plot and setting Flashcards
what is plot?
several basic events that form a whole narrative.
what is narrative?
a story.
what are conflicts?
tension, opposition, or struggle that drives a plot.
what is exposition?
the beginning of the narrative, about background, setting, situation etc.
what is rising action?
after an inciting incident or significant event, the conflict becomes more clear.
what is climax?
the point in a story when the conflict reaches its highest intensity.
what is suspense?
a literary device that uses tension to make the plot more exciting.
what is comedy?
the protagonist’s situation often improves.
what is a tragedy?
story usually worsens. very tragic.
what is falling action?
opposite the causes behind the rising action. Conflict comes to a point of resolution.
what is denouement?
“untying the knot” in French, how the conflict has reached its resolution. usually the shortest.
what in medias res?
in Latin meaning “in the middle of the action” or just prior to an event midway through the overall story.
what are flashbacks?
during which a narrator explains what had happened prior to the story’s beginning.
what is foreshadowing?
hinting events to come.
what is a protagonist?
the main character in a work often a hero.
what is a antagonist?
a character in the story who opposes the protagonist, evil or a villain.
what is a coming-of-age story? or bildungsroman?
a novel that explores the maturing of the protagonist.
what is an epiphany?
an “aha” moment a moment when the character is struck with a life changing moment.
what are round characters?
a character who exhibits only one or two parts and who lacks character development.
what are flat characters?
a character embodying only one or two parts and who lacks character development.
what is foil?
a contrasting character who allows the protagonist to stand out more distinctively.
what are stock characters?
a type of flat character based on stereotype.
what are direct characters?
a narrator tells the reader who a character is by describing the background etc.
what are indirect characters?
an author shows rather then tells us what a character is like through what the character says or does etc.
what is a symbol?
has literal meaning in the story.
what is allegory?
a literary work that portrays abstract ideas concretely.
what are archetypes?
a cultural symbol that has become universally understood and recognized.
what is point of view?
describes a narrators position in relation to the story that narrator is telling.
what is second-person pov?
where the narrator uses “you” as if they are talking to you.
what is first person pov?
when the narrator uses “I” or “me”. talking about themselves.
what is third-person pov?
uses pronouns such as “he” or “she”. talking about someone else.
what is limited omniscient?
they use third person pov but only know one persons thoughts and feelings.
what is a resolution?
the ending of a story, where the main conflict has been resolved.
what is setting?
when and where the story takes place.