Literary Terms

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Symbol

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A person, place, thing, or event that stands for both itself and for something beyond itself.

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Allusion

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A reference to a person, place, or event from history, literature, sports, movies, or the arts.

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Alliteration

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The repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words.

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Static Character

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A character that does not change in response to events in the plot.

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Simile

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A comparison of two things using 'like' or 'as'.

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Metaphor

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A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things without using 'like' or 'as'.

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Oxymoron

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A figure of speech in which contradictory terms appear in conjunction.

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Idiom

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A phrase or expression that has a figurative meaning different from its literal meaning.

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Tone

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The attitude or approach that the author takes toward the work's central theme or subject.

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Theme

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The central topic, subject, or message within a narrative.