| Epic Poetry | Long, formal narrative poem written in an elevated style that recounts the adventures of a hero of mythic proportions. Example: “The Odyssey” |
| Invocation | A direct and explicit request for help in writing/storytelling. Example: “Sing in me Muse” |
| Epithet | An adjective or phrase applied to a noun to accentuate a certain trait or characteristic. Examples: “the man skilled in all ways of contending”; “the red-haired king” and “Grey-Eyed Goddess” |
| Epic Hero | A man of great stature and significance with two traditional virtues: wisdom and bravery. Example: Odysseus |
| In Medias Res | A literary term coined by Horace that means literally “in the middle of things.” It is used to describe stories that begin in the middle the action rather than at the beginning of a character’s life. Example: Books IX-XIII |
| Epic Simile | An extended or elaborate simile in which the image used in comparison is described at such length that it obscures the subject of the comparison. Unlike a regular simile which uses “like” or “as” to compare the two unlike things, the key comparison words in a regular simile are “so” or “just so” Example: As a man will bury his glowing brand in black ashes, off on a lonely farmstead, no neighbors near, to keep a spark alive, SO great Odysseus buried himself in leaves and Athena showered sleep upon his eyes. |
| Point of View (Omniscient) | godlike, all-knowing; multiple points of view at the same time; will go into more than one character’s thought or feeling in the same sentence or paragraph |
| Point of View (Limited Omniscient) | Usually limited to one character’s thought or feelings, but can switch POV, usually at the start of a new section or chapter. THere is also a limit to what the narrator knows, unlike the omniscient narrator who often knows everything. |
| Point of View (Objective) | No internal thought or feeling, only what can be seen from outside a character; NOT colored by bias or emotion |
| Point of View (Subjective) | No internal thought or feeling, only what can be seen from outside a character; colored by bias or emotion |
| Unreliable Narrator | Can’t be trusted to tell the truth. Example: Odysseus’ many lies to the Cyclops such as telling the cyclops his name is Nhbody |
| Indirect Narration | The things we learn about characters or events that are said in dialogue Example: Chapter IX-XIII |
| Direct Narration | The things that are said by a narrator |
| Theme | NOt simply the subject of a literary work, but rather a statement that the text seems to be making about that subject. |
| Irony | A contradiction or incongruity between appearance or expectation and reality |
| Dramatic Irony | When the audience or reader knows something that one or more of the characters doesn’t |
| Situational Irony | Events or situations become ironic. |
| Verbal Irony | Something said becomes ironic. FOr example, “Yay, I’m the biggest loser! I just won a million dollars! |
| Tone | The narrator’s attitude toward the characters and/or events |
| Metaphor | A comparison between two unlike things |
| Simile | A comparison between two unlike things, using “like” or “as” |
| Personification | Using human traits or qualities to describe something inhuman |
| Imagery | The language a writer uses to convey a visual picture |
| Hyperbole | A gross exaggeration for dramatic effect |
| Consonance | repetition of consonant sounds, especially at the ends of words. |
| Alliteration | The repetition of sounds in a sequence of words |
| Assonance | The repetition of vowel sounds in a sequence. sounds Example: She sells sea shells at the sea shore. |
| Meter | the more or less regular pattern of accented and unaccented syllables in poetry |
| Connotation | The associations evoked by a word beyond its literal meaning |
| Denotation | The primary, literal meaning of a word |
| Aside | Something a character says under his or her breath on stage that the audience understands is mean to be herad by the audience but not by one ore more characters on stage |
| Catharis | The purging of emotion that takes place when witnessing both comedy and tragedy, but more commonly during a tragedy |
| Tragic flaw | The trait in a tragic hero that is responsible for his or her rise and fall from power |
| Hubris | Excessive pride; the most common of all the tragic flaws |
| Comedy | An amusing and entertaining work that ends happily and presents the “lighter side” of life |
| Tragedy | A serious form and often somber drama that ends in disaster and focuses on a character who undergoes unexpected reversals |
| History | ONe of Shakespeare’s plays that concerns itself with English Tudor history |
| Prologue | Occurs before the action of the play begins; one or more of the characters comments on what is about to take place |
| Epilogue | Occurs after the action of the play has taken place; one or more of the characters comments on what has taken place |
| Monologue | A long, dramatic speech given by one character |
| Soliloquy | A long, dramatic speech spoken when a character is alone on stage |
| Chorus | Comments on the action/events of the play |
| Round | Multidimensional; the main or principal players |
| Flat | One dimensional, one-sided |
| Dynamic | Changes |
| Static | Doesn’t change |
| Foil | A minor character that provides contrast with one of the main characters |
| Exposition | The beginning of a story that exposes the problems/conflicts |
| Rising Action | Events leading up to the climax |
| Falling Action | Events following the climax |
| Climax | The peak of emotional intensity in a work. There are mini climaxes too |
| Denouement | The resolution of the climax/conflicts |
| Deus Ex Machina | A god introduced into a play to resolve the entanglement of the plot |
| First Folio | In 1632, two actors from Shakespeare’s company published the most famous folio ever printed, the First Foio of Shakespeare’s plays. This first collection of Shakespeare’s works contained 36 plays |
| Blank verse | Shakespearean blank verse consists of unrhymed lines in iambic pentameter, a meter made up of five “feet”. Each foot consisting of an unaccented syllable followed by an accented syllable. Slight variations sometimes occurt. |
| Douplet | Two consecutive lines in a poem or play that rhyme |
| Pun | A joke based on words with several meanings, or on words that sound alike but have different meanings |
| Paradox | A statement seemingly self-contradictory but in reality expressing a possible truth. |
| Allusion | A reference in a work of literature to a character, place or situation from another work of literature, music or art |
| Chicano Literature | Took shape after the conclusion of the Mexican War in 1848; Influential Cultural Forces: Spanish Conquistadors, 16th century; Navaho-Americans; later Anglo-Americans; oral tradition, myths, and folklore; spiritualism and naturalism; and Roman Catholicism |
| Ethnic Identity | Demonstrated through characters, cultural situations, cultural and religious values, and patterns of speech |
| Social Realism | Emphasizes influence of social and economic conditions of an era on characters, events, and social institutions |
| Magical Realism | the interweaving of sharply etched realism with fantastic and dream-like elements; combines the everyday, the fantastic, the mythical and the nightmarish to blur traditional distinctions between things; also can include experimental style, non-linear plot and dream sequences |
| Bildungsroman | A novel that recounts the development, psychological and spiritual, of a youthful main character |
| Indirect Narration | Narration that occurs through dialogue, not from the narrator |
| Direct Narration | Narration that occurs directly though the narrator |
| Stream of Consciousness Narration | Approximates the flow of thoughts and sensory impressions that pass through the mind; choppy, fragmented style |
| Prophesy | A prediction for the future |
| Moral Ambivalence | Uncertainty of right and wrong |
| Epiphany | (1) an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usually simple and striking (2): an illuminating discovery, realization or disclosure b: a revealing scene or moment |
Odyssey Literary Terms
April 23, 2020