Glossary of important terms
(Fall, 2012 World Literature )

Allegory: A form of extended metaphor in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative are equated with meanings that lie outside of the narrative itself. There is a surface level story line, against which the author expects the reader to recognize a second, deeper level of meaning. which may be moral, psychological, religious, philosophical or political. Characters in allegory are usually personifications of abstract qualities. (Example: In Naguib Mahfouz's "Zaabalawi," Sheikh Qamar represents materialism, Sheikh Gad aesthetics that are directed towards the divine. Other characters bear similar allegorical interpretations. And the story itself is an allegory for the condition of modern Egypt.) See definition. An example of allegory in visual art.

Leitmotif or verbal leitmotif. This would be a recurrent set of verbal cues associated with a particular person, thing, action, or state of being. See the definition in the anthology on the right-hand column of page 86 toward the top. Some of the uses in "Death in Venice include the "red-headed stranger" and the clenched vs the relaxed fist.

Metanarrative:Difficult to explain. Here is one definition. Also, (copied from the free encyclopedia): "Metanarratives are not usually told outright, but are reinforced by other more specific narratives told within the culture. Examples of metanarratives might include the story of the emerging utopian society (which is thought to reinforce Marxism and various religions), the story of the evil empire (which is thought to reinforce war and anti-Communism), and the story of the monster hidden among us (which is thought to reinforce such things as McCarthyism, Nazism, racism, and anti-witchcraft)." One might also think of the idea of salvation in the afterworld followed by a "good and noble" life on earth to be a fundamental metanarrative. Mostly discussed in postmodernism.

Modernism: Belief that through an arduous process of making/understanding "art" one can discover full humanity and even a kind of divinity. In language, one comes (through process) to acknowledge the spiritual, natural and human. In doing so, arrives at an authentic and autonomous "self."

Objective Correlative: This is a theory of literature developed by Eliot that positis that the writer may, by using the right combination of images, objects, and descriptions, evoke an emotion in the reader. One way we might understand this is to read the third stanza of "Prufrock," and letting the "yellow fog" with the corners of the evenings and the drains and chimneys to give an emotion of urban ennui and lassitude. One argument against this might be that not all people have their emotions triggered by the same "formula," and that people may have widely varying emoitions triggered by the same group of images, objects, etc.

Orientalism: This is a term introduced by the Palestinian cultural critic Edward Said in his book Orientalism published in 1978. He refers to the historical and ideological process whereby false images of and myths about the Eastern or “oriental” world have been constructed in various western discourses. They usually involve a denigrating fiction ( the deceptive inscrutability, superstitious practices, and loose sex of the Arab, for instance). Systematic stereotyping of the orient facilitates the colonization of vast areas of the globe by the Europeans. A link to orientalism.

Parody: Parody is a literary work which imitates another, ususally serious, piece, and is designed to ridicule the original work, style, or author.

Postmodernism. Skeptical about the power of language (either through disillusionment (cynicism) or the understanding of the potential for language to be wielded as a destructive force (deconstruction?)) Substitute play, montage, the leveling of high and low culture, indeterminacy, breakdown of "the forth wall" and verisimilitude, pointing to subjective authorial presence, audience presence, etc.

Prologue: Primarily, an introduction. Most often associated with drama (a speaker comes on before the play to get the audience up to date on events within which the action of the play is enmeshed). In The Thousand and One Nights, we begin with a prologue which is also the expalnation of the frame narrative.

Satire: Satire is a work that blends a critical attitude with humor and wit for improving institutions and humanity. In its positive direction, it attempts to inspire an improvement in society rather than just tear down with criticism.