Literary Terms
Short Story
 a relatively brief,
fictional narrative
written in prose. It
became a true literary
form in the 19th century
under the direction of
Edgar Allan Poe and
others. To understand
its elements and those of
novels, you must be able
to understand and apply
literary terms.
Novel
 fictional prose
narrative usually
consisting of more
than fifty thousand
words. In general, the
novel uses the same
basic literary elements
as the short story (plot,
character, setting,
theme, and point of
view) but develops them
more fully. Many novels
contain several subplots.
Essential Question
 How are the elements of a plot diagram
related to and support the story line?
Plot
series of related events that make up a story. Consists of the
following:
Exposition:
Rising Action:
Climax:
Falling Action:
Resolution:
Denouement:
the beginning; gives information about
the characters and their problems or
conflicts
the main events and complications
leading to the climax
moment of greatest emotional
intensity or suspense; marks the moment
the conflict is decided one way or another
the main events and complications
leading to the resolution
the way the conflict is resolved
(French—literal translation: tying up loose
ends) the story’s ending; may be the
resolution
Plot Chart
Setting
 the time and place
of a story. Often
contributes to the
atmosphere, conflict,
or characterization.
Character
 person (usu.) in a
story
 Protagonist:
the main character.
Most often round and
dynamic. Usu. the
hero.
 Antagonist:
the character or
force that blocks
the protagonist.
Often the villain.
 Static Character:
one who does not
change much
during the course
of the story
 Dynamic Character:
one who changes
as a result of the
story’s events
 Flat Character:
a character with no
depth. Has only 1 or 2
traits that can be
described in a few
words.
 Round Character:
a character who is
much like a real
person. Has many
different character traits,
which sometimes
contradict one another.
 Subordinate/ Stock
Character:
often static or flat
characters. May
play important roles
but do not serve as
the main characters
 Foil:
character who is
used as a contrast
to another
character to
accentuate the
distinct qualities of
the two characters
Essential Question
 How can inferencing help us to more
accurately understand direct and indirect
characterization?
Inferences
 Use observations and background to
reach a logical conclusion
 an author will not include all the information for
us.
 read between the lines and reach conclusions
about the text.
 You become an active reader
 EX- You see someone eating a new
food and he or she makes a face, then
you infer he does not like it.
Characterization
 process of
revealing the
personality of a
character
Direct Characterization:
 the author tells us
directly what a
character is like
Indirect Characterization:
reader decides what a
character is like based on
the evidence provided by
the author
 what the character says
 how the character looks
and dresses
 what the character thinks
and feels
 what other characters
think or say about them
 what the character does
Foreshadowing
 the use of clues to
hint at events that
will occur later
 build suspense and
anxiety
 uncertainty a reader
feels about what will
happen next in a
story
Theme
 central idea the
author wishes
to reveal about
the subject of a
piece of
literature.
 May or may not
be a moral or
lesson
 not usually
directly stated
Essential Question
 How can an author use tone, mood and
conflict to create a scary, creepy or
suspenseful story?
Mood
 a story’s
atmosphere
 the feeling it evokes
in the reader
Tone
 attitude a writer
takes toward a
subject, a
character, or the
audience;
 conveyed through
the writer’s choice of
words and details
 often confused with
mood
I think that more humans should
be aware of the trials and
tribulations of us fish. Finding
Nemo deserves more
recognition…
Conflict
 struggle, clash, or
problem between
opposing
characters or
opposing forces
External Conflict:
 character struggles
against an outside
force
 person vs. person
 person vs. society
 person vs. nature
Internal Conflict:
 takes place entirely
within the character’s
own mind.
 A struggle between
opposing needs, desires
or emotions
 person vs. him- or
herself
Point of View
 vantage point from
which the author
tells a story
Essential Question:
How does different
points of view reveal
characterization?
First Person:


one of the
characters is telling
the story using the
pronoun I.
 know and observe
only what this
character observes.
Narrator
…so when I was
eighteen, I went to visit
this fortune teller who
told me I would meet a
stranger on the subway
and…
 the voice telling a
story
Third-person Omniscient:
 “all-knowing” and “allseeing” narrator is
NOT a character in the
story.
 Almost like a god telling
the story as they know
past, present, and future
 can tell us what any
character is thinking or
feeling at any time
Third-person Limited:
 the narrator, who is
not a character in
the story
 zooms in on the
thoughts and feelings
of just one character.
Allusion
 reference to a
statement, a person,
a place, or an event
from literature,
history, religion,
mythology, politics,
sports, science or
pop culture
Dialect
Y’all are comin’ to my dance recital,
ain’t ya?
 way of speaking
that is
characteristic of a
particular region or
group of people
Dialogue
 the conversation
between
characters. An
important factor in
characterization and
in moving the plot
forward.
Do you know
the muffin
man, the
muffin man,
the muffin
man who lives
on Drury
Lane?
Yes, I know
the muffin
man, the
muffin
man, the
muffin man
who lives
on Drury
Lane.
Flashback
 scene that
interrupts the
present action of
the plot to flash
backward and tell
what happened at
an earlier time
Irony
 contrast between
expectation and
reality
Miss me?
 Verbal Irony:
contrast between
what is said and
what is really meant
 Situational Irony:
contrast between
what is expected to
happen and what
really happens
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 Dramatic Irony:
contrast between
what the audience
knows to be true
and what a
character knows
Style
 the particular way
in which a writer
uses language;
created mainly
through word choice
(diction) and use of
figurative language
and sentence
patterns
Yo, Dudes. Check out my
shades and the cool stripes
on my tail. Now that’s
style !
Symbol
 person, place,
thing, or event that
stands for itself and
for something
beyond itself as
well
Voice
CYAL8R
^5
;^)
 the writer’s or
speaker’s
distinctive use of
language in a piece
of writing; created
by a writer’s tone and
word choice