LITERARY
TERMS TO
KNOW
EXAMPLES
Character
Protagonist: e.Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
Antagonists: i. Nag & Nagaina, king
cobras
Minor characters: l. Chua, a rat &
Coppersmith bird
Characterization
DIRECT:
f. Rikki-Tikki was a very curious mongoose.
INDIRECT:
g. Rikki put his nose into the ink on a writing table.
Climax
m. In “The Monkey’s Paw”, Mr. White sent his
dead son, Herbert, back to the grave with his
third & final wish.
Conflict
n. EXTERNAL: Rikki-Tikki and the cobras are
natural enemies and wish to kill each other.
p. INTERNAL: When Rikki sees the huge size of
Nag’s five-foot body slither into the
bathroom he is very frightened.
Figurative Lang.
r. This is the opposite of literal language and
makes writing more interesting to the reader.
Flashback
s. Rikki remembered what his mother had told
him about what to do if he ever came across
Englishmen.
Foreshadowing
In “Sweet” John had to stay after school every
Friday until he passed his spelling test; he
stayed after every Friday no matter how
much he studied.
t. In “The Landlady” Billy feels a strong pull into
the landlady’s house.
Hyperbole
v. After Rikki killed Nag, Rikki thought his own body
was broken into forty pieces from the battle.
Imagery
w. The dachsund’s skin was hard, cold, grayishblack, dry and perfectly preserved.
Irony
x. The landlady seemed terribly nice and looked
like a best friend’s mother welcoming one
into the house. She had a round pink face
and gentle blue eyes.
Metaphor
y. “I am death!” Karait, the dusty brown
snakeling said.
Mood
a. Dark and gloomy (the night the captain visits
the Whites)
Personification
b. The animals in the Indian garden speak, have
feelings, cry and chuckle in “RTT”
Plot
h.
• In “Sweet” John likes a girl, Gina Lucci
• He asks her to go steady, she agrees & he
buys her a gift
• John misspells a word on her card & GL
breaks up w/ him
• John still has his friend Sandy
Point of View
1st person - Z. John, in “Sweet” tells his story using
“I” – “Gina Lucci was my idea of the perfect
sixth-grade girl.”
o. 3rd Person Limited - In “The Landlady” the story
is told using “he” and we know what Billy is
thinking.
Omniscient –q.-In “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” the story is
told using “he” and we are told what all the
characters are thinking & feeling.
Setting
• J. A modest home in the English countryside,
around 1900
Simile
k. Billy thinks the landlady moves just like a
jack-in-the-box in her doorway.
Theme
c. Be careful what you wish for. (“The Monkey’s
Paw”)
e
Tone
d. Civilized, polite, proper, and welcoming in
“The Landlady”
Symbolism
u. Rikki’s red eyes represent his fierceness