Chapter 5: Analyzing and Interpreting Literary Texts Flashcards
Literary Forms
Drama
Fiction
Nonfiction
Drama examples
Comedies
Tragedies
Fiction examples
Short stories,
Novels
Novellas
Vignettes
Nonfiction examples
Biography
Autobiography
Journal/Diary
Comedies
Written to show people in their humans state, restrained and made ridiculous by their limitations and animal nature.
Tragedies
The death or destruction of a fictional or historical hero typifies this dramatic form.
Short Stories
Written as a narrative, this form is often more focused than other forms of fiction, like the novel.
Novel
A long form of fiction whose origins stem from medieval romances.
Novellas
A form of fiction that is shorter than a novel but longer than a vignette. Novellas are sometimes serialized as exemplified by The Arabian Nights.
Vignette
A form of fiction that creates an impressionistic scene that focuses on one moment or gives an impression about a setting, idea, or character.
Biography
An account of an individual’s life.
Autobiography
A first-person account of the author’s life.
Journal/Diary
First-person account of events in an author’s daily life as they occur, often including personal introspection and thoughtful commentary.
Rhetorical and Literary Devices and Techniques
Tools that authors use to express ideas through language in the creation of literary works.
Also provide conceptual framework for comparing individual literary works to others, within and across genres.
Rhetorical Devices and Techniques
Analogy Euphemism Metaphor Simile Rhetorical questions Oxymoron
Analogy
A comparison that reveals relationships that creates understanding for the reader.
Euphemism
A substitution with an agreeable or less offensive expression in place of one that may offend.
Metaphor
A figure of speech that makes a connection between two things taht are basically unalike but have something in common.
Simile
A figure of speech that compares two things that are basically unlike yet have something in common. It is different from a metaphor in that the simile is stated using the words “like” or “as”.
Rhetorical Questions
A figure of speech in the form of a question that is posed for its persuasive effect without the expectation of a reply. Encourage the listener to think about what the obvious answer might be. This device is used for the writer for assertion or denial.
Oxymoron
Involves pairing words that have opposite or contradictory meanings, such as “wise fool” or “brave fear”
Literary Devices and Techniques
Symbolism Suspense Foreshadowing Imagery Paradox Soliloquy
Symbolism
The writer integrates symbols to create deeper understanding and meaning. A symbol is a person, place, object, or activity that stands for something beyond itself.
Suspense
The tension or excitement readers feel as they are drawn into a story or become increasingly eager to learn the outcome of the plot.
Foreshadowing
Technique that offers clues to the readers about upcoming events.
Imagery
Refers to the words and phrases that create vivid sensory experiences for the reader.
Paradox
A statement or figure of speech that seems to contradict itself but in fact, reveals some element of truth.
Soliloquy
Used in drama, this literary device allows a character to reveal thoughts and feelings without directly addressing other characters.
Points of view
First Third-person Omniscient Limited Unreliable narrator
Tone
(Writers attitude toward a subject) Casual Formal Optimistic Pessimistic
Mood
(The atmosphere that the write creates) Anxious Comic Festive Mournful Ominous Romantic
Voice
The particular style of an individual author.
Considered a combination of a writer’s word choice, tone and voice across several works.
Ex: Flannery O’Connor is noted for her chatty and conversational voice in her writing
First Person
The narration is told by one character and uses first person pronouns like “I” and “me”
Third Person Limited
The reader experiences the narration through the senses and thoughts of one character and the use of third person pronouns “he” “she” “it”
Third Person Omniscient
The reader experiences a narrator who is all knowing and is privy to the thoughts and actions of all the characters in the story.
Structural Elements of Literary Prose
Exposition Complication Rising Action Crisis Climax Resolution/Denouement
Exposition
Establishes the setting or atmosphere.
Complication
Onset of major conflict
Rising Action
Events that lead to the climax
Crisis
Point of greatest tension
Climax
The turning point of the story
Resolution/Denouement
The “untying” of events
Types of conflict
Internal
1)Character vs Self
External
1) Character vs character
2) character vs society
3) character vs nature
4) character vs fate
Plot
Authors use flashbacks, foreshadowing, and suspense - as well as subplots and parallel plots - to vary the structure and tempo of a narrative.
Setting
Includes the time and place that is set for a narrative text. Setting can also include the social and moral environment that contributes to the background. Setting is one of the main elements of literature and plays an important role in what happens in the narrative and why.
Characterization
Characters are the people who participate in the action of a literary work. Main characters, minor characters.
Characters are developed through description, their actions, and commentary provided by other characters.
Round or flat.
Round characters are multidimensional that often undergo a change during the course of the narrative. Also referred to as “dynamic”.
Flat characters also referred to as “static” lack dimension and are largely unchanged in a narration.
