Lit Terms 56-81

Genre- a category or class of artistic endeavor having a particular form, technique or content

Gothic Tale- a style in literature characterized by gloomy settings, violent grotesque action, and a mood of decay, degeneration, and decadence

Hyperbole- an exaggeration statement often used as a figure of speech or to prove a point

Imagery- figure of speech or vivid description, conveying images through any of the sense

Implication- a meaning or understanding that is to be arrived at by the reader but that is not fully and explicitly stated by the author

Incongruity- the deliberate joining of opposites or of elements that are not appropriate to each other

Inference- a judgment or conclusion based on evidence presented; the forming of an opinion which possesses some degree of probability according to the facts already available

Irony- a contrast or incongruity between what is said and what is meant , or what is expected to happen and what actually happens, or what is thought to be happening and what is actually happening

Interior Monologue- a form of writing which represents the inner thoughts of a character; the recording of the internal, emotional experiences of an individual; generally the reader is given the impression of overhearing the interior monologue

Inversion- words out of order for emphasis

Juxtaposition- the intentional placement of  words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs to contrast with another near by

Lyric- a poem having musical form and quality; a short outburst of the author's innermost thoughts and feelings

Magical Realism- a genre developed in Latin America which juxtaposes the everyday with the marvelous or magical

Metaphor- an analogy comparing two different things imaginatively; can be extended, controlling, or mixed

Metonymy- literally " name changing" a device of figurative language in which the name of an attribute or associated thing is substituted for the usual name of the thing

Mode of Discourse- argument, narration, description, and exposition

Modernism-literary movement characterized by stylistic experimentation, rejection of tradition, interest in symbolism and psychology

Monologue- an extended speech by a character in a play, short story, novel, or narrative poem

Mood- the predominating atmosphere evoked by a literary piece

Motif- a recurring feature in a piece of literature

Myth- a story, often about immortals, and sometimes connected with religious rituals, that attempts to give meaning to the mysteries of the world

Narrative-  a story or description of events

Narrator- one who narrates or tells a story

Naturalism- extreme form of realism

Novelette/Novella- short story; short prose narrative, often satirical

Omniscient Point of View- knowing all things, usually the third person