Literary Elements Flashcards
Direct Characterization
When the author directly tells the reader about the character’s personality
Indirect Characterization
Reveals the personality of a character without directly telling the reader
Five Methods of Indirect Characterization
- Appearance
- Thoughts
- Dialogue
- Other characters’ reactions
- Actions
Static Character
Character’s traits stay the same
Dynamic Character
Character that changes their personality, thoughts, and feelings
Round Character
Character with a layered personality; multiple traits
Flat Character
Character that is simplistic, one dimensional, and there’s no change
Setting
Where and when the story takes place
Integral Setting
Setting that affects the plot, and characters
Backdrop Setting
Setting that doesn’t affect the plot, and characters
Mood
How the reader feels toward the piece
Literary Element(s) That Affect Mood
- Setting
2. Actions of characters
Plot
The structure of a text; the main events which occur in a text
Narrative Arc
The chronological path of the plot from beginning to end of story
Exposition
The introduction of the story in which characters are introduced, and setting is revealed
Rising Action
A series of events that complicate matters for the protagonist, creating a rise in the story’s suspense or tension
Climax
The point of greatest tension in the story; turning point from rising to falling action
Falling Action
The unfolding of events in a story’s plot and the release of tension
Resolution
The end of the story, typically, in which the problems of the story and of the protagonists are resolved
Conflict in the Narrative Arc
- Introduced in the rising action
- Faced head on in the climax
- Begins to work out in the falling action
- Resolved in the resolution
External Conflicts
- Man vs. Man
- Man vs. Nature
- Man vs. Society
Man vs. Man
Character struggles with another character; protagonists vs. antagonist
Man vs. Nature
Character struggles with a force of nature (natural disaster, animal, etc)
Man vs. Society
Character or group fights against the society they live in. Character fights against rules or social traditions