I- Importance Of Studying Literature

Why is the study of literature important? What skills do students learn through reading
literature? What is gained from reading literature and evaluating it?
When we study literature, our horizons are broadened, because we can learn about and
come to understand people who are different from us. Conversely, we might discover
characters or poems that we really identify with—it can be really exciting and validating
to discover that your exact thoughts and feelings have also been experienced by
someone else. Because of these effects, literature encourages us to be sensitive to the
whole spectrum of human experience and to consider this when making decisions in our
day-to-day lives. Academically, studying literature also helps us to refine our own
writing skills and expand our vocabularies.

Literary and Cultural Studies

Literary and Cultural Studies gives you access to historical and emergent traditions of
literature, culture and thought. Through critical interpretation and dialogue, we can see
how language mediated through texts arranges and allows different ways of knowing
and living. In the process you will read some of the greatest wordsmiths and thinkers in
the English language.

What are the benefits of a Literary and Cultural Studies concentration?

The study of literature and culture provides you with invaluable skills in writing,
thinking and expression. These proficiencies in communication and perception are
powerfully flexible and adaptable, preparing you to think creatively and innovate across
diverse scenarios.

What are the three importance of literature we can see in the 21st century? 
1. Get to know past lives
2. Awakens empathy and understanding
3. Opportunities and escapism 

II- Literary Genres

A list of the types of books included in the list and may be used as search criteria to find
books of interest in the list.

All Fiction Fable

Narration demonstrating a useful truth,
Drama especially in which animals speak as
Stories composed in verse or prose, usually humans; legendary, supernatural tale.
for theatrical performance, where conflicts
and emotion are expressed through dialogue
and action.
Fairy Tale
Story about fairies or other magical
creatures, usually for children.
Fantasy
Fiction with strange or other worldly settings
or characters; fiction which invites
suspension of reality.
Fiction
Narrative literary works whose content is
produced by the imagination and is not
necessarily based on fact.
Fiction in Verse
Full-length novels with plot, subplot(s),
theme(s), major and minor characters, in
which the narrative is presented in (usually
blank) verse form.
Mythology
Legend or traditional narrative, often based
in part on historical events, that reveals
human behavior and natural phenomena by
its symbolism; often pertaining to the actions
of the gods.
Poetry
Verse and rhythmic writing with imagery that
creates emotional responses.
Realistic Fiction
Story that can actually happen and is true to
life.
Science Fiction
Story based on impact of actual, imagined,
or potential science, usually set in the future
or on other planets.

Folklore Short Story

The songs, stories, myths, and proverbs of a
people or "folk" as handed down by word of
mouth.
Historical Fiction
Story with fictional characters and events in
a historical setting.
Fiction of such brevity that it supports no
subplots.
Tall Tale
Humorous story with blatant exaggerations,
swaggering heroes who do the impossible
with nonchalance.

Horror All Nonfiction

Fiction in which events evoke a feeling of
dread in both the characters and the reader. Biography/Autobiography
Narrative of a person's life, a true story
Humor about a real person.
Fiction full of fun, fancy, and excitement,
meant to entertain; but can be contained in Essay
all genres A short literary composition that reflects the
author's outlook or point.
Legend
Story, sometimes of a national or folk hero, Narrative Nonfiction
which has a basis in fact but also includes Factual information presented in a format
imaginative material. which tells a story.

Mystery Nonfiction
Fiction dealing with the solution of a crime or Informational text dealing with an actual,
the unraveling of secrets. real-life subject.
Speech
Public address or discourse.

What Is a Literary Device?

A literary device is a tool used by writers to hint at larger themes, ideas, and meaning in
a story or piece of writing. There are many styles of literary devices, each serving a
different purpose. Some operate at the sentence level, while others serve the piece of
writing as a whole. Writers often use multiple literary devices in tandem.
 
22 Different Types of Literary Devices and How to Use Them
Writers use a wide variety of literary devices across different genres. Each literary
device serves a specific purpose. Understanding how to correctly wield these devices
can significantly improve your own writing.
 
1. Allegory. Allegory is a literary device used to express large, complex ideas in an
approachable manner. Allegory allows writers to create some distance between
themselves and the issues they are discussing, especially when those issues are
strong critiques of political or societal realities. 

2. Allusion. An allusion is a popular literary device used to develop characters,

frame storylines, and help create associations to well-known works. Allusions can
reference anything from Victorian fairy tales and popular culture to the Bible and
the Bard. Take the popular expression “Bah humbug”—an allusion that
references Charles Dickens’ novella A Christmas Carol. The phrase, which is
often used to express dissatisfaction, is associated with the tale’s curmudgeonly
character, Ebenezer Scrooge. 

3. Anachronism. Imagine reading a story about a caveman who microwaves his

dinner, or watching a film adaptation of a Jane Austen novel in which the
characters text each other instead of writing letters. These circumstances are
examples of anachronisms, or an error in chronology—the kind that makes
audiences raise their eyebrows or do a double-take. Sometimes anachronisms
are true blunders; other times, they’re used intentionally to add humor or to
comment on a specific time period in history. 

4. Cliffhanger. It’s a familiar feeling: You’re on minute 59 of an hour-long television

episode, and the protagonist is about to face the villain—and then episode cuts
to black. Known as a cliffhanger, this plot device marks the end of a section of a
narrative with the express purpose of keeping audiences engaged in the story. 

5. Dramatic Irony. Remember the first time you read or watched Romeo and
Juliet? The tragic ending of this iconic story exemplifies dramatic irony: The
audience knows that the lovers are each alive, but neither of the lovers knows
 that the other is still alive. Each drinks their poison without knowing what the
audience knows. Dramatic irony is used to great effect in literature, film, and
television. 

6. Extended Metaphor. Extended metaphors build evocative images into a piece of

writing and make prose more emotionally resonant. Examples of extended
metaphor can be found across all forms of poetry and prose. Learning to use
extended metaphors in your own work will help you engage your readers and
improve your writing.

7. Foreshadowing. At its core, storytelling has one ambition: to capture and

sustain your reader’s attention and keep them reading your story.
Foreshadowing, or slyly indicating a future event, is one technique a writer can
use to create and build suspense. 

8. Humor. Humor brings people together and has the power to transform how we
think about the world. Of course, not everyone is adept at being funny—
particularly in their writing. Making people laugh takes some skill and finesse,
and, because so much relies on instinct, is harder to teach than other techniques.
However, all writers can benefit from learning more about how humor functions in
writing. 

9. Imagery. If you’ve practiced or studied creative writing, chances are you’ve

encountered the expression “paint a picture with words.” In poetry and literature,
this is known as imagery: the use of figurative language to evoke a sensory
experience in the reader. When a poet uses descriptive language well, they play
to the reader’s senses, providing them with sights, tastes, smells, sounds,
internal and external feelings, and even deep emotion. The sensory details in
imagery bring works to life..

10. Irony. Irony is an oft-misunderstood literary device that hinges on opposites:

what things are on the surface, and what they end up actually being. Many learn
about dramatic irony through works of theater like Shakespeare’s Romeo and
Juliet or Sophocles’s Oedipus Rex. When deployed with skill, irony is a powerful
tool that adds depth and substance to a piece of writing. 

11. Metaphor, Simile, and Analogy. Metaphors, similes, and analogies are three
techniques used in speech and writing to make comparisons. Each is used in a
different way, and differentiating between the three can get a little tricky: For
example, a simile is actually a subcategory of metaphor, which means all similes
are metaphors, but not all metaphors are similes. Knowing the similarities and
differences between metaphor, simile, and analogy can help you identify which is
best to use in any scenario and help make your writing stronger. 
12. Motif. A motif is a repeated element that has symbolic significance to a story.
Sometimes a motif is a recurring image. Sometimes it’s a repeated word or
phrase or topic. A motif can be a recurrent situation or action. It can be a sound
or a smell or a temperature or a color. The defining aspect is that a motif repeats,
and through this repetition, a motif helps to illuminate the central ideas, themes,
and deeper meaning of the story in which it appears. 
13. Motif vs. Symbol. Both motifs and symbols are used across artistic mediums:
Painters, sculptors, playwrights, and musicians all use motifs and symbols in
their respective art forms. And while they are similar literary terms, “motif” and
“symbol” are not synonyms. 

14. Oxymoron. An oxymoron is a figure of speech: a creative approach to language

that plays with meaning and the use of words in a non-literal sense. This literary
device combines words with contradictory definitions to coin a new word or
phrase (think of the idiom “act naturally”—how can you be your natural self if
you’re acting?). The incongruity of the resulting statement allows writers to play
with language and meaning. 

15. Paradox. “This sentence is a lie.” This self-referential statement is an example of

a paradox—a contradiction that questions logic. In literature, paradoxes can elicit
humor, illustrate themes, and provoke readers to think critically. 

16. Personification. In writing, figurative language—using words to convey a

different meaning outside the literal one—helps writers express themselves in
more creative ways. One popular type of figurative language is personification:
assigning human attributes to a non-human entity or inanimate object in an effort
to express a point or idea in a more colorful, imaginative way. 

17. Satire. Satire is so prevalent in pop culture that most of us are already very
familiar with it, even if we don’t always realize it. Satire is an often-humorous way
of poking fun at the powers that be. Sometimes, it is created with the goal to
drive social change. Satire can be part of any work of culture, art, or
entertainment—it has a long history, and it is as relevant today as it was in
ancient Rome. 

18. Situational Irony. Irony: it’s clear as mud. Theorists quibble about the margins
of what constitutes irony, but situational irony is all around us—from humorous
news headlines to the shock twists in a book or TV show. This type of irony is all
about the gap between our expectations and reality, and it can make a
memorable and powerful impression when we encounter it. 

19. Suspense. No matter what type of story you’re telling, suspense is a valuable
tool for keeping a reader’s attention and interest. Building suspense involves
withholding information and raising key questions that pique readers’ curiosity.
Character development plays a big role in generating suspense; for example, if a
 character’s desire is not fulfilled by the end of the book, the story will not feel
complete for the reader. 

20. Symbolism. An object, concept, or word does not have to be limited to a single
meaning. When you see red roses growing in a garden, what comes to mind?
Perhaps you think literally about the rose—about its petals, stem, and thorns, or
even about its stamen and pistil as a botanist might. But perhaps your mind goes
elsewhere and starts thinking about topics like romance, courtship, and
Valentine’s Day. Why would you do this? The reason, of course, is that over the
course of many generations, a rose’s symbolic meaning has evolved to include
amorous concepts.

21. Verisimilitude. Verisimilitude (pronounced ve-ri-si-mi-li-tude) is a theoretical

concept that determines the semblance of truth in an assertion or hypothesis. It is
also an essential tenet of fiction writing. Verisimilitude helps to encourage a
reader’s willing suspension of disbelief. When using verisimilitude in writing, the
goal is to be credible and convincing. 

22. Vignette. A writer’s job is to engage readers through words. Vignettes—poetic

slices-of-life—are a literary device that brings us deeper into a story. Vignettes
step away from the action momentarily to zoom in for a closer examination of a
particular character, concept, or place. Writers use vignettes to shed light on
something that wouldn’t be visible in the story’s main plot. 

Literary Criticism
 
Literary criticism is the comparison, analysis, interpretation, and/or evaluation of works
of literature. Literary criticism is essentially an opinion, supported by evidence, relating
to theme, style, setting or historical or political context. It usually includes discussion of
the work’s content and integrates your ideas with other insights gained from research.
Literary criticism may have a positive or a negative bias and may be a study of an
individual piece of literature or an author’s body of work.
Although criticism may include some of the following elements in order to support an
idea, literary criticism is NOT a plot summary, a biography of the author, or simply
finding fault with the literature.
Researching, reading, and writing works of literary criticism will help you to make better
sense of the work, form judgments about literature, study ideas from different points of
view, and determine on an individual level whether a literary work is worth reading.
 
Examples of some types of literary criticism are:
 Biographical
 Comparative
 Ethical
 Expressive
  Feminist
 Historical
 Mimetic
 Pragmatic
 Psychological
 Social
 Textual
 Theoretical

What Is Literary Criticism?

Literary Criticism  – The analysis of a literary text though various lenses that
highlight authorial stance, purpose, and perspective

Part of the fun of reading good literature is looking for all its meanings and
messages. Since people have written literature, critics have been interpreting it ….
going all the way back to ancient Greece and Rome. For many centuries, literary
criticism has been limited to some basic approaches involving historical, moral and
biographical perspectives. But during the 20th century, critical approaches have
become much more varied due to the huge increase of educated people and their
widely diverse reactions to literature. As the meaning of what literature is and can
be or should be has changed, so has the critics’ responses to it.

Below are outlined for you six of the dozen-or-so “schools” of literary criticism
currently deemed valid by the academic world. A critical viewpoint is simply a lens
through which we look at a piece of literature, allowing this lens to shape our
reaction to the work. These different schools are not exclusive – in fact, most critical
essays use ideas from several types of criticism. But depending upon what work
you are reading, and what your own ideas about what good literature should do, or
your own ideas about life and the world, some critical methods will work better than
others or be more helpful for your understanding of a work. The goal of literary
criticism is always to help us understand and appreciate a work more fully, no
matter what approach(es) we use.

The following definitions are paraphrased from A Handbook of Critical Approaches to

Literature, 4th edition, Guerin, Labor, Morgan, Reesman & Willingham. New York:
Oxford Univ. Press, 1999

Traditional Critical Approaches

 1. Historical-Biographical. This approach sees a literary work as a reflection of
the author’s life and times or the life and times of the characters in the work.
Critics using this school of thought investigate how plot details, settings, and
characters of the work reflect or are representative of events, settings, and
people in the author’s life or a direct outgrowth of — or reaction to– the culture in
which the author lived.

2. Moral-Philosophical. This approach takes the position that the larger function of
literature is to teach morality and probe philosophical issues, such as ethics,
religion, or the nature of humanity. Literature is interpreted within the context of
the philosophical thought of a period or group, such as Christianity,
Existentialism, Buddhism, etc. Often critics will see in the work allusions to other
works, people, or events from this perspective, or see the work as allegorical.

3. Formalistic Criticism. Using this type of criticism, a reader would see the work
as an independent and self-sufficient artistic object. This approach is also
sometimes referred to as the “New Criticism,” since it came back in vogue in the
1960s-70s, but it was originally an outgrowth of the “Art for Art’s Sake” movement
of the late 1800s. Formalistic critics assume that everything necessary for
analyzing the work is present in the work itself and disregard any connection to
possible outside influences such as the author’s own life or historical times. This
criticism considers what a work says and how it says it as inseparable issues. It
focuses on close reading, with sensitivity to the words and their various
meanings. It searches for structures, patterns, imagery and motifs, and figurative
language along with the juxtaposition of scenes, tone, and other literary
techniques in order to come to conclusions about the meaning of the work.

Newer Approaches to Literary Criticism

1. Psychological Criticism. This approach deals with a work of literature primarily

as it is an expression – in fictional form – of the author’s personality, mindset,
feelings and desires. It also requires that we investigate the psychology of the
characters and their motives in order to figure out the work’s meanings. This
school of criticism got its start with the work of Sigmund Freud, which
incorporated the importance of the unconscious or sub-conscious in human
behavior. Some typical “archetypal” Freudian interpretations include: rebellion
against a father, id versus superego, death-wish forces, or sexual repression.
Dreams, visualizations, and fantasies of characters in modern works usually
stem from Freudian concepts.

2. Feminist / Gender Criticism. This approach asks us to use a wide variety of

issues related to gender, concerning the author, the work itself, the reader, and
the societies of the author and reader, to determine the stance of the work on the
feminist continuum. These critics would argue that in order to achieve validity, a
literary criticism that claims universality must include the feminine consciousness,
 since till very recently and in many instances yet today, works of literature and
criticism have been male-dominated and therefore necessarily skewed in their
perspective. Feminist critics look for the development of male and female
characters and their motives to see how the author and his or her times affected
the gender roles in the work.

3. Sociological / Marxist Criticism. This viewpoint considers particular aspects of

the political content of the text; the author; the historical and socio-cultural
context of the work; and the cultural, political, and personal situation of the reader
in relationship to the text. These critics tend to focus on the overall themes of the
work as they relate to economic class, race, sex, and instances of oppression
and/or liberation. Author, critic and reader bias is explored.

4. Literary Criticism, Its Purpose and Usage

The term literary criticism refers directly to the ‘reasoned consideration’ of literary works
and their relatable issues. It encompasses all arguments about literature – whether or
not specific literary works are analyzed. The earliest form of literary criticism can be
seen in Plato’s warnings against the potentially detrimental effects of poetic inspiration
in his work, Republic.
More specifically, literary criticism includes what has been referred to as ‘practical
criticism’, or the interpretation of intended meanings and the overall judgement of
quality. Criticism at this level can be seen not only from an artistic vantage point, but
also from other viewpoints that might be relevant to students and others who study
literature in more depth than the traditional reader.
For example, bibliographical questions, historical knowledge, influential sources, and
even problems of method. For this reason, criticism is often considered to be in a
different category than conventional scholarship. That is where the separation ends,
however.  At the root of all criticism is informed outside knowledge.

Read also: Receive scholarship essay help to get high-quality papers.

Literary criticism depends on all phases of literary understanding, including keen

emphasis on the evaluation of the work itself and a strong understanding of the life and
times of the author.

Function of Literary Criticism

The overall functions of literary criticism are not easily compartmentalized. If someone
were to attempt to critique a literary work, they might find that they are doing a broad
spectrum of activities, ranging from book reviews to more in-depth theoretical
discussions of not only the book, but also the person who wrote the book and the
historical events that occurred during the time of original writing. Book reviews have the
potential to determine whether or not a book will be sold in mass quantities.
However, there are several famous books that have enjoyed great commercial success
despite receiving negative reviews – including one of the most famous works ever
written. Herman Melville’s Moby Dick (1851) did not receive glowing reviews from critics,
yet it has enjoyed tremendous success in both print and movie form for almost two
hundred years.
One of the guiding functions of literary criticism is to explore and express shifts in
sensibility that make it possible to revaluate books . In fact, the only requirement for a
new critique is that the original text survive over the years.

The literary critic sometimes finds that they must wear multiple hats, acting as a
pseudo-detective, uncovering, verifying and editing unknown manuscripts. Occasionally,
literary critics have the unique opportunity to introduce the public to literary works that
have either been forgotten or may not have generated a strong interest in previous
years.
The depth of the functions involved in a proper literary critique will determine the range
of publications the critique appears in. For example, literary criticisms that are published
in the daily press will seldom include detailed analysis and often have little more
information than a summary of the publishers claim for book interest.

Weekly or biweekly magazines will contain slightly more information, however, they are
often bias in their judgement and some magazines (such as the New York Review of
Books) prefer to publish reviews of more popular works. It is also possible to find
sustained criticism in monthly and quarterly publications, scholarly journals and books.
Given the role that critics play in demonstrating which written work should garner the
most respect from the public and in deciding what the work is ‘really’ about, literary
critics are often the target of resentment. Critics who are misinformed or malicious have
the capability to steamroll or discourage writers who have been struggling to enter new
realms of writing. Plodding critics can hinder new literature by diverting deserved
attention away from pivotal points in the work and reflecting on inessential maters.

Literary critics might even antagonize writers despite optimal performance of their work.
Those writers who possess minimal regard for literary critics aren’t less pleased when
they are told that their finished work might possess unintended meanings or when it is
viewed as incomplete.

What authors who believe that there is no need for literary criticism fail to recognize is
that their work, after publication, is ‘theirs’ only in the legal sense. The genuine ‘owners’
of the work, in the broad sense, is the public who will now be in a position to form their
own opinions regardless of what critics say or believe.

The responsibility of the critic is not to stroke the ego of the writer, but rather to compel
the public to become involved in the conversation and to develop their own standard of
judgement. A critic can be useful to the public because they focus on what the public
wants in literature or popular culture and what they stand to receive from literature and
popular culture.
Interestingly, despite the fact that literary critics are often the basis of the personal
opinions of the critics themselves, it is these reviews that help to create a thirst for art in
the public. It is the role of the critic to identify authentic talent in authors and to make
sure that the public has the opportunity to explore those talents.

That said, there are critics who feel strongly that literature must be discussed separately
from other matters, however many feel that social and political debates will augment
these conversations. Literature is known to be partisan, meaning that it will always, in
one way or another, bare connection to local circumstance and can call upon values
and affirmations – It is not surprising to hear that the best critics pay little attention to the
boundaries between criticism and other social conventions.

This is particularly true in modern European nations where literary criticism has held a
formative place in ongoing debates about political and cultural issues. What is Literature
(1947) by Sarte is a prime example of how literary ideals can relate to the development
of society and various freedoms.

Existing Forms of Literary Criticism

There are many different types of literary criticism, most focus on specific issues or
identities.

Here are a few examples:

 Moral Criticism, Dramatic Construction(-360 BC to Present Time)

 Formalism, New Criticism, Neo-Aristotelian Criticism (1930 to Present Time)
 Psychoanalytic Criticism, Jungian Criticism (1930 to Present Time)
 Marxist Criticism (1930 to Present Time)
 Reader-Response Criticism (1960 to Present Time)
 Structuralism / Semiotics (1920 to Present Time)
 New Historicism / Cultural Studies (1980 to Present Time)
 Post Colonial Criticism (1990 to Present Time)
 Feminist Criticism (1960 to Present Time)
 Gender or Queer Studies (1970 to Present Time)

Sociological Criticism: Similar to historical criticism, this type of critique explores the
written work in the cultural, economic, and political context in which it was originally
written. This might include things like the analysis of the social content of the written
work or the cultural, economic and / or political values expressed.

Reader-Response Criticism: This method of criticism aims to demonstrate what

occurs in the minds of readers while they interpret a specific piece of text. A reader-
response critic might attempt to investigate the impact that a specific text has on their
own thought process or beliefs or values. For instance, one might take into
consideration who a character appears to be likeable and for what reason. They might
also explore how their religion, culture or social values affect reading.

Gender Criticism: Here, critics explore how gender identity can influence the
development and understanding of a literary work. Gender studies were first seen
during the feminist movement, when literary critics began to explore the role of gender
in writing. Feminist critics look at how the gender of a writer might – knowingly or
unknowingly – influence their writing. These critics also explore how images of males
and females in literature relate to the social norms of gender in society.

Mythological Criticism: As the name suggests, this type of literary critique explores
universal patterns and draws upon insights from history, anthropology, psychology, and
religion to determine how an author might use myths and symbolism in the development
of their work. A central concept of this type of criticism is the archtype – a character,
situation or image that evokes a profound universal response.

Biographical Criticism: These types of critics will explore how details of the author’s
life might assist readers in developing a more thorough understanding of their writing. 
This is not to say that biographical critics concern themselves only with describing the
life and times of the author, but rather with interpreting the written work using keen
insights and examples extrapolated from their understanding of the author’s life.

Formalist Criticism: Formalist’s examine the written work as closely as possible, they
analyze each of the various elements as a way of interpretation.

Historical Development of Literary Criticism

Nearly all literary criticism was document from the 20th century onward. That said, the
questions first raised by Aristotle and Plato are still considered valid, and every single
critic who has ever attempted to justify the social value of literature has done so by first
having to come to terms with Plato’s argument in Republic.

Plato morality found poetry as a statement untrustworthy and believed that poetry could
never been seen as more than transcendent ideas. It was with this statement that we
was, in essence, saying that literature could only serve to move truth seekers away from
the truth. Plato credited the poet with inspiration, but insisted that this was a cause for
worry; ‘A man possess by such madness would subvert rational’ Because of this, poets
were to be banished from the hypothetical republic.

In Poetics, Aristotle countered Plato’s argument by stressing his views of what was
normal and helpful in literature. It was his argument that the poet was not inspired by
the divine, but was instead motivated by basic human desire to imitate the universe
around him. Imitation is perceived to have value for those who are empathetic to it.

Both Aristotle and Plato are seen as antagonists, but their inability to agree with each
other’s viewpoint is noteworthy. Both agree that poetry is imitative, both agree that it
evokes emotions in readers, and both feel that poetry gains justification from its service
to the public. Poets, in history, had power over others. Modern critics feel that poetry is
much more than a past-time , where Aristotle believes that it was not the social marvel
that it was made out to be.

Other notable periods of literary criticism include:

 The Medieval Period

 The Renaissance
 Neoclassicism and its decline
 Romanticism
 The late 19thCentury
 The 20thCentury

Some Important Terms in Literary Criticism

Allegory: A story in which the narrative or the characters carry an underlying

metaphorical, symbolic or ethical meaning.
Alliteration: The repetition of one or more consonants in a group of words or lines of
poetry
Ambiguity: A vagueness of meaning, a conscious lack of clarity.
Anachronism: A person, event or other element that fails to correspond with the era or
time the literary work is set in.
Analogy: A comparison that points out the similarities between to unlike objects.
Antithesis: A rhetorical opposition or contrast of ideas by means of an arrangement of
clauses, words or sentences.
Ballad: A narrative verse that tells a story that is sung.
Bathos: The use of insincere sentiments.
Burlesque: A literary work that is meant to bring ridicule to the subject
Caesura: A pause located in the middle of a verse, marked by punctuation.
Carpe Diem: Translate literally as meaning ‘seize the day.’
Catharsis: A cleansing of the spirit, brought on by pity and terror during tragedy.
Coming of Age Story: A story where a young protagonist experiences the introduction
to adulthood. The character will develop a firsthand understanding of education,
disillusionment, or some other experience that will alter their emotional maturity.