| A | B |
|---|
| epic | a long narrative poem about a hero |
| epigram | a brief, witty poem that deals with its subject in a satirical manner |
| epitaph | a short poem or verse written in memory of someone |
| essay | a piece of prose that expresses an individual's point of view |
| exaggeration | hyperbole; overstating or stretching the truth |
| exposition | writing intended to make clear or explain something that might be otherwise difficult to understand |
| expressionism | a highly emotional form or dramatic expression exploring the ultimate nature of human experience |
| fable | a short, fictional narrative that teaches a lesson |
| falling action | the action of a play or story that works out the decision arrived at during the climax |
| farce | literature baed on a highly humorous and highly improbable plot |
| figurative language | language used to create a special effect or feeling |
| figure of speech | a literary device used to create a special effect or feeling |
| antithesis | an opposition, or contrast, of ideas |
| hyperbole | an exaggeration |
| metaphor | a comparison of two things without using like or as |
| metonymy | the substituting of one word for another that is closely related to it |
| personification | a literary device that gives inanimate objects human characteristics |
| simile | a comparison of two things using like or as |
| understatement | stating an idea with restraint to emphasize what is being talked about |
| flashback | going back to an earlier time for the purpose of making something clear in the present |
| foreshadowing | giving hints about what will come later in the text |
| genre | a type or category of literature, etc. |
| gothic novel | a type of fiction that is characterized by gloomy castles, ghosts, and the supernatural |
| hubris | excessive pride |
| imagery | the words or phrases a writer selects to create a certain picture in the reader's mind |
| impressionism | the recording of events as they have been impressed upon the mind as feelings, emotions, or vague thoughts |
| epithet | a word or phrase used in place of a person's name; it is characteristic of that person |
