Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Also apophthegm. A terse, pithy saying, akin to a proverb, maxim, or aphorism. aposiopesis A rhetorical device in which speech is broken off abruptly and the sentence is left unfinished. apostrophe A figure of speech in which a speaker breaks off from addressing the audience (e.g., in a play) and directs speech to a third party such as an opposing litigant or some other individual, sometimes ...
The term characterization was introduced in the 19th century. [3] Aristotle promoted the primacy of plot over characters, that is, a plot-driven narrative, arguing in his Poetics that tragedy "is a representation, not of men, but of action and life."
The word ekphrasis, or ecphrasis, comes from the Greek for the written description of a work of art produced as a rhetorical or literary exercise, [1] often used in the adjectival form ekphrastic. It is a vivid, often dramatic, verbal description of a visual work of art, either real or imagined. Thus, "an ekphrastic poem is a vivid description ...
Since the 19th century, the art of creating characters, as practiced by actors or writers, has been called characterization. [6] A character who stands as a representative of a particular class or group of people is known as a type. [9] Types include both stock characters and those that are more fully individualized. [9]
A common intended effect of figurative language is to elicit audience responses that are more emotional (like excitement, shock, laughter, etc.), aesthetic, or intellectual. Literal usage confers meaning to words, in the sense of the meaning words have by themselves, [4] for example as defined in a dictionary.
In real life, it’s less common for decorators to recommend arranging books with their pages showing, for the very reason bibliophiles complain: It’s hard to know which book is which, making ...
Since the term différance refers to the dual meanings of the French word difference to mean both "to differ" and "to defer", defamiliarization draws attention to the use of common language in such a way as to alter one's perception of an easily understandable object or concept. The use of defamiliarization both differs and defers, since the ...
The study of books and other texts as artifacts or traditions is instead encompassed by textual criticism or the history of the book. "Literature", as an art form, is sometimes used synonymously with literary fiction, fiction written with the goal of artistic merit, [5] [6] but can also include works in various non-fiction genres, such as ...