Literary Terminology

Part 1 Literary Terms Part 2 Plot Part 3 Figures of Speech

Literary Terms

Antagonist

A character or group of characters who create conflict for the protagonist aka: The Bad Guy Not always the villain but simply one who opposes the main character EX: The Joker in “Batman”

Protagonist

One who has the conflict.

Usually the main character Batman

Character

Person, Animal, Creature that takes part in the action in the story Round Character: Main Character- One who plays an important role in the story Flat: One who does not play an important role in the story

Character Cont’d

Static: A character who doesn’t change throughout the story Dynamic: A character who changes in the course of the story.

Characterization

The act of creating a character Direct: the writer states the character’s traits

Characterization Cont’d

Indirect- character is revealed through one of the following… Words, thoughts, or actions Descriptions of the character's background or appearance What other characters say about the character The ways in which other characters react to the character

Conflict

Struggle between two foes Internal- Struggle the character faces against himself (Man vs Self) External- Struggle the character faces against an outside force (Man vs. Man, Man vs Nature, Man vs Supernatural) EX What type of conflicts does Rachel experience in “Eleven”?

Diction

A writer’s word choice, may be formal or informal, plain or ornate, common or technical, abstract or concrete

Foreshadow

Use of clues to suggest events that have yet to occur EX: It was a dark and stormy night…

Mood and Tone

Mood: feeling created in the reader by the literary work or passage, can be influenced by setting tone and/or events Tone: the attitude the author takes toward the writing

Point of View

The perspective from which a story is told 1 st person: the narrator’s knowledge is limited to 1 character EX: I, me, my, mine

Point of View Cont’d

3 rd person limited: narrator knows only one character’s thoughts and feelings EX: He, She, They, them 3 rd Person Omniscient: narrator knows more than one character’s thoughts and feelings.

EX: He, She, They, Them

Setting

Where the literary work takes place EX: The farm was a beautiful location to have the wedding. “The farm,” is the setting for the wedding

Theme

The BIG Idea, moral or lesson learned from a story EX: “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”

Main Idea

What the story is about.

Example: “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”

Dialect

The way a person talks or sounds due to their physical address or culture Example: Ye ate yet? Naw. Ye on ’ t to? Aw ’ ight.

Can you think of how your speech is different from others around the world?

Dialogue

In its widest sense, dialogue is simply conversation between people in a literary work; in its most restricted sense, it refers specifically to the speech of characters in a drama.

Syntax

The ordering of words into meaningful verbal patterns such as phrases, clauses, and sentences. Example: Emily Dickinson, for instance, writes about being surprised by a snake in her poem "A narrow Fellow in the Grass," and includes this line: "His notice sudden is." In addition to the alliterative hissing s- sounds here, Dickinson also effectively manipulates the line’s syntax so that the verb "is" appears unexpectedly at the end, making the snake’s hissing presence all the more "sudden."

Stereotype

To make a judgment about someone because of their looks, the people they hang out with, where they work, etc.

Example: People with tattoos are drug addicts.

Plot

Exposition

Introduces the characters, setting, and basic situation This part usually has the narrative hook

Rising Action

Introduces the conflict

Climax

The point of the highest tension or drama

Falling Action

Things finally settle down for the main character(s)

Resolution

The main conflict is resolved

The Basic Figures of Speech

Hyperbole

Obvious and intentional exaggeration.

Ex: She had to wait an eternity to get her drink.

Write a sentence using a hyperbole.

Euphemism

A mild word of phrase which substitutes for another which would be undesirable because it is too direct, unpleasant, or offensive.

Example: Saying "passed away" for "dying" or saying "time-honored" for "old” What does the Euphemism “between jobs” refer to?

Idiom

An expression whose meaning is not predictable.

Example: The old man kicked the bucket.

Write an example of an idiom you have heard.

Metaphor

Comparing two like things not using like or as.

The girl was a cheetah with tennis shoes.

Compare yourself to something not using like or as.

Onomatopoeia

Written sounds Bang! The car smashed into the wall.

Make an appropriate sound, without using your voice and then try to write it down.

Personification

Giving something non-human, human like characteristics.

The tree ’ s arms waved violently in the wind.

Think of something in nature and use personification to describe it.

Simile

Comparing two like things using like or as.

The boy was as smart as a brick wall.

Use a simile to describe yourself.

Symbol

A thing (could be an object, person, situation or action) which stands for something else EX: American Flag-Red, White, Blue, Stars What is something that Symbolizes you?

Irony

An outcome of events contrary to what was expected

Oxymoron

Two contrary words located side by side EX: Sweating like a pig…ummm pigs do not sweat. She’s pretty ugly. Let’s not be alone together.

What is an oxymoron you have heard?