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AP Literary Terms

Subjects : english, ap, literature
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
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  • Match each statement with the correct term.
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This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. A popular form of verse consisting of fourteen lines and a prescribed rhyme scheme.






2. The choice of words in oral and written discourse






3. A return to an earlier time in a story or play in order to clarify present action or circumstances.






4. A comedy that contains an extravagant and nonsensical disregard of seriousness - although it may have a serious - scornful purpose.






5. An abstract or ideal conception of a type; a perfectly typical example; an original model or form






6. 'In the middle of things'--a Latin term for a narrative that starts not at the beginning of events - but at some other critical point.






7. Similar to the truth; the quality of realism in a work that persuades readers that they are getting a vision of life as it is.






8. A novel focusing on and describing the social customs and habits of a particular social group






9. The background and events that lead to the presentation of the main idea or purpose of a work of literature






10. A lyric poem or passage that describes a kind of ideal life or place






11. A vagueness of meaning; a conscious lack of clarity meant to evoke multiple meanings and interpretation






12. A cleansing of the spirit brought about by the pity and terror of a dramatic tragedy






13. An eight-line rhyming stanza of a poem






14. A work of literature meant to ridicule a subject; a grotesque imitation






15. A form of literature in which the hero is destroyed by some character flaw and a set of forces that cause the hero considerable anguish






16. A term that describes characters' excessive emotional response to experience; also nauseatingly nostalgic and mawkish






17. The suggested or implied meaning of a word or phrase






18. A form of understatement in which the negative of the contrary is used to achieve emphasis or intensity. Ex: He's not a bad dancer






19. Inflated - pretentious language used for trivial subjects






20. A figure of speech that compares unlike objects






21. Three periods (. . .) indicating the omission of words in a thought or quotation






22. Grating - inharmonious sounds






23. A phrase - idea - or event that through repetition serves to unify or convey a theme in a work of literature






24. A concise but ingenious - witty - and thoughtful statement






25. The language spoken in England roughly between 1150 and 1500 A.D.






26. In literature - the use of an artificial device or gimmick to solve a problem






27. A sentence that departs from the usual word order of English sentences by expressing its main though only at the end. In other words - the particulars in the sentence are presented before the idea they support.






28. French term for the world of books - criticism - and literature in general






29. A highly regarded work of literature or other art form that has withstood the test of time






30. A figure of speech that uses the name of one thing to represent something else with which it is associated. Ex: 'The White House says...'






31. The act of determining the meter of a poetic line.






32. A sentence that follows the customary word order of English sentences - i.e. subject-verb-object. The main idea of the sentence is presented first and is then followed by one or more subordinate clauses






33. The organization of language into meaningful structure; every sentence has a particular pattern of words






34. An abbreviated synopsis of a longer work of scholarship or research






35. A subordinate or minor collection of events in a novel or play - usually connected to the main plot






36. A piece of writing that reveals weaknesses - faults - frailties - or other shortcomings






37. Pleasing - harmonious sounds






38. The structural form of a line of verse as revealed by the number of feet it contains. For example: monometer = 1foot; tetrameter = 4 feet; pentameter = 5 feet - and so forth






39. A four-line poem or a four-line unit of a longer poem






40. A narrator with unlimited awareness - understanding - and insight of characters - setting - background - and all other elements of the story






41. Novels written for mass consumption - often emphasizing exciting and titillating plots






42. A parody of traditional epic form. It usually treats a frivolous topic with extreme seriousness - using conventions such as invocations to the Muse - action-packed battle scenes - and accounts of heroic exploits.






43. The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables found in poetry






44. A character or force in a work of literature that - by opposing the protagonist produces tension or conflict






45. The quickness of intellect and the power and talent for saying brilliant things that suprise and delight by their unexpectedness; the power to comment subtly and pointedly on the foibles of the passing scene






46. A work of fiction of roughly 20 -000 to 50 -000 words--longer than a short story - but shorter than a novel






47. Two rhymed lines written in iambic pentameter and used widely in eighteenth-century verse.






48. A statement that seems self-contradictory but is nevertheless true






49. A direct verbal assault; a denunciation






50. Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect