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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.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

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






2. A sharp - caustic expression or remark; a bitter jibe or taunt; different from irony - which is more subtle






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






4. A witty or ingenious thought; a diverting or highly fanciful idea - often stated in figurative language






5. A tale in which a young protagonist experiences an introduction to adulthood. The character may develop understanding via disillusionment - education - doses of reality - or any other experiences that alter his or her emotional or intellectual maturi






6. A short - pithy statement of a generally accepted truth or sentiment






7. The high point - or turning point - of a story or play






8. The generic name for a figure of speech such as image - symbol - simile - and metaphor






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






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






11. Personal - reflective poetry that reveals the speaker's thoughts and feelings about the subject






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






13. Deriving from the orderly qualities of ancient Greek and Roman culture; implies formality - objectivity - simplicity - and restraint






14. A term consisting of contradictory elements juxtaposed to create a paradoxical effect






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






16. The choice of words in oral and written discourse






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






18. The work of poets - particularly those of the seventeenth century - that uses elaborate conceits - is highly intellectual - and expresses the complexities of love and life






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






20. The emotional tone in a work of literature






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






22. A series of comparisons between two unlike objects






23. 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






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






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






26. The interrelationship among the events in a story; the plot line is the pattern of events - including exposition - rising action - climax - falling action - and resolution.






27. The author's attitude toward the subject being written about. The spirit or quality that is the work's emotional essence






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






29. The Anglo-Saxon language spoken in what is now England from approximately 450 to 1150 A.D.






30. A term that describes a line of poetry that ends with a natural pause often indicated by a mark of punctuation.






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






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






33. The repetition of two or more consonant sounds in a group of words or a line of poetry






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






35. A poem or prose selection that laments or mediates on the passing or death of something or someone of value






36. The language of a work and its style; words - often highly emotional - used to convince or sway an audience






37. One of the ancient Greek goddesses presiding over the arts. The imaginary source of inspiration for an artist or writer






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






39. Inflated - pretentious language used for trivial subjects






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






41. The relation in which a narrator or speaker stands to the story or subject matter of a poem.






42. 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






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






44. 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






45. In contrast to Dionysian - it refers to the most noble - godlike qualities of human nature and behavior






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






47. The grammar of meter and rhythm in poetry






48. A figurative comparison using the words like or as






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






50. A comparison that points out similarities between two dissimilar things