English Literature key terms

Questioning a witness to test the accuracy or reliability of their evidence.

Having ribbons tied across the legs to hold stockings up. Malvolio adopts this appearance because Maria’s forged letter instructs him to do so.

Wearing garters crossed around the legs to secure stockings; Malvolio adopts this appearance because Maria’s forged letter instructs him to.

A man whose wife is sexually unfaithful to him; horns were a conventional symbol of this humiliation.

A husband's position when his wife is sexually unfaithful. Horns were a conventional comic symbol of this feared humiliation.

An organised campaign of praise that presents a leader as exceptionally wise, powerful or benevolent.

The destruction of a community’s traditions, art, language, memories and ways of life.

Traditions, beliefs, histories and practices inherited from earlier generations.

A person’s sense of who they are in relation to cultural traditions, communities and experiences.

In Envy, the nurturing and development of a person’s abilities, like the cultivation of a plant.

A clergyman serving a parish; Feste impersonates one when he performs as Sir Topas.

A repeating pattern in which retaliation for one injury produces another injury and a further desire to retaliate.

A pattern in which the ending returns to conditions or images resembling those at the beginning.

An attitude of distrust towards people’s motives or promises, often expecting selfishness or disappointment.

A metrical unit consisting of one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables, creating a falling, three-syllable rhythm.

A metrical pattern in which a stressed syllable is followed by two unstressed syllables, creating a triple rhythm.

James VI of Scotland’s 1597 book defending belief in witchcraft and discussing its dangers.

A conventional character who is endangered and needs rescuing. Mary partly occupies this role, although her courage and practical judgement complicate it.

A person who dresses with unusually elaborate attention to fashion and appearance.

A character who reflects another character’s troubling impulses or possible darker self. Orlick can be interpreted as Pip’s dark double.

A room with controlled lighting used to develop photographic film and prints using chemicals.

Punishment by execution. It is also called capital punishment.

An obligation to someone who has provided help; in literature, debt can be financial, emotional or both.

A person who owes money to someone else.

Moral or cultural decline, often associated with excessive comfort and self-indulgence.

A deliberate attempt to make someone believe something false, through words, behaviour or misleading evidence.

A statement that presents something as a fact, even when the audience has reasons to doubt it.