English Comp. III



	Alliteration - (see page 1056) repeating the same letter at the beginning of several words. Alliteration is the repetition of the initial sounds of the words in a poetic line. Antagonist - the character in a story who opposes or rivals the protagonist (or main character(s)). Aside - speech directed to the audience and, by convention, presumed inaudible to other characters on stage. Character - a verbal representation, in literature, of a person. Characterization - the means by which the author establishes what a character is like. Chronological development - the story's events unfold in the order in which they actually take place. The story basically happens in linear order. Climax - the moment in the plot when suspense or tensions are highest. Comedy - a dramatic work intended to engage and amuse the audience with the embarrassments and discomforts endured by its main characters until a favorable ending is arrived at. Comic relief - a humorous scene inserted to relieve tension after a emotional or tense scene and to escalate the serious aspects of a play or drama. Conflict - the struggle between opposing characters that causes tension or suspense. Dramatic irony - audience knows something that the characters on stage don't. Dramatic Poetry - (see page 1053) implies an audience. Often includes a dialog. Often the speaker in the poem is directly addressing someone. Uses dramatic monologue or dialogue and assumes the presence of another character besides the speaker of the poem. Dramatis personae - the characters of a play. Exposition - the part of a story or play (often occurring early in the work) that provides background information on the characters, setting, and plot. Falling Action - the action of the story moves toward the resolution of its conflict. First person narrator - narrator who's also a character in the story and uses words like "I", "our", "me", and "my". Flashback - a scene depicting an event that took place before the "present" time when most of the events of the story take place. Flat character - a person in a fictional or dramatic work who does not undergo individual development and who often embodies a stereotype. Free verse - (see page 1055) a kind of poetry. It's kind of contemporary. It doesn't follow a fixed pattern, however it is still undeniably poetry. Poetry that doesn't follow a fixed pattern or rhythm, rhyme, and stanzaic arrangement. Foreshadowing - early clues about what's going to happen later on. Sometimes foreshadowing is a bit more obvious than other times. A great deal of emphasis on ANYTHING could be a clue about something that will happen later on in the story. Images - (see bottom of page 1052) words and phrases that communicate sensory experiences and convey moods and emotions. Images make us feel emotions. Irony - when something is different than it would seem to be, that is irony. A discrepancy. In many cases, the character's expectations are met but not in the way they had anticipated. Lyric poetry - (see page 1053) shares deepest thoughts. Usually a short composition depicting the speaker's deepest emotions and feelings. Lyric poems are especially effective in arousing personal participation of readers and in stirring their sensations, feelings, and emotions. Songs, elegies, odes, and sonnets fall into this category. Metaphor - an implied comparison as in this example: "Your eyes are stars". It is NOT a metaphor if words such as "like" or "as" are used. Meter - (see page 1054) a pattern of syllables. That pattern is the "meter" of the poem. Meter is the recurrent pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a poetic line. Together with elements such as rhyme and pause, meter determines the rhythm of the poem. One way to identify the metrical pattern of a poem is to mark the accented and unaccented syllables of the poetic line. Narrative Poetry - (see page 1053) A poem that tells a story. Usually emphasizes action or plot. Narrator - the one who tells the story (not to be confused with the author who WROTE the story). Omniscient narrator - narrator who can travel to different locations throughout the story. All-knowing. May tell you what's going on in several characters' minds. Onomatopoeia - (see page 1056) when a word sounds like the sound that word really represents. It is the use of words that evoke or imitate the sounds they describe, such as slam, murmur, splash, and click. Paradox - (see page 1053) appears to be opposite. A statement that appears to be contradictory and absurd but displays an element of truth. Personification - (see page 1053) the attribution of human qualities to animals, ideas, or inanimate things. Plot - what happens in a play or story. Point-of-view - the perspective from which actions and characters in a story are described for the reader (e.g.: first person, third person, etc.) Protagonist - the main character in a play or story, also called the hero or heroine. Repetition - (see page 1056) refers to the repetition of a single word or phrase; the repetition of a refrain or a specific line or lines in a poem; or the repetition of a slightly changed version of a poetic line. Rising Action - the action starts to rise in dramatic intensity (identifying the conflict(s)) Round character - a complex, fully-developed, character who is presented in great depth and detail. Scene - action is happening. You, the reader, are in the action with the character(s). Sequel - happens after a scene. Usually happens in the head of the character as they think about the scene. They feel emotion about the scene. They typically make a decision during the sequel that propels the story forward. You get to know and learn about the characters and learn to care about the characters. Setting - can include any of the following: time, place, cultural context, social order, common beliefs, common attitudes, what the society values. Soliloquy - a speech by one character in a play or other composition to disclose the speaker's innermost thoughts. Speaker - voice that communicates in poetry. Similar to narrator in a story. NOT the same as the author. Don't draw conclusions about poet's beliefs or experiences on what speaker says. Stage directions - written instructions to the actors and director regarding actions, body movements, and facial expressions during a play. Stereotype - character whose traits are said to be common to all persons of a certain race, gender, etc. Subplot - a secondary line of action in a play or fiction often parallel with, or in opposition to, the main plot. Suspense - uncertainty which creates a sense of anticipation and curiosity about what will happen next or what the protagonist will do next. Symbol - represents something other than what it is. Theme - the central or dominant idea of the story reinforced by the interaction of fictional devices such as character, plot, setting, and point-of-view. Tragedy - literary and particularly dramatic representations of serious actions which turn out disastrously for the chief character. Unreliable narrator - a narrator who gives the reader false information - either on purpose � or because the narrator is not omniscient and does not have accurate access to all of the facts.