Entertainment / Literature Glossary

Hell Mouth: Students should distinguish between the medieval and Renaissance meanings of hell mouth. (1) In medieval art, the hell mouth was a stylized painting in which the entry to hell resembles a ga . . . View Full Definition

Hellenic: In linguistics, the branch of Indo-European including classical and modern Greek.

Hemingway Code: Hemingway's protagonists are usually 'Hemingway Code Heroes,' i.e., figures who try to follow a hyper-masculine moral code and make sense of the world through those beliefs. Hemingway himsel . . . View Full Definition

Hendiadys: As Arthur Quinn defines the term in Figures of Speech, hendiadys is a peculiar type of polysyndeton involving 'the combination of addition, substitution, and usually arrangement, the additio . . . View Full Definition

Hengwrt Manuscript: (pronounced 'HENG-urt') One of the most important manuscripts of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, along with the Ellesmere text. The official designation of this book is Peniarth MS 392 D, but it . . . View Full Definition

Henotheist: The worship of one god without denying the existence of other gods or spiritual powers, as opposed to monotheism (the belief in and worship of one god), dualism (the belief that one good and . . . View Full Definition

Heptameter: A line consisting of seven metrical feet. Also called septenary.

Heptarchy: The seven territories or kingdoms making up Anglo-Saxon England--Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Kent, Essex, Sussex, and Wessex.

Heraldry: The study of coats-of-arms and aristocratic insignia, or the creation of such items according to medieval custom. In late medieval times, court officers called heralds were responsible for a . . . View Full Definition

Heresy: (from Greek, 'choice') A 'mistaken' or heterodox religious belief, i.e., one that does not agree with traditional teachings of the Roman Catholic church. In Middle English writings, heresy i . . . View Full Definition

Heriot: (Anglo-Saxon here + geatwe, 'army-gear') Heriot has two different meanings, depending upon whether we speak of the early Anglo-Saxon period or the later part of the medieval period. (1) In i . . . View Full Definition

Herm: (plural herma or hermai) In Greco-Roman archeology, a herm is a stone, bronze, or terracotta marker--originally placed at cross-roads or at estate and territorial boundaries, though in class . . . View Full Definition

Heroic Age Of Greece: Also known as the Homeric Age, this is the period of time between 1200-800 BCE. The term is normally used as a contrast with the Golden Age of Greece--the fifth century BCE when Athens was a . . . View Full Definition

Heroic Couplet: Two successive rhyming lines of iambic pentameter. The second line is usually end-stopped. It was common practice to string long sequences of heroic couplets together in a pattern of aa, bb, . . . View Full Definition

Heroicomical: A humorous poem taking the conventions of heroic Greek literature and using them to comic effect. Most mock epics are heroicomical in nature, such as Pope's Rape of the Lock, which abounds i . . . View Full Definition

Hexameter: A line consisting of six metrical feet. Very common in Greek and Latin literature, less common in English. See meter.

High Comedy: Elegant comedies characterized by witty banter and sophisticated dialogue rather than the slapstick physicality and blundering common to low comedy.

High Vowel: Any vowel sound made with the jaw almost shut and the tongue elevated near the roof of the oral cavity.

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