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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. The emotional tone in a work of literature






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






5. A pair of rhyming lines in a poem






6. 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






7. A figure of speech in which objects and animals are given human characteristics






8. A synonym for view or feeling; also a refined and tender emotion in literature






9. The resolution that occurs at the end of a play or work of fiction






10. A literary style used to poke fun at - attack - or ridicule an idea - vice - or foible - often for the purpose of inducing change






11. A device employed in Anglo-Saxon poetry in which the name of a thing is replaced by one of its functions or qualities - as in 'ring-giver' for king and 'whale-road' for ocean






12. Grating - inharmonious sounds






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






14. The real or assumed personality used by a writer or speaker






15. The role or facade that a character assumes or depicts to a reader - a viewer - or the world at large






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






17. The interpretation or analysis of a text.






18. A verse with five poetic feet per line






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






20. Faulty reasoning that inappropriately ascribes human feelings to nature or nonhuman objects






21. A brief and often simplistic lesson that a reader may infer from a work of literature






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






23. A version of a text put into simpler - everyday words






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






25. The grammar of meter and rhythm in poetry






26. A narrative told by a character involved in the story - using first-person pronouns such as I and we.






27. A figure of speech that compares unlike objects






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






29. A story in which the narrative or characters carry an underlying symbolic - metaphorical - or possibly an ethical meaning






30. Language that conveys a speaker's attitude or opinion with regard to a particular subject






31. 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.






32. A short tale often featuring nonhuman characters that act as people whose actions enable the author to make observations or draw useful lessons about human behavior






33. The manner in which an author uses and arranges words -






34. The action in a play or story that occurs after the climax and that leads to the conclusion and often to the resolution of the conflict






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






36. The main character in a work of literature






37. The repetition of similar sounds at regular intervals - used mostly in poetry.






38. A story consisting of events from which a moral or spiritual truth may be derived






39. 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...'






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






41. A statement or idea that fails to follow logically from the one before






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






43. A rhetorical opposition or contrast of ideas by means of a grammatical arrangement of words - clauses - or sentences: 'They promised freedom but provided slavery'






44. A variety of poetry meant to entertain or amuse - but sometimes with a satirical thrust






45. An adjective or phrase that expresses a striking quality of a person or thing - ex. sun-bright topaz - sun-lit lake - sun-bright lake






46. A rendering of a quotation in which actual words are not stated but only approximated or paraphrased






47. A work of literature dealing with rural life






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






49. '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.






50. A locution that addresses a person or personified thing not present