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AP Literary Terms

Subjects : english, ap, literature
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • 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. Two rhymed lines written in iambic pentameter and used widely in eighteenth-century verse.






3. Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect






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






5. An episodic novel about a roguelike wanderer who lives off his wits. Ex: Don Quixote - Moll Flanders






6. The interpretation or analysis of a text.






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






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






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






10. An eight-line rhyming stanza of a poem






11. A forceful sermon - lecture - or tirade






12. A poet; in olden times - a performer who told heroic stories to musical accompaniment






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






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






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






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






17. 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...'






18. Grating - inharmonious sounds






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






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






21. The use of words whose sounds suggest their meaning






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






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






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






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






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






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






28. The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables that make up a line of poetry






29. 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.






30. The main character in a work of literature






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






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






33. A pair of rhyming lines in a poem






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






35. A form of verse or prose that tells a story






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






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






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






39. A structure that provides premise or setting for a narrative






40. An extended narrative about improbable events and extraordinary people in exotic places






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






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






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






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






45. A feeling of association or identification with an object or person






46. The works considered most important in a national literature or period; works widely read and studied






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






48. 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.






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






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