Home School Partners - CLEP - Analyzing & Interpreting Literature - Story Elements & Characters Flashcards
Setting
The time and place in which a story occurs.
Mood
The feeling or atmosphere the author creates with a story.
Tone
The author’s attitude toward the story.
Exposition
The author’s revealing information to the reader to help understand what’s going on.
Conflict (External)
A story character struggles with an outside force (another person, society, nature, technology, etc.).
Conflict (Internal)
A story character struggles with himself.
Climax
The most intense, suspenseful, or important part of the story.
Denouement
The final part of the story, where the plot wraps up and matters are explained or resolved.
Protagonist
The story’s main character.
Antagonist
Someone (or something) that engages in conflict with the story’s main character (the protagonist).
Foil
A character that contrasts with another character, and therefore highlights character qualities of the contrasting character.
Stock Character
A stereotypical, cliched character, like a jolly fat man, or a prissy old schoolteacher.
Tragic Hero
A good, noble character with a fatal flaw.
