Key Literary Devices with Definitions
1. Antagonist (noun): a person who actively opposes or is hostile to someone or something;
an adversary.
2. Allegory (noun): a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden
meaning, typically a moral or political one.
3. Anachronism (noun): a thing belonging or appropriate to a period other than that in which
it exists, especially a thing that is conspicuously old-fashioned.
4. Analysis (noun): detailed examination of the elements or structure of something.
5. Allusion (noun): an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it
explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.
6. Code-switching: The practice of alternating between two or more languages or varieties
of language in conversation.
7. Climax (noun): The most intense, exciting, or important point of a story; a culmination or
apex.
8. Colloquialism (noun): a word or phrase that is not formal or literary, typically one used in
ordinary or familiar conversation.
9. Diction: (1) the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing; (2) the style of
enunciation in speaking or singing.
10. Epigraph: A short quotation or saying at the beginning of a book or chapter, intended to
suggest a theme.
11. Falling Action: Falling action occurs right after the climax, when the main problem of the
story resolves. It is one of the elements of the plot of the story, the other elements being
exposition, rising action, climax, and resolution. Falling action wraps up the narrative,
resolves its loose ends, and leads toward the closure.
12. Flashbacks: a scene in a movie, novel, etc., set in a time earlier than the main story.
13. To foreshadow (verb): be a warning or indication of (a future event).
14. Genre (noun): a category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, characterized
by similarities in form, style, or subject matter.
15. Imagery: visually descriptive or figurative language, especially in a literary work
16. Juxtaposition: the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting
effect.
17. Metaphor: a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action
to which it is not literally applicable.
18. Motif- a distinctive feature or dominant idea in an artistic or literary composition
19. Plot: The main events of a play, novel, movie, or similar work.
20. Protagonist- the leading character or one of the major characters in a drama, movie,
novel, or other fictional text; the hero of a text.
21. Rising Action- Rising action in a plot is a series of relevant incidents that create suspense,
interest, and tension in a narrative.
22. Summary- a brief statement or account of the main points of something.
23. Symbolism-the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities.
24. Theme- the subject of a talk, a piece of writing, a person's thoughts, or an exhibition; a
topic
25. Tone-the general character or attitude of a place, piece of writing, situation, etc. The
emotional voice an author gives to a piece.