Literary Terminology Describing Drama - SAT Subject Test in Literature

This excerpt contains multiple metaphors: it compares a heart breaking to iron breaking and to wild horses being tamed.

(Adapted from the R. C. Jebb translation of Antigone by Sophocles 520-525, Fifth century BCE)

The writer compares life to a shadow that struts. This is a metaphor because it compares life to a shadow but doesn't use 'like' or 'as' (like a simile would).

(Passage adapted from Shakespeare's Macbeth, V.iv.23-28)

In the line “And then dreams he of smelling out a suit,” we see the inversion of the normal subject-verb order (“he dreams”) to the unusual verb-subject order (“dreams he”). This is the definition of anastrophe. Anaphora is the repetition of the beginning of a clause, while epistrophe is the repetition of the end of a clause at the end of several clauses in a row (e.g. “I like strawberry ice cream, I buy chocolate ice cream, I eat all kinds of ice cream”). Apostrophe, on the other hand, is a direct address to the reader (e.g. Herman Melville’s “Call me Ishmael”). Ellipsis is the deliberate omission of one or more words for the purpose of concision; it is sometimes marked with “…” but sometimes not.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (1597)

In lines 5-6, we have the use of clauses with identical grammatical patterns, syntax, or meter (e.g. “She expected nothing, hoped for everything, and received something”). Parenthetical speech would be an aside, a remark set off by parentheses, em dashes, or other punctuation. Asyndeton denotes a lack of conjunction words (e.g. “I came, I saw, I conquered”). Colloquialism is the use of an informal, conversational, or regional bit of speech (e.g. “y’all” for “you all”). Apostrophe is a direct address to the reader (e.g. Herman Melville’s “Call me Ishmael”).

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark. (1603)

Rhetorical questions, or questions not designed to be answered literally, are what we see in lines 12-13. Imperative voice is the use of commands, and a cliché is a phrase that’s become trite or worn out from overuse (e.g. “fast as lightning”). Ellipsis is the deliberate omission of one or more words for the purpose of concision; it is sometimes marked with “…” but sometimes not. Antithesis is a contrast or direct opposite to something.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark. (1603)

Here, we have assonance (repetition of vowel sounds) in “dull” and “muddy.” We also have consonance (repetition of consonant sounds) and alliteration (repetition of sounds at the beginning of words) in “muddy-mettled.” Lastly, this is an epithet, a short and somewhat scurrilous description of a character.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark. (1603)

In lines 6-8 we have a literary allusion or reference to Penelope, Saba, and Lucifer, all characters from other works of literature. Apostrophe is a direct address to the reader (e.g. Herman Melville’s “Call me Ishmael”). Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds (e.g. “a bitter debtor”). Colloquialism is the use of an informal, conversational, or regional bit of speech (e.g. “y’all” for “you all”). Ellipsis is the deliberate omission of one or more words for the purpose of concision.

Passage adapted from Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus (1592)

Here we have parallelism, the use of clauses with identical grammatical patterns, syntax, or meter (usually undertaken for emphasis or to achieve a pleasing sound). Synecdoche is a specific type of metonymy in which the real word for something is replaced by a word for a part of that thing (e.g. someone saying they need a “hand” when they really need the entire person’s help). Hyperbole is the use of extreme exaggeration (e.g. “this suitcase weighs a ton”). Litotes, on the other hand, is the deliberate use of understatement or double negatives. Epistles are letters, and epistolary is an adjective that describes the use of letters as a storytelling device in a larger narrative.

Passage adapted from Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus (1592)

The answer choices here are largely similar. “Marriage is but a ceremonial toy” is a metaphor, a comparison that does not employ “like” or “as.” Don’t mistake this for a simile, a comparison using “like” or “as” (e.g. “the still pond is like a looking glass”). An allegory is an extended metaphor (e.g. a metaphor that takes up the entire passage), as is a conceit. Paradoxes are contradictory statements, something that seems impossible (e.g. Odysseus’ “I am no man” in The Odyssey).

Passage adapted from Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus (1592)

With the repetition of “and,” we can tell that this is polysyndeton, the excessive use of conjunctions. (It could also be considered anaphora, repetition of the beginnings of subsequent clauses). It is not epanalepsis (chiasmus), oxymoron (contradictory term), or redundancy. It is also not prolepsis (flash forward).

Passage adapted from Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus (1604)

In these lines we have an example of the relatively rare chiasmus: the use of a crisscross or reverse structure in a sentence or paragraph. Enjambment is a poetic technique in which the meaning and syntax of one line are carried over and finished in the next line (e.g. Robert Frost’s “And there's a barrel that I didn't fill / Beside it”). Imagery is language that calls upon vivid sensory descriptions (e.g. Gerard Manley Hopkins “a candycoloured… a gluegold-brown / Marbled river, boisterously beautiful”). Onomatopoeia is the use of a word that mimics the sound of the thing it is describing (e.g. “pop” or “buzz”).

Passage adapted from Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus (1604)

The repetition of the beginning of each clause (“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers”) is an example of anaphora. Antimetabole, similar to chiasmus, is the repetition and transposition of words (e.g. Dr. Seuss’s “I meant what I said and I said what I meant”). Ellipsis is the deliberate omission of one or more words for the purpose of concision, while polysyndeton is the excessive use of conjunctions. Aposiopesis is the sudden, deliberate breaking-off of a line of writing or speech for deliberate effect (e.g. “When your father gets home…”).

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Henry V (1600)

In line 4, the speaker describes his audience as his “brothers.” Lines 5-7 then expand upon that thought, clarifying how this group of unrelated soldiers could be brothers: “For he today that sheds his blood with me / Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile, / This day shall gentle his condition.” Thus, even though the lines don’t appear in parentheses, they can be considered a parenthetical remark.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Henry V (1600)

Throughout the passage, the speaker directly addresses the storm. An aphorism is a pithy saying or adage (e.g. “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”). Allegory is the use of a story or extended metaphor to make a philosophical or moral point (e.g. George Orwell’s Animal Farm). Stream of consciousness is a style of writing designed to mimic the free-flowing thoughts of someone’s inner consciousness. Sarcasm is verbal irony and is often cutting or satirical.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s King Lear (1606)

Line 9 contains an inversion of ordinary word order. Instead of saying “that makes man ingrateful,” the passage has reversed the typical word order. The technical term for this inversion is anastrophe, and it is often used for emphasis or metrical effect.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s King Lear (1606)

In lines 1-2, we have a frequent repetition of the hard “k” sound. Specifically, we have “crack,” “cheeks,” “cataracts,” and “hurricanes.” This is an example of consonance, the repetition of consonant sounds.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s King Lear (1606)

In order to fit a fixed rhyme scheme and meter, the playwright has relied heavily on anastrophe, the intentional inversion of word order. An aside is a lengthy speech delivered to or for the benefit of the audience and not the other characters, while an anecdote is a short, often humorous story. Epiphany is a sudden realization that changes someone's life, and is often experienced by a character at the end of a short story. Litotes is the deliberate use of understatement or double negatives, the opposite of hyperbole.

Passage adapted from Ben Jonson’s Volpone (1606)

This is anthimeria the use of one part of speech (in this case, “to clamor,” a verb) in place of another (in this case “clamours,” a noun), usually to create an apropos new word. A loan word is a word adopted into the vocabulary of another language without translation (e.g. café or bon mot from the French). Colloquialism is the use of an informal, conversational, or regional bit of speech (e.g. “y’all” for “you all”). A contraction is a different part of speech, as is an interjection.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida (1602).

“And in my vantbrace put this wither’d brawn” represents an inversion of the usual word order: anastrophe. Anthimeria is the use of one part of speech in place of another (e.g. “gift someone a sweater,” with “gift” used as a verb instead of a noun), often to create an apropos new word. Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds (e.g. Edgar Allan Poe’s “the mellow wedding bells”). Caesura refers to a dramatic pause in a sentence or line of poetry, often accomplished by use of an em dash.

Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida (1602).