that idea or thing by comparing it to something that is familiar. Metaphors and similes are tools used to draw an analogy. v Bildungsroman Ø The author bases the plot on the overall growth of the central character throughout the timeline of the story. v Climax Ø The point in a narrative at which the conflict or tension hits the highest point v Consonance Ø Repetitive sounds produced by consonants within a sentence or phrase. This repetition often takes place in quick succession v Flashback Ø Interruptions that writers do to insert past events in order to provide background or context to the current events of a narrative v Hyperbole Ø A figure of speech, which involves an exaggeration of ideas for the sake of emphasis v Metonymy Ø A word or phrase that is used to stand in for another word v Omniscient Ø A technique of writing narrative in third person in which a narrator knows the feelings and thoughts of every character in the story. v Paradox Ø A statement that contradicts itself and still seems true somehow v Scansion Ø The process of analyzing a poem's meter v Symbolism

6 Ø The use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities by giving them symbolic meanings that is different from their literal sense. v Turning point Ø A moment when the course of events is changed v Imagery Ø Language and description that appeals to the five senses v Pacing Ø A stylistic device, which shows how fast a story unfolds v Theme Ø The main idea or an underlying meaning of a literary work that may be stated directly or indirectly. v Ambiguity Ø A word, phrase, or statement, which contains more than one meaning. Ambiguous words or statements lead to vagueness and confusion, and shape the basis for instances of unintentional humor. v Anecdote Ø A short and interesting story or an amusing event often proposed to support or demonstrate some point and make readers and listeners laugh v Cacophony Ø The use of words with sharp, harsh, hissing and unmelodious sounds primarily those of consonants to achieve desired results. v Colloquial Ø The use of informal words, phrases or even slang in a piece of writing v Enjambment Ø The practice of running lines of poetry from one to the next without using any kind of punctuation to indicate a stop v Foil Ø A character that contrasts with another character (usually the protagonist) in order to highlight particular qualities of the other character. In some cases, a subplot can be used as a foil to the main plot. v Irony Ø A contrast or incongruity between expectations for a situation and what is reality. This can be a difference between the surface meaning of something that is said and the underlying meaning. It can also be a difference between what might be expected to happen and what actually occurs. v Mood Ø A literary element that evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and descriptions. Usually, mood is referred to as the atmosphere of a literary piece, as it creates an emotional situation that surrounds the readers. v Oxymoron Ø A figure of speech in which two opposite ideas are joined to create an effect. The common oxymoron phrase is a combination of an adjective proceeded by a noun with contrasting meanings v Personification

7 Ø A figure of speech in which a thing, an idea or an animal is given human attributes. The non-human objects are portrayed in such a way that we feel they have the ability to act like human beings. v Repetition Ø A literary device that repeats the same words or phrases a few times to make an idea clearer v Setting Ø The time and place in which the story takes place. The definition of setting can also include social statuses, weather, historical period, and details about immediate surroundings. Settings can be real or fictional, or a combination of both real and fictional elements v Synesthesia Ø A technique adopted by writers to present ideas, characters or places in such a manner that they appeal to more than one senses like hearing, seeing, smell etc. at a given time. v Understatement Ø A figure of speech in which a writer or speaker deliberately makes a situation seem less important or serious than it is. A statement, which lessens or minimizes the importance of what is meant. Restraint or lack of emphasis in expression, as for rhetorical effect.