Literary Terms

1. Literary Terms

2. Setting The time and place in which the events of a work of literature take place

3. Conflict a struggle or clash between opposing characters or opposing forces

4. Theme The truth about life revealed in a literary work expressed in a complete sentence

5. Point of view The vantage point from which a story is told --omniscient --third-person limited --first person

6. Foreshadowing The use of clues to suggest events that will happen later in the plot

7. Suspense the uncertainty or anxiety you feel about what will happen next in the story

8. Metaphor An imaginative comparison between two unlike things in which one thing is said to be another thing. Example: "Memory is a crazy woman that hoards colored rags and throws away food.”
~Austin O'Malley,

9. Mood The overall emotion created by a work of literature. Example: The children who sat at the kitchen table had smiles on their faces and birthday cake and ice cream in front of them. They laughed and squealed with delight.

10. Simile A comparison between two unlike things using a word such as like, as, than, or resembles. Example: "When he finished the apple, he smacked his lips together like a pair of cymbals."

11. Symbol a person, a place, a thing, or an event that has its own meaning and stands for something beyond itself as well. Example: The American flag

12. Character Terms

13. 1. Characterization • The process of revealing the personality of a character in his story. • What the character says • How the character looks • What the character thinks • What other characters say about the character • How the character acts • By telling you directly

14. The author directly states a character’s traits or makes direct comments about a character’s nature 2. Direct Characterization

15. When a writer reveals a character’s personality through the words of a character, description of a character’s looks and clothing, comments made about the character by another character in the story, or the character’s behavior 3. Indirect Characterization

16. A person or an animal in a story, play, or another literary work 4. Character

17. The main character in a work of literature who is involved in the central conflict 5. Protagonist

18. The character or force in conflict with the protagonist 6. Antagonist

19. A character who does not change throughout the work, and the reader’s knowledge of that character does not grow 7. Static Character

20. A character who undergoes some kind of change because of the action in the plot 8. Dynamic Character

21. Plot Terms

22. Plot A series of events that tell the story.

23. 11. Exposition The background information about the characters and the setting at the beginning of a story.

24. 13. Conflict A struggle or clash between opposing characters or opposing forces

25. A character’s struggle with an outside force which may be another character, society as a whole, or a natural force. 14. External conflict

26. A conflict that takes place within a character’s own mind. It is a struggle between opposing needs, desires, or emotions. 15. Internal Conflict

27. The turning point of the story. It is often the most intense moment either mentally or in action. Usually the main character comes face to face with the conflict. Something happens that reveals how the story will turn out 16. Climax

28. 17. Resolution The part of the plot that occurs after the climax and is where conflicts are resolved and loose ends are tied up.