Literary Terms and Elements of a Story
B Year
LITERARY TERMS
ALLITERATION
 Repetition of the same
consonant or sound at
the beginning of words
 Ex. “Peter Piper picked a
peck of pickled peppers.”
IMAGERY
ATMOSPHERE
language that evokes one or
all of the five senses
The mood the reader gets from the
setting, characters, and tone of
the author
Ex. “Once upon a midnight dreary”
[Edgar Allan Poe, from “The
Raven”]
Examples
sight: “The shadows where the Mewlips dwell
are dark”
smell: “Beside the rotting river stand”
sound: “And slow and softly rings their bell”
taste: “And the Mewlips feed”
touch: “The cellars where the Mewlips sit are
deep and dank and cold”
[J.R.R. Tolkien, from “The Mewlips”]
MOOD
The feeling a reader gets from the
descriptive details of the setting,
characters, and/or author’s
tone. This is similar to
atmosphere.
IMAGERY CAN CREATE
ATMOSPHERE/MOOD
CONTEXT CLUES
INFERENCE
A word, phrase, or passage
that helps to explain a
section of the text.
A conclusion that is made
based on context clues.
CONTEXT CLUES HELP YOU MAKE
INFERENCES
HYPERBOLE
Language utilizing an
extreme exaggeration.
Ex. “I have a ton of
homework.”
ONOMATOPOEIA
A word that
imitates the
sound it
represents.
“Woosh!”
“Bam!”
“Whizz!”
“Thump!”
“Crackle!”
“Pop!”
PERSONIFICATION
“The wind
whistled…”
“The boat hissed
through the water.”
“The tree waved…”
“The curtains
danced in the
breeze.”
“The doorbell
sang…”
When non-human subjects are given
human qualities
OXYMORON
Placing two contradictory
words together to
express meaning, such as
pretty ugly, deafening
silence, sweet sorrow
 Ex. “Parting is such sweet
sorrow” [William
Shakespeare, from Romeo
and Juliet]
SYMBOL
Using a concrete object
to mean more than its
literal meaning (usually
an abstract idea).
Ex. In A Raisin in the
Sun by Lorraine
Hansberry, Mama cares
for a struggling plant,
which represents the
struggles and hopes of
her family.
IRONY
The contrast between what is expected, or appears
to be, and what actually is.
 verbal irony: the contrast between what is said
and what is actually meant
 irony of situation: an occurrence that is the
opposite of what is expected or intended
 dramatic (or situational) irony: when the
audience or reader knows more than the
characters do
IRONY
SIMILE
A comparison of two
dissimilar things, using
“like” or “as”.
 Ex. “. . . the oriole nest in the
elms was untenanted and rocked
back and forth like an empty
cradle.” [James Hurst, from “The
Scarlet Ibis”]
METAPHOR
The comparison of two often
unlike things, saying that
one is the other.
 Ex. “The road was a ribbon of
moonlight over the purple moor”
[Alfred Noyes, from “The
Highwayman”]
SIMILE AND METAPHOR
FORESHADOWING
Hints or clues that suggest future
occurrences
Examples of Foreshadowing…
 Jaws music or other strange or creepy music
 Storm clouds
 Something along the lines of…
Sam wished he could rid himself of the sick feeling in his
gut that told him something terrible was going to
happen, and happen soon.
Show, Don’t Tell
A technique used by authors that
provide the necessary clues to
create an impression for the
reader. Rather than outright
saying what happens (“don’t
tell”), the author uses sensory
details and imagery (“show”).
*Use dialogue
*Use sensory language
*Be descriptive
*Be specific, not vague
Telling:
He sits on the couch holding his
guitar.
Showing:
His eyes are closed, and he’s cradling the
guitar in his arms like a baby. It’s as if
he’s trying to hold on to something ever
so gently because it means more than
anything to him.
Elements of a Story
The Six Elements
• SETTING
• PLOT
• CHARACTERS
• CONFLICT
• POINT OF VIEW
• THEME
SETTING
• The TIME and LOCATION in
which the story takes place.
Setting Continued…
• Sometimes it’s important
and sometimes it’s not.
Setting Continued…
• All of the following are included in
setting:
1. Place
2. Time
3. Weather
4. Social Conditions
5. Mood or Atmosphere
CHARACTERS
PROTAGONIST
ANTAGONIST
The main character. All The opposer of the main
major events in the story
character.
have some importance to
this character.
Ex. PROTAGONIST AND ANTAGONIST
CHARACTERS Continued
DYNAMIC
STATIC
term used to describe a
character who changes
during the course of the story
ROUND
term used to describe a
character who is fully
developed, showing both
negative and positive
character traits
term used to describe a
character who does not
change during the course of
the story
FLAT
term used to describe a
character who shows only
one trait
Ex. DYNAMIC AND STATIC CHARACTERS
Ex. FLAT AND ROUND CHARACTERS
Every Character Needs…
1. His/Her Physical Appearance
2. What he/she thinks, feels and dreams
3. What he/she does or does not do
4. What others say about him/her and how
others react to him/her
CHARACTERIZATION
The development of a character
throughout the text.
There are two types:
1.Indirect
2.Direct
Indirect Characterization
 Showing, not telling
 Ex: A boy wears expensive clothes, has lots
of friends, has a pretty girlfriend, shops at
pricey stores, is on the football team.
Direct Characterization
 Involves the author telling the reader what a
character is like
 Ex. The boy is cool.
POINT OF VIEW
THE ANGLE FROMWHICH THE
STORY IS BEING TOLD.
TYPES OF POINT OF VIEW
• First Person
-
Means that one of the characters is telling the
story.
(I, We, Us)
TYPES OF POINT OF VIEW
THIRD PERSON
(He, She, Them)
TYPE 1: OMNISCIENT
TYPE 2: LIMITED
TYPES OF POINT OF VIEW
Omniscient Third Person Narrator
Can tell the readers what any
character thinks and feels.
TYPES OF POINT OF VIEW
Limited Third Person Narrator Tells the
story through one character, and
reveals only that character’s
thoughts and feelings.
PLOT
MUST BE IN THIS ORDER!
1.Exposition
2.Rising Action
3.Climax
4.Falling Action
5.Resolution
1. EXPOSITION
Explains what happened before
the story started, the setting of
the story, and often introduces
the characters.
2. RISING ACTION
The central part of a story during
which various problems arise, and
it leads to the climax.
3. CLIMAX
*Main turning point of the action
in the story.
*Highest point of tension.
*Opposing forces battle it out.
*By the end of the climax you
should be able to predict the rest
of the story.
4. FALLING ACTION
Follows the climax or turning point
and wraps up all of the loose ends.
5. RESOLUTION
Your characters should return to a
new state of “normal”. It occurs at
the end of the story, during which
the problem is resolved.
CONFLICT
CONFLICT
• Without conflict there is NO
plot!
• It’s the opposition of forces
which ties one incident to
another and makes the plot
move.
Conflict Continued…
• There may be one struggle and
that’s it or there could be one
main struggle and several
minor struggles.
TYPES OF CONFLICT
CHARACTER VS. CHARACTER
When one character interferes
with another character.
CHARACTER VS. FATE/NATURE
Outside forces that the
character can’t control
interfere with a character.
CHARACTER VS. SOCIETY
The leading character struggles
against the ideas, practices, or
customs of a group of other
people.
CHARACTER VS. HIM/HERSELF
The leading character struggles with
himself/herself; with his/her own
soul, ideas of right or wrong, physical
limitations, choices, etc.
THEME
THEME
The controlling or central idea or lesson in a
piece of fiction. It is the author’s underlying
meaning or message that he/she is trying to
convey, which is often a universal concept.
EXAMPLES OF THEME
COPY DOWN THREE OF THE FOLLOWING:
Things are not always as they appear.
Love is blind.
Believe in yourself.
People are afraid of change.
Don’t judge a book by its cover.