Literary Elements Macbeth Notes Part II

1. Irony Verbal: When a character says one thing but means another Situational: When one thing is expected to happen but something else happens instead Dramatic: When the reader or viewer knows something that a character does not know

2. Metaphor: 2. Metaphor: A comparison between two unlike things that have something in common; highlights the features that the objects or concepts share 3. Simile: 3. Simile: Same as metaphor but utilizes the words “like” or “as”

4. Personification: 4. Personification: Human qualities are attributed to objects, animals, or ideas 5. Foreshadowing: 5. Foreshadowing: The use of hints or clues to suggest what events will occur later

6. Allusion: 6. Allusion: A reference to a historical or fictional person, place, or event with which the reader is assumed familiar (Bible, Greek gods, etc.)

7. Symbol: 7. Symbol: Something (usually a person, place, or thing) that represents something else

8. Imagery: 8. Imagery: Words & phrases that create “mental pictures” for the reader – a majority are visual ( + other 4 senses – taste, hear, smell, touch)

9. Motif: 9. Motif: Recurring word, phrase, image, object, idea or action; it will often relate to a major theme of the story

10. Paradox: 10. Paradox:A statement that seems to contradict itself but, in fact, reveals some element of truth Example: “Fair is foul and foul is fair.”

11. Equivocation: A form of deceptive speech Providing a justification for lying

Having TWO possible meanings to be purposely deceptive Claiming that if a statement can be considered truthful from a certain perspective, it’s not actually lying

12. Agent of change: 12. Agent of change: A person or spirit that produces a significant change in a situation

13. Pathetic fallacy: 13. Pathetic fallacy: A tool of imagery used to convey nature’s response to the unnatural events that occur. (When things in nature “mirror” human events)

14. Soliloquy: 14. Soliloquy: monologue delivered by a character when he/she is alone allowing the character to convey inner thoughts and feelings to the audience

15. Aside: A character speaks explicitly to the audience while the other characters on stage are not able to hear; can also occur between two characters

16. Primogeniture: 16. Primogeniture: When the first-born son of the king attains the throne upon his father’s death (patrilineal succession)

17. Hamartia: 17. Hamartia: “TRAGIC FLAW”; a quality that leads to the hero’s destruction (ex. Hubris, ambition…)

18. Tragic Hero: 18. Tragic Hero: a dignified character who is neither thoroughly good nor thoroughly evil; suffers a change in fortune because of a mistaken act, to which he is led by his hamartia – his “error of judgment”

19. Catharsis: 19. Catharsis: An emotional release or purging; an emotional or spiritual renewal or welcome relief from tension and anxiety

*When an audience filled with confusion and unhealthy emotions, such as pity and fear, comes to see a play developing make-believe actions that would be harmful if occurring in real life. The audience participates emotionally in the dramatic action and goes away psychologically cleansed, purged of injurious feelings and sensations*