Literary Elements

Literary Elements

Literary Devices of Fiction • Setting • Plot • Character • Conflict • Point of View • Theme • Mood • Dialogue • Rhetorical Devices • Flashback • Foreshadowing • Figurative Language • Sensory Details • Allusion

Setting (element) • The setting of a story is the time and place in which it occurs. • Elements of setting may include the physical, psychological, cultural, or historical background against which the story takes place.

Using the Five Senses Walsh Publishing Co. 2009 A good setting helps the reader visualize the places in the story. A good author includes descriptions of the setting using the five senses… SIGHT SMELL TASTE FEEL SOUND

Take a Look…Which is better? The castle was beside the water. OR… The waves crashed loudly against the shoreline. The fog lifted lightly and the medieval castle came into view. It was a beautiful site! The fog brushed my face and I could smell the smoke from the fire in the distance and taste the sea salt on my lips. Walsh Publishing Co. 2009

Your Turn… Walsh Publishing Co. 2009 On the next slide, there is a picture of a setting. In your own words, write a detailed description of the setting in your picture. Include many adjectives and don’t forget to include descriptions for each of the five senses: see, hear, feel, smell, taste Extension: Draw your own setting and then write about it. Extension: Your teacher will give you a magazine to look through. Find a picture that could be a setting for a story.

Mood (element) • The mood of a story is the atmosphere or feeling created by the writer and expressed through setting.

Tone Tone is a reflection of a writer’s or speaker’s attitude toward a subject of a poem, story, or other literary work. Tone may be communicated through words and details that express particular emotions and that evoke and emotional response from the reader. For example, word choice or phrasing may seem to convey respect, anger, lightheartedness, or sarcasm.

Style Style is the distinctive way in which an author uses language. Word choice, phrasing, sentence length, tone, dialogue, purpose, and attitude toward the audience and subject can all contribute to an author’s writing style.

Diction • Diction is the manner in which we express words; the wording used. • Diction = enunciation • Some easy examples are: Don’t say ‘goin’ – say ‘going’, Don’t say ‘wanna’ – say ‘want to’

Denotation The denotation of a word is its dictionary meaning, independent of other associations that the word may have.

Connotation The connotation of a word is the set of ideas associated with it in addition to its explicit meaning. The connotation of a word can be personal, based on individual experiences. More often, cultural connotations – those recognizable by most people in a group – determine a writer’s word choices.

Denotation versus Connotation Some examples – Cheap is “low in cost” (denotation) but “stingy” or “poorly made” are the connotations of cheap

Let’s use the word HOT The denotation (or dictionary definition – remember d in denotation = dictionary)of HOT is: having a temperature higher than that of a human body. However, when you say “Man! He/She is hot!”, are you saying “Man! He is having a temperature higher than that of a human body!”? No!! You are saying the CONNOTATION of HOT – which could mean a variety of things – man he/she is cute, attractive, beautiful, and many other meanings – those come from personal experiences and cultural meanings, etc.

The protagonist is the “good guy”

The antagonist is the “bad guy” or force

Characterization Characterization is the way in which an author shows the personality of a character Characterization is a technique writers use to make characters “come to life.” Walsh Publishing Co. 2009

Think about your favorite book, movie or TV character… How can you describe his/her appearance? What kind of personality does he/she have? What kinds of things does he/she like? Make a list of character traits for this character.

Characterization Characters are people or animals in a story. A writer can tell you directly about a character… (Freddy was very competitive) Or A writer can tell you indirectly about a character… (Two days before the game, Freddy gathered his teammates and laid out his plan. Then he looked at them and said, “We are going to win this one. No excuses.”)

Direct Characterization “The patient boy and the quiet girl were both well behaved and did not disobey their mother. Direct Characterizationtells the reader the personality of the character. Direct Characterization is obvious to the reader and “spells” it right out.

Indirect Characterization Indirect Characterizationshows things that reveal the personality of the character. Speech Thought Effect on Others Actions Looks The boy sat next to his sister as she poked him and teased him. He did not react. He carefully picked up her doll from the floor and placed it on her lap saying gently, “Here you go, why don’t you play with your doll?”

Indirect Characterization… ☻What does the character say? How does the character speak? ☻ What is revealed through the character’s private thoughts and feelings? ☻ What is the character’s effect on others? How do other characters feel or behave in reaction to the character? ☻ What does the character do? How does he/she behave? ☻ What does the character look like? Dress like?

Character TraitsCharacter Traits are descriptive adjectives that tell us specific qualities of a character

Character Motivation Character Motivation is the driving force behind why the character does what he/she does. (Reasons for character’s actions) What does the main character want more than anything else (main goal)? What do secondary characters want more than anything else (main goal)? What potential conflicts or struggles might exist between the characters?

Snow White: Character Motivation Character Motivation. Why does the queen’s heart turn against Snow White? Character Motivation. Why do the dwarfs allow Snow White to stay with them? Character Motivation. Why does the queen disguise herself as an old peddler woman? Character Motivation. Why does the queen give Snow White the poison apple?

Point of View • The point of view is the perspective from which the events in the story are told. The author may choose to use any of the following: • First Person • Second Person • Third Person Objective • Third Person Limited • Third Person Omniscient

First Person Point of View The narrator is one of the characters in the story. First person pronouns, such as I, me, my, and mine are used in telling the story. Since the narrator is a character in the story, he/she may not be completely reliable. We find out only what this character knows, thinks, and witnesses.

Second Person Point of View Second person pronouns such as you, your, and yours are used. Most stories are not told in second person. It is reserved for items of personal address, such as letters.

Third Person Objective The narrator is not a character in the story. Third person pronouns such as he, his, she, hers, it, its, they, and them are used in telling the story. The narrator is an observer who can only tell what is said and done. The narrator cannot see into the minds of any of the characters. We find out only what the characters say and do.

Third Person Limited The narrator is not a character in the story. Third person pronouns such as he, his, she, hers, it, its, they, and them are used in telling the story. The narrator tells the story from the vantage point of one character. The narrator can see into this character’s mind, but not any of the other characters. We find out only what this character does, knows, thinks, and witnesses.

Third Person Omniscient The narrator is not a character in the story. Third person pronouns such as he, his, she, hers, it, its, they, and them are used in telling the story. The narrator is all-knowing, and can see into the minds of all of the characters. The narrator can also report what is said and done. We find out what all of the characters do, feel, think, and witness.

Plot (element) • Plot is the basic sequence of events in a story. In conventional stories, plot has three main parts: rising action, climax, and falling action. In most novels, dramas, short stories, and narrative poems, the plot involves both characters and a central conflict.

PLOTLINE Climax Rising Action Falling Action Resolution Exposition Conflict Introduced

Exposition The Exposition is the introduction. It is the background information, which prepares for the next step in the story. It is the part of the work that introduces the characters, setting, and basic situation.

Rising Action Rising Action is the part of the plot that begins to occur as soon as the conflict is introduced. The rising action develops the major conflict in the story and increases reader interest.

Climax The Climax is the point of greatest emotional intensity, interest, or suspense in the plot of a narrative. The climax typically comes at the turning point in a story or drama.

Falling Action Falling Action is the action that typically follows the climax and reveals its results.

Resolution The Resolution is the part of the plot that concludes the falling action by revealing or suggesting the outcome of the conflict. It is the final outcome of the conflict.

Conflict (element) • Conflict is the struggle between opposing forces in a story or play. There are two types of conflict that exist in literature.

External Conflict External conflict exists when a character struggles against some outside force, such as another character, nature, society, or fate. Man vs. Man Man vs. Nature

Internal Conflict Internal conflict exists within the mind of a character who is torn between different courses of action. Man vs. Himself

Flashback A flashback is a literary device in which an earlier episode, conversation, or event is inserted into the sequence of events. Often flashbacks are presented as a memory of the narrator or of another character.

Flashback continued… The movie Titanic is told almost entirely in a flashback. What are some other films that contain flashback to help tell stories? Holes Willy Wonka Think of some more…

Theme (element) • The theme is the central or universal idea of a piece of fiction. • An implicit theme refers to the author’s ability to construct a piece in such a way that through inference the reader understands the theme.

Theme • The theme is also the main idea of a nonfiction essay. • An explicit theme refers to when the author overtly states the theme somewhere in the work.

Rhetorical Device (technique) • A technique that an author or speaker uses to evoke an emotional response (e.g., analogy, simile, metaphor) in order to influence or persuade his audience.

Irony (technique) • Irony– the use of words to express something other than, and especially the opposite of, the literal meaning • Situational irony—a literary technique for implying, through plot or character, that the actual situation is quite different from that presented

Imagery and Dialogue • The use of language to create mental images and sensory impressions. Imagery can be used for emotional effect and to intensify the impact on the reader. • The lines spoken between character in fiction or a play. Imagery Dialogue

Figurative Language (technique)

Literary Elements