aesthetic Concerning beauty and
the appreciation of beauty; as a noun,
used to denote the set of principles
and ideas that define an artistic
movement (“a classical aesthetic”).Aestheticism A movement, originating
in the late 19th century in England,
which valued “art for art’s sake,” and
rejected the idea that art or literature
should offer a moral message or social
purpose. Leading proponents included
playwright Oscar Wilde, artist James
Whistler, and poet and artist Dante
Gabriel Rossetti.alexandrine A poetic line consisting
of 12 syllables split into six iambic feet
(an unstressed syllable followed by a
stressed syllable).allegory A work of art or literature
that contains a veiled meaning or
message, often conveyed symbolically.
For example, a tale about squabbling
farmyard animals can be an allegory
for a country’s corrupt political leaders.alliteration The use of several words
in a row or close together that begin
with the same consonant or sound,
often for deliberate poetic effect.antihero The protagonist of a
literary work who embodies a
noticeably different moral code from
the conventional (or role model) hero,
because they are either unheroic or
actively villainous.antinovel A term coined by the
mid-20th century existentialist
philosopher and writer Jean-Paul
Sartre to refer to a novel in which
the conventions of the form are
deliberately ignored or subverted.
A key development of postmodern
literature, an antinovel may have some
features in common with metafiction.ballad A form of popular verse that
narrates a story, often set to music,
and widespread throughout Europe
from the Middle Ages until the early
19th century.Bildungsroman A “novel of
formation” that tells of the early
struggles and emotional education of
a young protagonist, who grows and
matures during the process. The genre
originated in Germany in the late 18th
century. Many Bildungsromans are
regarded as partly autobiographical.Byronic hero A hero having the
qualities for which the English
Romantic poet Lord Byron was
famed, including rebelliousness,
passion, defiance, contempt for
conventional morality, and possibly
an appetite for self-destruction.canto From the Italian meaning
“song,” a section of a long (or especially
epic) poem, comparable to a chapter in
a novel or long work of nonfiction.chanson de geste A form of epic
poem of the 11th to 13th centuries that
incorporates legends about historical
figures such as Charlemagne, and
which was sung or recited at court.
Often considered to be the beginning
of French literature. The term is from
the Old French, “song of heroic deeds.”classic In its literary sense, a work
widely accepted as being of lasting
value and worthy of study.comedy One of the two types of
drama created in ancient Greece (the
other being tragedy), whose purpose
is laughter, entertainment, and satire.
In contrast to tragedy, comedy tends to
have a happy ending and to deal with
ordinary people and with the mundane
aspects of life.conceit An elaborate or unlikely
metaphor, especially popular in
Elizabethan poetry, comparing two
things that are not obviously similar.
English poet John Donne famously
compares parting lovers to the arms of
a compass, apart but still connected.couplet Two successive lines of verse
that go together, often rhyming. When
occurring at the conclusion of a poem
(such as a Shakespearean sonnet), it
can form a summing-up of the poem’s
sentiment or message.drama A work intended to be acted
out on a stage before an audience,
originating in Athens in the 6th and
5th centuries bce. The main genres
were originally tragedy and comedy.
The term comes from the Greek word
meaning “action.”dystopia The opposite of utopia: a
vision (usually in novel form) of a
future in which society is dominated
by a totalitarian state, or has broken
down, often through environmental
disaster or war. Life in a dystopia
usually involves fear and hardship.epic poem A long narrative poem,
detailing the adventures of a historic
or legendary hero. Epic poems are the
oldest literary texts in the world, and
probably originated in an oral tradition.epistolary novel A type of novel
popular in 18th-century European
literature in which the narrative
is told entirely via letters or other
documents written by the characters.existentialism A theory of philosophy
that emerged in Europe in the late 19th
century, focusing on the individual’s
experience of the world and the
importance of individual agency and
responsibility. Existentialist literatureGLOSSARY
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