British Literature — Metaphysical conceit, Modernism wrote (extended) Glossary

A narrative in which characters, events, and settings represent abstract ideas or moral qualities, conveying a deeper meaning beyond the literal story.

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in closely placed words, used extensively in Old English poetry such as Beowulf.

English literature of the early to mid-18th century, inspired by classical Roman writers and emphasizing wit, reason, and satirical commentary.

A novel focused on the psychological and moral growth of a protagonist from youth to adulthood.

Unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter, the standard verse form of Shakespeare's plays and Milton's epic poetry.

The body of works considered most important and representative of a literary tradition, often debated and revised over time.

An extended and elaborate metaphor, especially the 'metaphysical conceit' used by poets like John Donne to compare seemingly unrelated things.

Two successive lines of verse that rhyme with each other, often used as a concluding unit in sonnets and as the basis of heroic couplets.

A poem in which a single speaker addresses a silent listener, revealing character and situation. Perfected by Robert Browning in poems like 'My Last Duchess.'

A poem of mourning or serious reflection, often written in memory of the dead. Examples include Tennyson's In Memoriam and Gray's 'Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard.'

A novel written as a series of letters between characters. Samuel Richardson's Pamela (1740) is a landmark example in British literature.

A narrative technique blending a character's voice with the narrator's, allowing access to inner thoughts without direct quotation. Used extensively by Jane Austen.

A genre of fiction combining horror, mystery, romance, and the supernatural, originating with Horace Walpole's The Castle of Otranto (1764).

A pair of rhyming lines in iambic pentameter, the dominant verse form of 18th-century English poetry, mastered by Pope and Dryden.

A metrical pattern consisting of five iambs (an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable) per line, the most common meter in English verse.

Short, musical poetry expressing personal emotions or thoughts, as opposed to narrative or dramatic poetry.

A 17th-century style of poetry characterized by intellectual wit, paradox, and elaborate conceits, associated with John Donne and George Herbert.

An early 20th-century literary movement that broke with traditional forms, using fragmentation, stream of consciousness, and experimental techniques.

A formal lyric poem, often elaborate in structure, addressing a serious subject. Keats's odes ('Ode to a Nightingale,' 'Ode on a Grecian Urn') are among the finest in English.

A literary form idealizing rural life and nature, with shepherds as central figures. Used from Spenser through the Romantic poets.

A form of prose fiction depicting the adventures of a roguish protagonist through a series of episodic encounters. Henry Fielding's Tom Jones is a British example.

A late 18th- to early 19th-century movement emphasizing emotion, imagination, nature, and individualism over Enlightenment rationalism.

The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize human folly or vice, especially in politics and society.

A 14-line poem in iambic pentameter, following either the Petrarchan (octave-sestet) or Shakespearean (three quatrains and a couplet) rhyme scheme.

A narrative technique presenting the continuous flow of a character's thoughts and feelings, pioneered in British literature by Virginia Woolf and Dorothy Richardson.