Page 1 of 9 Glossary of Literary Terms allegory A fictional text in which ideas are personified, and a story is told to express some general truth. alliteration Repetition of sounds at the beginning of words which are close together. allusion Reference to some well-known historical person or event, saying, proverb, or a line or sentence from a work of literature. ambiguity Something that can be interpreted in more than one way; double meaning. anachronism A situation in which people say, do, or see something that is inconsistent with the time they live in. analogy A comparison between two things, qualities, or ideas that have certain similarities, although the items themselves may be very different. archetype A recurring character-type, plot, symbol, or theme of universal significance (the blind prophet figure, the journey to the underworld, the sea as source of life, etc.). association Making connections in the mind between different things or ideas, e.g. hot sun swimming the Mediterranean.
Page 2 of 9 assonance Repetition of the same or similar vowel sounds in stressed syllables of neighbouring words. atmosphere The dominant mood in a story. autobiography An account of a person s life written by that person. ballad A poem with a strong and simple rhythm which tells a popular story. blank verse Unrhymed verse with five stressed syllables to each line, the stress normally occurring on the second, fourth, sixth, etc. syllable. character In a fictional text, play, or film, a person developed through action, description, and use of language (compare main, major, minor characters). One distinguishes between flat and round characters. A flat character is one whose temperament and behaviour can be summed up in one or two traits or qualities (egenskaper), whereas a round character is complex and many-sided. cliché A tired expression that has lost its original power to surprise because of overuse. climax The moment in a text when the conflict is most intense; it comes just before the turning point. colloquial Informal or conversational language which echoes the natural, English unforced speech rhythms and vocabulary of everyday speech. connotation The implied meaning of a word; its overtones and associations over and beyond its literal, dictionary meaning ( adore and love have similar meanings, but adore has specific connotations linking it to worship).
Page 3 of 9 diction Word choice; some levels of diction are: formal, informal (colloquial), nonstandard, slang, regional, dialectal, obsolete, technical terms (jargon). ellipsis One or several words are left out from a sentence which can nevertheless be understood from the context. emphasis A stress on the most important ideas, characters, themes, etc. in a text. epic A long narrative poem telling of heroic events in an elevated style. epigram A short, concise saying, full of substance. epilogue The concluding part of a literary work or drama which comments on or summarizes the main action or plot. essay A short piece of writing on a subject/theme/ that expresses a specific point of view. euphemism Mild or indirect word or expression used instead of some other word or expression which is thought to be unpleasant or embarrassing. Example (AmE): I have to go to the bathroom (= the toilet BrE). fable A short story, often with animals in it, that is told to illustrate a moral fiction An invented story involving characters, actions, and settings. figurative Meaning of a word that goes beyond its usual definition and transfers the word from its normal, literal context to a new one. Examples: metaphors, similes, and symbols.
Page 4 of 9 figure of speech The use of words to create a special effect. Examples: alliteration, assonance, and euphemisms. flashback Interruption of the chronological order of a text in order to go back in time and show what happened earlier; a technique often used in films. focus A writer s control and limitation of a subject to a specific aspect, usually determined by three factors: the subject (what?) the audience (for whom?) the purpose (why?) foreshadowing A story-telling device that the author uses to give the reader advance warning of what is going to happen. free verse Verse written without the use of regular patterns of metre and rhyme or the traditional types of form. genre A form or type of literature such as the horror story, lyric poetry, or romantic fiction. hyperbole Conscious exaggeration. image, imagery A vivid mental picture created by a writer to appeal to the reader s imagination; for example metaphors, similes, symbols are kinds of imagery. inference A conclusion drawn by the reader based on information that is only indirectly known or indicated. interior monologue The verbal reproduction of a character s feelings or thoughts with no intervention by the narrator. irony Saying one thing but meaning another, usually the opposite of what is really meant, in order to be amusing or to criticize.
Page 5 of 9 literal meaning The ordinary, everyday meaning of words and phrases. The opposite is figurative meaning. lyrics The words of a song, esp. of modern pop songs. metaphor The linking of two seemingly unrelated things with each other in the form of a comparison. Example: Life s but a walking shadow (Shakespeare, Macbeth) life is not real, only an unsubstantial thing that passes by. metre The organisation of lines of verse into regular patterns of stressed and unstressed syllable. modes of exposition Types of writing: a) narration b) description c) argumentation d) discourse (explains, defines, or interprets the subject). mood The general atmosphere or feeling in a literary work. narrator The person who tells the story in a narrative text; the person through whose eyes events are seen. First-person narrator = I third-person narrator = he or she non-fiction Text in which there are references only to people and places that really exist(ed) (biographies, autobiographies, letters, diaries, essays, interviews, etc.). novel A book-length piece of fiction, with a storyline, characters, setting, etc. (Swedish: roman ); compare short story (Swedish: novell ). objective Refers to the writer s presentation of information in a personally detached, unemotional way (compare subjective).
Page 6 of 9 onomatopoeia The attempt to represent a real sound by the sound of a word. Example: buzz for the sound made by a bee. open ending When the conflict is not solved (in a fictional text); the final interpretation is left to the reader (compare solution). parable Normally a short, simple story which teaches a moral or religious lesson. paradox A statement that seems at first to be contradictory, even senseless, but reveals some hidden truth on second thought. paragraph Usually a set of two or more sentences in a text that are related to one another in explaining an idea. paraphrase To put somebody else s ideas into your own words. It can be as long or longer than the original (compare summary). parody Fictional text which imitates the form and language of a well-known piece of writing while changing its tone and context, usually used for humorous or satirical effect. personification Attributing human characteristics to the non-human. play A piece of fiction written for performance on stage, in films, or on television (also called drama). plot In fictional texts, the structure of the action as a set of events connected by cause and effect and centred around one or more conflicts. point of view Relationship between the writer/narrator and his/her text; perspective from which the topics/characters and events are presented. prologue A speech, often in verse, delivered by an actor at the beginning of a play.
Page 7 of 9 protagonist A main character in a fictional text. pun Play on words, using either different meanings of the same word or the different meanings of words which have the same or similar sounds. purpose The author s reasons for writing. rhetorical question A question to which the answer is obvious and therefore not expected question or given. rhyme The use of identical or similar sounds (especially at the end of lines in a poem). Examples: end rhyme (Swedish: slutrim ) and assonance. rhythm A strong, regular pattern of beat, sound, or movement. There is rhythm in speech, poetry, music, dance, etc. run-on line The meaning of what is said runs on from one verse line to the next, so that there is no pause at the end of the line. sarcasm A form of expression where you say the opposite of what you mean. Its purpose is to ridicule. satire A fictional text intended to criticize certain conditions, events or people by making them appear ridiculous (compare irony, sarcasm). setting Place and time in which the action of a text takes place. short story A brief piece of fiction (compare novel). Because of limited space, a short story is economical: few characters and events, limited setting, a densely constructed plot, carefully chosen words, etc.
Page 8 of 9 simile The linking of two distinctly different things using as or like, to suggest some kind of similarity. Example: His hair was like snow. (Compare metaphor: the snow of his hair.) soliloquy A speech delivered by a character in a play who is alone on stage. sonnet A poem consisting of 14 lines, often divided into an octave (8 lines) and a sestet (6 lines). stanza A group of lines in a poem forming one unit. stream-of-consciousness The attempt by an author to reproduce the thought processes of a person without adapting them to a more grammatical or ordered form than they might have in real life (compare interior monologue, which is usually more ordered). style The way you use language when speaking or writing. Examples: formal, informal, neutral, colloquial, slang. subject matter The topic or theme dealt with in a novel, drama, debate, speech, etc. See also topic. subjective Refers to writing that expresses the author s belief in and attitudes towards a particular subject. suspense The tension readers feel because they are uncertain as to how events are going to turn out. symbol An element of imagery, in which a concrete object stands not only for itself but also for some abstract idea. theme A central topic or idea of a text, holding all its elements together and giving them meaning; also several texts dealing with the same topic or idea.
Page 9 of 9 tone The way a writer or speaker expresses his or her attitudes, feelings, and moods. The tone may be serious, humorous, arrogant, angry, friendly, irritated, annoyed, etc. topic A subject in a novel, short story, film, discussion, speech, etc. Compare subject matter. turning-point A change in the conflict (in a fictional text), which usually follows the climax. understatement A statement that is deliberately weak, putting less emphasis or importance on something than it deserves; the opposite of exaggeration (often used as a form of irony). verse Another word for poetry or a set of lines which forms a part of a poem (= stanza) or a song.