Literary Devices and Elements

Question 1

What is characterization?

Answer 1

process or act of creating, developing, or revealing the personality of a person/character in a story.

Question 2

Theme

Answer 2

central idea, message,or insight into life revealed through the story.

Question 3

protagonist

Answer 3

main or most important character in the story; the good guy

Question 4

antagonist

Answer 4

a major character or force who opposes or is in conflict with the main character and/or protagonist; the bad guy

Question 5

dialouge

Answer 5

a conversation between two characters and is used to reveal character and/or advance the story line or action

Question 6

irony

Answer 6

contrast or discrepancy between expectation and reality-between what is said and what is expected to happen and what really does happen; or between what appears to be true and what is really true.

Question 7

foreshadowing

Answer 7

use of clues to hint at events that will occur later in the plot.

Question 8

allusion

Answer 8

reference in a story to a statement, a person, a place, or an event from literature, history, religion, sports,science, or a pop culture.

Question 9

satire

Answer 9

type or writing that uses humor or criticism to ridicule a group of people, humanity at large, an attitude or failing, or a social institution in order to reveal weakness and/or in hopes of improving them.

Question 10

tone

Answer 10

attitude the writer takes toward the audience, a subject, or a character; it is conveyed through the writer’s choice of words and details; can be formal, informal, serious, playful, bitter, ironic, etc.

Question 11

plot

Answer 11

series of related events that make up a story or drama

Question 12

exposition

Answer 12

the beginning part of a story that introduces the characters, the setting, and the basic situation; also introduces problems or conflicts.

Question 13

rising action

Answer 13

events after exposition leading up to the climax of the story.

Question 14

climax

Answer 14

the highest point of interest or suspense in a story; exciting or tense moments, usually toward the end of the story, when we realize what the outcome of the conflict will be.

Question 15

falling action

Answer 15

all events after climax and leading to the resolution of a story.

Question 16

resolution

Answer 16

the moment when all the problems are resolved, one way or another and the story is closed

Question 17

setting

Answer 17

the time and place of a story or play

Question 18

conflict

Answer 18

struggle or clash between opposing characters of opposing forces.

Question 19

point of view

Answer 19

vantage point from which the writer tells a story

Question 20

symbolism

Answer 20

a person, place, or thing that stands for itself and for something beyond itself

Question 21

mood

Answer 21

atmosphere or the feeling created by the writer in the story; it is often suggested by descriptive details.

Question 22

suspense

Answer 22

a feeling of uncertainty, anxiety, or curiosity about what is going to happen next or about the outcome of events in the story.

Question 23

style

Answer 23

some writers use simple, down-to-earth, or even slang words; others use ornate, official-sounding or even flowery language.

Question 24

diction

Answer 24

a writer’s or speaker’s choice of words; using different types of words depending on the audience being addressed, the subject being discussed, and the effect or mood trying to be produced.

Question 25

dialect

Answer 25

way of speaking that is characteristic of a particular region or group.

Question 26

anecdote

Answer 26

brief story about an interesting, amusing, or strange event used to entertain or to make an earlier time.

Question 27

flashback

Answer 27

section of a literary work that interrupts the sequence of events to relate an event from an earlier time.

Question 28

alliteration

Answer 28

repeating the same beginning sound of closely linked words.

Question 29

similie

Answer 29

comparing two things to add meaning using connective words (“like” or “as”).

Question 30

metaphor

Answer 30

comparing two things to add meaning without using connective words.

Question 31

personification

Answer 31

when an animal, object, or force is given human personality traits.

Question 32

hyperbole

Answer 32

overstatement or exaggeration for special effect.

Question 33

imagery

Answer 33

descriptive language that appeals to any of the sentence of the senses.