The following list
contains terms that we have used during the first part of this quarter.
Further definitions can be found in the appendix “Poetic Forms and Literary
Terminology” beginning on page A-61 of the Norton Anthology (or any
glossary of literary terms).
Rhythm and Meter
foot (A-61)—the unit
repeated that gives a steady rhythm to poetry
iamb (iambic foot)
(A-61)—unstressed followed by stressed: unite, repeat, insist
trochee (trochaic foot)
(A-61)—stressed followed by unstressed: unit, reaper, instant
anapest (anapestic foot)
(A-62)—two unstressed followed by stressed: intercede, disarranged
dactyl (dactylic foot)
(A-62)—stressed followed by two unstressed: Washington, applejack
spondee (spondaic foot)
(A-62)—two stressed: heartbreak, headline
trimeter (A-62)—a verse
line of three feet
tetrameter (A-62)— a
verse line of four feet
pentameter (A-62)— a
verse line of five feet
hexameter (A-62)— a
verse line of six feet
caesura (A-63)—strong
pause (usually grammatically marked) in a verse line
end-stopped lines
(A-63)—verse lines that end with a strong mark of punctuation
enjambment (A-63)—lines
where the sense flows over the ends into the next
Sense and Sound
alliteration
(A-64)—beginning with same consonant or consonant sound
assonance
(A-64)—repetition of same or similar vowel sounds
consonance
(A-64)—repetition of pattern of consonant sounds with varied vowels:
languor/linger, reader/raider
Rhyme and Stanza
masculine rhyme
(A-65)—last syllable rhyme
feminine rhyme
(A-65)—two syllable rhyme with second syllable unstressed
blank verse
(A-65)—unrhymed iambic pentameter
stanza (A-65)—a
recurring unit of a poem
couplet (A-65)—rhymed
successive lines
closed couplet
(A-65)—couplet expressing a complete thought (ending with semicolon or
period)
heroic couplets
(A-65)—poetry written in a series of closed couplets
ballad stanza
(A-66)—alternate tetrameter and trimeter lines usually rhyming abcb
(or abab)
sonnet (A-67)—a poem
consisting of fourteen lines of iambic pentameter
verse paragraphs
(A-67)—divisions in long blank verse or irregularly rhymed verse, usually
marked like prose paragraphs (indented first lines)
Figurative Language
simile (A-67)—comparison
marked with specific word of likening, such as “like” or “as”
metaphor
(A-67)—comparison that likens one thing to another without a word of
likening
epic simile (A-67)—an
extended simile in which the thing compared is described as an object in its
own right
antithesis (A-68)—the
placement of opposing ideas in parallel grammar
hyperbole (A-68)—willful
exaggeration
paradox (A-68)—a
statement that on the surface seems improbable but which turns out to be
rational, usually in some unexpected sense
personification
(A-69)—the attribution of human qualities to an inanimate object or abstract
idea
allegory (A-69)—a
narrative where concepts are represented as persons who act out a plot
classical allusion
(A-69)—reference to classical literature or mythology
Terms of Literary Art
Allegory, Symbol
(A-70)—Allegory (see above); a literary symbol is the representation
of an object or event which has a further range of reference beyond itself
Burlesque, Mock Heroic
(A-71)—forms of satire; the burlesque ridicules its subject by cutting it
down; the Mock Heroic does so by inflating it
Chiasmus, Zeugma
(A-71)—Chiasmus is an inversion of word order in two parallel phrases (as in
“Strong without rage, without o’erflowing full” which without chiasmus
would be rendered “Strong without rage, rull without o’erflowing”);
Zeugma is the use of a single verb or adjective to control two or more nouns,
as in Pope “Or stain her honor, or her new brocade”
Eulogy, Elegy
(A-72)—eulogy is a work of praise for either a very distinguished or
recently dead person; an elegy is a formal, usually long, poetic lament for
someone who has died
Fancy, Imagination
(A-72)—after Coleridge distinct terms; fancy is the power of combining
several known properties into new combinations; imagination is the faculty of
using such properties to create something entirely new
Genre, Decorum
(A-73)—genre is an established literary form or type, such as the epic, the
sonnet, the Pindaric Ode, a stage comedy, and so on; decorum, in literary
criticism, refers to the principle that there should be fitness between
characters, actions and language
Gothic, Classic,
Neoclassic (A-73)—Gothic originally referred to German works, later adapted
to refer to any work considered primitive or irregular; Classic implies lucid,
rational, orderly works, such as are usually attributed to Greek and Roman
writers of the classic era; Neoclassic implies an ideal of life, art, and
thought deliberately modeled on Greek and Roman examples
Irony, Sarcasm
(A-74)—ways of saying one thing but meaning another; irony implies an
attitude on the part of the speaker quite different from the thoughts being
expressed; sarcasm is a more broad and taunting form using apparent praise to
denigrate
Ode (A-74)—a long lyric
poem serious in subject and treatment, written in an elevated style and using
(often) an elaborate stanza.
Pathos, the Sublime,
Bathos (A-75)—pathos refers to scenes or passages designed to evoke the
feelings of pity or sympathetic sorrow from an audience; the sublime refers to
the effect of terror and pleasure produced by contemplation of the vast,
obscure and powerful; bathos is the unintentional descent from high to low
which occurs when an author attempts to be lofty and ends up ridiculous
Poetic diction
(A-75)—the distinctive language used by a poet which is not current in the
discourse of an age
Romance, Novel
(A-76)—romances were verse narratives of adventure, usually involving
quests, and both natural and supernatural trials; the novel often attempts to
be a more realistic representation of common life and social relationships
Satire (A-76)—literary
forms which diminish or derogate a subject by making it ridiculous nad by
evoking toward it amusement, scorn, or indignation
Wit, Humor (A-77)—in
their present use, both terms refer to elements in a literary work that are
designed to amuse an audience; through the Eighteenth century, however, wit
had a broad range of meanings, including general intelligence, mental acuity,
ingenuity in literary invention, especially in a brilliant and paradoxical
style