Lit Terms List 2

Circumlocution	noun an indirect way of expressing something; a style that involves indirect ways of expressing things
Classicism	noun a movement in literature and art during the 17th and 18th centuries in Europe that favored rationality and restraint and strict forms
Cliche	noun a trite or obvious remark
Climax	noun the decisive moment in a novel or play; arrangement of clauses in ascending order of forcefulness; the highest point of anything conceived of as growing or developing or unfolding; the most severe stage of a disease; the moment of most intense pleasure in sexual intercourse; verb end, especially to reach a final or climactic stage
Colloquialism	noun a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech
Comedy	noun light and humorous drama with a happy ending; a comic incident or series of incidents
Conflict	noun an open clash between two opposing groups (or individuals); an incompatibility of dates or events; opposition between two simultaneous but incompatible feelings; opposition in a work of drama or fiction between characters or forces (especially an opposition that motivates the development of the plot); a state of opposition between persons or ideas or interests; a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war; a disagreement or argument about something important; verb go against, as of rules and laws; be in conflict
Connotation	noun an idea that is implied or suggested; what you must know in order to determine the reference of an expression
Contrast	noun the act of distinguishing by comparing differences; the range of optical density and tone on a photographic negative or print (or the extent to which adjacent areas on a television screen differ in brightness); the perceptual effect of the juxtaposition of very different colors; the opposition or dissimilarity of things that are compared; a conceptual separation or distinction; verb put in opposition to show or emphasize differences; to show differences when compared; be different
Denotation	noun the most direct or specific meaning of a word or expression; the class of objects that an expression refers to; the act of indicating or pointing out by name
Denouement	noun the final resolution of the main complication of a literary or dramatic work; the outcome of a complex sequence of events
Dialect	noun the usage or vocabulary that is characteristic of a specific group of people
Dialectics	noun a rationale for dialectical materialism based on change through the conflict of opposing forces
Dichotomy	noun being twofold; a classification into two opposed parts or subclasses
Diction	noun the manner in which something is expressed in words; the articulation of speech regarded from the point of view of its intelligibility to the audience
Didactic	adj. instructive (especially excessively)
Dogmatic	adj. characterized by assertion of unproved or unprovable principles; relating to or involving dogma; of or pertaining to or characteristic of a doctrine or code of beliefs accepted as authoritative
Elegy	noun a mournful poem; a lament for the dead
Epic	adj. very imposing or impressive; surpassing the ordinary (especially in size or scale); constituting or having to do with or suggestive of a literary epic; noun a long narrative poem telling of a hero's deeds
Epigram	noun a witty saying