Literary terms Flashcards
Characterization:
The method in which the author develops a character. This includes the thoughts, words, and actions, and what the narrator and other characters say about him/her.
Theme:
The main moral or message of a piece of literature.
Point of View:
The perspective from which a story is told.
First person:
The narrator is a part of the story and uses personal pronouns.
Third person:
The narrator is an outside voice telling the story, not a part of the story.
Third person omniscient:
The narrator is an outside voice that is all-knowing.
Protagonist
The central character or hero.
Antagonist
A person or force that opposes the protagonist.
setting
Time and place in which a story takes place.
plot
The structure of a story
exposition
The basic background information is revealed. setting and past events
rising action
Conflicts develop
climax
Turning point of story; interest and intensity are at peak
falling action:
Events that occur after the climax
resolution
conflicts are resolved; the way things are going to be from now on.
conflict
problem
internal
(within a characters own mind) a personal conflict
external
(a problem a character faces with an outside force)
a. character vs. character
b. man vs. man
c. man vs. society. ex. government
situational irony:
when something other than what is expected to happen happens
dramatic irony
when the reader or audience knows more about a situation than a character
verbal irony
when a person says it writes something, but means something else.
symbolism:
when an object stands for something greater than itself (sarcasm)
direct characterization
Tells the audience what the personality of the character is.
Indirect characterization
Shows things that revealed the personality of a character(can be travelled though a characters speech, thoughts, actions, interactions, with others)
static characterization
Do not experience basic character changes during the course of the story
dynamic characterization
Don’t experience changed throughout the plot of the story. the change may be sudden the change may be gradual and take place throughout the story.
mood
the emotional affect that the text creates for the audience often created by the setting and imagery
