LITERARY TERMS LIST 1: THE BASICS Flashcards
subject
what a story is about
theme
the central idea argued by a writer in a literary work, underlies the central conflict and all other literary elements of the work
conflict
a struggle between opposing forces
external conflict
pits a character against another character, society, nature or some other entity
internal conflict
pits a character against him/herself
protagonist
the character who undergoes the central conflict
- not a hero
antagonist
the person or force that opposes the protagonist
characterization
the way the writer reveals the personalities of the characters
direct characterization
when personality or feeling are told through an absent statement
indirect characterization
when personality or feelings are shown through and must be inferred from a character’s concrete actions, speech or physical traits, or revealed through other characters’ actions to the character
setting
the time and place in which the events of a story occur
point of view
the perspective from which a writer tells a story
first-person point of view
told by a character in the story, using “I”
third-person point of view
told by a narrator who does not participate in the story
dramatic third-person narration
the narrator simply reports what the characters say and do
omniscient third-person narrator
all knowing, narrator can report the inward thoughts and feelings of the characters
irony
a form of contrast
dramatic irony
the audience or reader knows something a character doesn’t
verbal irony
when someone says one thing but means another
situational irony
what happens is the opposite of what would normally be expected or appropriate under the circumstances
foreshadowing
a writer’s use of clues to suggest something that will happen later in the story
symbol
something in a work of literature that an author uses to represent something else
motif
a recurring element in a work of literature
epiphany
a moment of sudden revelation or insight
imagery
language used to represent a sensory experience
literal image
imagery that attempts to recreate an object or experience realistically
figurative language (figure of speech)
non-literal language used to express an idea
metaphor
a figure of speech that makes a non-literal comparison of unlike things
simile
a type of metaphor that uses “like”, “as”, or “than”
personification
a figure of speech giving human attributes to an animal, object or idea
allusion
a reference to something in literature, film, religion, or history
diction
the choice and placement of words
denotation
basic, literal, or primary meaning of a word
connotation
the ideas or feelings a word invokes in addition to its denotation
syntax
the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences
tone
the author or speaker’s attitude towards the subject
