Short Story Definitions Flashcards
Moment of insight, discovery, or revelation by which a character’s life or view of life is greatly altered
epiphany
Pleasurable anxiety we feel that heightens our attention to the story
suspense
Teller of a story (not the author, but the invented speaker of the story)
narrator
Force or character that opposes the main character
antagonist
Term that means “all-knowing” in regard to the narrator of a story
omniscient
Central character around whom the majority of the action revolves
protagonist
Type of irony that reveals a reality different from what is said and what is meant
verbal
Refers to who tells the story and how it is told. What we know and how we feel about the events in a story are shaped by the author’s decision on how to tell a story
point of view
Story is told in the order in which things happen
Chronological
Story is told in the order in which things happen
chronological
Moment of greatest tension at which the balance of power shifts decidedly in a different direction, revealing how the outcome is to be decided
climax
Indication of events to come; the introduction of specific words, images, or events into a story to suggest or anticipate later events that are central to the action and its resolution
foreshadowing
Type of character that is full, round, complex, multidimensional, whose personality allows for change and growth
dynamic
The opening portion that sets the scene, introduces the main characters, tells us what happened before the story opened, and provides the background information needed in order to understand and care about the events to follow
exposition
Type of characterization in which the author shows details about characters in order to infer and draw conclusions
indirect
Type of characterization in which the author shows details about characters in order to infer and draw conclusions
indirect
Artistic arrangement of events in a story
plot
Type of irony that is the contrast between what the audience knows and what a character says
dramatic
Prevailing attitude as perceived by the reader; the author’s feelings toward the central character or the main events
tone
One-dimensional characters with simple personalities, showing none of the human depth, complexity, and contrariness of a round character or of most real people
flat
Central idea or meaning of a story; what the work is about
theme
Locale, time, and social circumstances of a story
setting
Opposition presented to the main character of a story by another character, by events or situations, by fate, or by some act of the main character’s own personality or nature
conflict
Latin for “in the midst of things”. Readers enter the story on the verge of some important moment
in medias res
Imagined person in a literary work
character
Person, object, action, or situation, that, charged with meaning, suggests another thing
symbol
Characters paired and intentionally set off against other characters to contrast their development or qualities
foils
External forces and internal forces that compel a character to act as he or she does in a story
motivation
Device that informs us about events that happened before the opening scene of a work
flashback
Term that means “untying the know”; resolution
Denouement
Contract of some sort; reveals a reality different from what happens to be true
irony
