Lit Terms 6-30

Analogy- a comparison made between two things to show similarities between them
Analysis- a method in which a work or idea is separated into its parts and those parts are given rigorous and detailed scrutiny
Anaphora- a device or repetition in which a word or words are repeated at the beginning of two or more lines, phrases, clauses or sentences
Anecdote- a very short story used to illustrate a point
Antagonist- a person or force opposing the protagonist in a drama or narrative
Antithesis- a balancing of one term against another for emphasis or stylistic effectiveness
Aphorism- a terse, pointed statement expressing some wise or clever observation about life
Apologia- a defense or justification of some doctrine, piece of writing, cause, or action
Apostrophe- a figure of speech in which an absent or dead person, an abstract quality, or something inanimate or nonhuman is addressed directly
Argument(ation)- process of convincing a reader by providing either the truth or falsity of an idea in proposition
Assumption- the art of supposing or taking for granted that a thing is true
Audience- the intended listener(s)
Characterization- the means by which a writer reveals a character's personality
Chiasmus- a reversal in the order of words so that the second half of a statement balances the first half in inverted word order
Circumlocution- a roundabout or evasive speech or writing, in which many words are used but a few would have served
Classicism- art, literature, and music reflecting the principle of ancient Greece and Rome
Cliche- a phrase or situation overused within society
Climax- the decisive point in a narrative or drama; the point of greatest intensity or interest at which plot question is answered
Colloquialism- folksy speech, slang words, or phrases usually used in formal conversation
Comedy- originally a nondramatic literary piece of work that was marked by a happy ending
Conflict- struggle or problem in a story causing tension
Connotation- implicit meaning, going beyond dictionary definition
Contrast- a rhetorical device by which one element is thrown into opposition to another for the sake of emphasis or clarity
Denotation- plain dictionary definition
Denouement- loose ends tied up in a story after the climax, closure, conclusion