Literary Terms

Question 0

Round character

Answer 0

Fully developed, different character traits

Question 1

Character

Answer 1

A person in a story, poem, or play

Question 2

Flat character

Answer 2

Stereotyped, one dimensional

Question 3

Dynamic character

Answer 3

Changes as result of events

Question 4

Static character

Answer 4

Does not change

Question 5

Characterization

Answer 5

The way a writer creates and develops characters’ personalities

Question 6

Direct characterization

Answer 6

Writer may make direct comments about a character’s personality or behavior

Question 7

Indirect characterization

Answer 7

Writer may describe the character’s physical appearance, thoughts, speech, and action

Question 8

Conflict

Answer 8

A struggle between opposing forces

Question 9

Internal conflict

Answer 9

A conflict that occurs within a character

Question 10

External conflict

Answer 10

A conflict that occurs outside a character

Question 11

Point of view

Answer 11

Vantage point from which the writer tells the stor

Question 12

First person

Answer 12

One of the characters is actually telling the story

Question 13

Third person

Answer 13

Centers on one character’s thoughts and actions

Question 14

Third person omniscient

Answer 14

All knowing narrator

Question 15

Irony

Answer 15

A contrast between what happens and what was expected

Question 16

Verbal irony

Answer 16

When someone knowingly exaggerates or says one thing but means another

Question 17

Situational irony

Answer 17

A contrast between what happens and what the reader expects

Question 18

Dramatic irony

Answer 18

Where the reader views something the character doesn’t know

Question 19

Plot

Answer 19

The series of events that makes up a story

Question 20

Setting

Answer 20

Time and place of the action of the story

Question 21

Theme

Answer 21

The underlying message the author wants to convey

Question 22

Climax

Answer 22

The point of maximum interest or tension

Question 23

Resolution

Answer 23

Follows the climax and shows its results

Question 24

Allusion

Answer 24

Indirect reference to something famous

Question 25

Symbolism

Answer 25

Something that stands for something beyond itslf

Question 26

Diction

Answer 26

Way of arranging words

Question 27

Foreshadowing

Answer 27

A writer’s use of hints or clues to suggest events that will occur later in the story

Question 28

Flashback

Answer 28

An account of a conversation, an episode, or an event that happened before

Question 29

Imagery

Answer 29

Descriptive words and phrases that recreate sensory experiences for the reader

Question 30

Simile

Answer 30

A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things

Question 31

Metaphor

Answer 31

A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two things that are unalike but have something in common

Question 32

Protagonist

Answer 32

The hero

Question 33

Antagonist

Answer 33

The opposing force to the protagonist

Question 34

Satire

Answer 34

The ridicule of customs, ideas, behavior, or institutions to make a point

Question 35

Paradox

Answer 35

A seemingly absurd statement that nonetheless suggests an important truth

Question 36

Suspense

Answer 36

Excitement or tension a reader feels in expectation of something in a story

Question 37

Tone

Answer 37

The attitude a writer has towards a subject

Question 38

Foil

Answer 38

A character who has a drastic contrast

Question 39

Hyperbole

Answer 39

A figure of speech in which truth is exaggerated