Download Literary Terms

Pre-AP/GT
1st 6 Weeks
Diction- words chosen by author to convey effect
and meaning to the reader
High Diction-elevated tone, no slang, idioms, or
contractions. Elegant word choice
Ex. “Discerning the impracticable state of the poor
culprit’s mind, the elder clergyman addressed to
the multitude a discourse on sin, in all its branches,
but with continual reference to the ignominious
letter.” The Scarlet Letter
Neutral Diction- standard language without
elaborate words, may have contractions.
Ex. “The shark swung over and the old man saw
his eye was not alive and then he swung over once
again, wrapping himself in two loops of the rope.”
The Old Man and the Sea
Low or Informal Diction-language of everyday
use, relaxed, includes idioms, slang, jargon, and
contractions
Ex. Three quarts of milk. Now they ain’t none. Not
a drop. What the devil does anybody need with
three quarts of milk?
Types of Diction
Slang-recently coined words that come and go
quickly “Sick!” “Fresh Dude!”
Colloquialisms- regional ways of using
language…southerners say “Ya’ll” and northerners
say “You guys”
Idioms- expressions that mean something
different than the meaning of the individual words
Burning the midnight oil=staying up late
Tone- the attitude a writer takes toward a subject. It might
be humorous, serious, bitter, angry, or detached among other
possibilities.
Point of View (POV)First Person- “I”
Third Person- Narrator that is not a participant in the action
“He, she, it, they etc….”
Third Person Omniscient-narrator is all knowing about thoughts and
feelings of characters
Third Person Limited-writer presents events as experienced by only
one character
Author’s Purpose-
purpose for writing: express thoughts or
feelings, inform, persuade, entertain
Irony- literary techniques that involve surprising or
interesting contradictions
Verbal Irony- speaker or narrator says one thing while
meaning the opposite
“It is easy to quit smoking. I’ve done it many times.”
Situational Irony- situation turns out differently than
one would expect.
A deep sea diver drowns in the bathtub.
Dramatic Irony- the reader or audience knows
something a character does not know.
Romeo does not realize Juliet is sleeping and kills himself.
Simile- comparison of two unlike things using the
words “like” or “as”
The rugby ball was like a giant egg.
Metaphor-comparison of two unlike things without
using the words “like” or “as”
You are the wind beneath my wings.
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An allusion is a reference to a mythological,
literary, or historical person place or thing
"I was not born in a manger. I was actually
born on Krypton and sent here by my father,
Jor-el, to save the Planet Earth."
(Obama)
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a recurring subject, theme, idea, etc.,
especially in a literary, artistic, or musical
work.
Motif examples include but are not limited to
seasons, water, food, wisdom, forests,
oceans, journeys, reunions, shapes
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The use of hints or clues to suggest future
action in a piece of literature
“Bobby Martin began to stuff his pockets with
stones. Then the other boys did, too.”
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A scene that interrupts the action of a work to
show a previous event