Animal Farm Literary Terms to Know

Allegory A story in which the characters and events are symbols that stand for ideas about human life or for political or historical situations. Animal Farm is an allegory for the Russian Revolution.

Allusion A reference to a famous person, place, thing, or event from history, mythology, literature, the Bible, etc.

Dramatic Irony W hen the audience knows more than a character does.

Credibility T he quality of being believable. When you are truthful and can support your opinion or ideas, you gain credibility.

Dystopia T he opposite of a Utopia (an ideal place). It is an imagined place where everything is unpleasant or bad. Typically, it is due to environment or totalitarian government

Propaganda Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view.

Rhetoric The art of effective persuasive speaking or writing.

Ethos The persuasive appeal based on the character or credibility of the speaker, narrator, or image.

Logos The persuasive appeal that uses logic through facts, figures, and data.

Pathos The most powerful persuasive appeal, pathos appeals to the audience’s emotions.

Pseudonym A fictitious name, esp. that of an author.

Fable A short story featuring non-human characters who have been personified, and ends with a moral lesson.

Satire The use of humor, irony, or exaggeration to ridicule or criticize people’s weaknesses or vices, esp. about political and social issues.