English Literature key terms

An expression of contempt for someone who does not share the speaker’s religion; Christian characters use it against Jewish characters in The Merchant of Venice.

Sexual unfaithfulness to a spouse or partner.

An interpretation supported by knowledge of the text and reasoned analysis, rather than an unsupported opinion or a general statement about feelings.

Tiny organisms found in water. Wells compares human beings to these microscopic creatures to challenge humanity’s belief in its importance.

Money or property received from someone after their death.

A ceremony marking entry into a community or a new stage of life, such as the transition from childhood to adulthood.

Unfair treatment or an outcome that fails to give someone what they deserve, such as punishing an innocent person.

An opening that begins in the middle of the action rather than explaining the events that led to it.

Language with a second meaning, often sexual, that creates humour or complicates an apparently innocent statement.

Discrimination embedded in the practices or structures of institutions, rather than only in an individual’s openly prejudiced behaviour.

Remaining faithful to moral principles, including when doing so is difficult or costly.

An additional payment charged for borrowing money.

Conflict between people from different generations, often arising from different expectations, experiences or values.

A person who acts between two parties, arranging communication or business. Whymper connects Napoleon with the human world.

A struggle within a character between competing feelings, duties or beliefs.

Prejudice against women that a person absorbs and may reproduce, including in their treatment of other women.

Absorbing prejudiced ideas about your own group and applying them to yourself.

Rhyming words within a line, rather than only at line endings.

A reasoned explanation of what a text means, supported by its language, events or other details.

A relationship between texts created through quotation, allusion or the reworking of another text.

Comparison that moves between texts throughout an argument, using each text to clarify the interpretation of the other.

Fear created by threats or displays of power to discourage resistance.

A storyteller who openly comments on events or characters and may address the reader directly.

Fiction imagining an enemy invasion, often exposing a country’s military vulnerability or complacency.

A change from the usual word order for emphasis or another effect. In ‘Speak I must’, Jane places the main verb before the subject, foregrounding her need to speak.

A shimmering appearance in which colours seem to change with the light or viewing angle.

A warship protected by iron armour. In the novel, the Thunder Child is an ironclad torpedo ram which charges the Martian fighting-machines.