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






2. A character whose name appears in the title of the novel or play; also known as the eponymous character






3. Providing hints of things to come in a story or play






4. A group of two or more lines in poetry combined according to subject matter - rhyme - or some other plan






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






6. A work of literature dealing with rural life






7. Also called figure of speech. In contrast to literal language - it implies meanings. Includes metaphors - similes - and personification - among others.






8. A person - scene - event - or other element in literature that fails to correspond with the time or era in which the work is set






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






10. The repetition of one or more initial consonants in a group of words or lines of poetry or prose






11. A mild or less negative usage for a harsh or blunt term; i.e. 'pass away' instead of 'die'






12. A term often used as a synonym for realism - also a view of experience that is generally characterized as bleak and pessimistic.






13. A sentence containing a deliberate omission of words. In the sentence 'May was hot and June the same -' the verb 'was' is omitted from the second clause






14. A forceful sermon - lecture - or tirade






15. The grammar of meter and rhythm in poetry






16. Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect






17. The use of one object to evoke ideas and associations not literally part of the original object






18. A kind of poetry without rhymed lines - rhythm - or fixed metrical feet






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






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






21. A figurative comparison using the words like or as






22. In poetry - the use of successive lines with no punctuation or pause between them






23. A term for the title character of a work of literature






24. A unit of stressed and unstressed syllables used to determine the meter of a poetic line.






25. French for a novel in which hisotrical events and actual people appear under the guise of fiction






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






27. A series of comparisons between two unlike objects






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






29. The pattern of rhymes within a given poem






30. A simple narrative verse that tells a story that is sung or recited






31. That element in literature that stimulates pity or sorrow






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






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






35. A style of writing in which the author tries to reproduce the random flow of thoughts in the human mind






36. 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






37. A novel in which supernatural horrors and an atmosphere of unknown terrors pervades the action






38. A lyric poem usually marked by serious - respectful - and exalted feeling towards the subject






39. 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






40. The use of insincere or overdone sentimentality






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






42. A popular form of verse consisting of fourteen lines and a prescribed rhyme scheme.






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






44. A humorous play on words - using similar-sounding or identical words to suggest different meanings






45. 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






46. A story containing unreal - imaginary features






47. The excessive pride that often leads tragic heroes to their death






48. '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.






49. The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a group of words or lines in poetry and prose






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







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