Download Literary Terms - Aurora City School District

Red Badge of Courage
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Describing something by comparing it with
something else
Any language that goes beyond the literal
meaning of words in order to furnish new
effects or fresh insights into an idea or a
subject.
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Language that appeals to the five senses
Example: “A sputtering of musketry was
always to be heard. Later the cannon had
entered the dispute. In the fog-filled air their
voices made a thudding sound” (Crane 66).
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A figure of speech which involves a direct
comparison between two unlike things,
usually with the words like or as
Example: The muscles on his brawny arms are
strong as iron bands.
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A figure of speech which involves an implied
comparison between two relatively unlike
things using a form of be. The comparison is
not announced by like or as.
Example: “The shells, which had ceased to
trouble the regiment for a time, came
swirling again, and exploded in the grass or
among the leaves of the trees. They looked
to be strange war flowers bursting into
fierce bloom” (Crane 29).
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A figure of speech which gives the qualities of
a person to an animal, an object, or an idea
Example: “He found himself in a region of
shells [. . .]. As he listened he imagined them
to have rows of cruel teeth that grinned at
him” (Crane 32).
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An exaggerated statement
Example: She’s said so on several million
occasions.
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Repeated consonant sounds occurring at the
beginning of words or within words.
Example: wide-eyed and wondering while we
wait for others to waken
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The author’s attitude, stated or implied,
toward a subject.
Some possible attitudes are pessimism,
optimism, earnestness, seriousness,
bitterness, humorous, and joyful.
An author’s tone can be revealed through
choice of words and details.
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The climate of feeling in a literary work.
The choice of setting, objects, details,
images, and words all contribute towards
creating a specific mood.
For example, an author may create a mood of
mystery around a character or setting but
may treat that character or setting in an
ironic, serious, or humorous tone.
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Reference in literature to a person, place,
event, or another passage of literature
Allusions can originate in mythology, biblical
references, historical events, legends,
geography, or earlier literary works.
Example: “They might not be distinctly
Homeric, but there seemed to be much glory
in them” (Crane 3).
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The language of a particular district, class, or
group of persons
includes the sounds, spelling, grammar, and
diction employed by a specific people as
distinguished from others either
geographically or socially
A technique of characterization that reveals
the social or geographic status of a character
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“What reg’ment do yeh b’long the? Eh?
What’s that? Th’ 304th N’ York? [. . .] An’ these
here hull woods is a reg’lar mess” (Crane 55).
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Any artistic or literary portrayal of life in a
faithful, accurate manner
The tendency to create detailed, probing
analyses of the way "things really are,"
usually involving an emphasis on nearly
photographic details and the author's
inclusion of in-depth psychological traits for
his or her characters.
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“The orderly sergeant of the youth’s
company was shot through the cheeks. Its
supports being injured, his jaw hung afar
down, disclosing in the wide cavern of his
mouth a pulsing mass of blood and teeth”
(Crane 92).