Short story terms/Literary Devices Flashcards
Antagonist
the force working against the protagonist, such as other people, things, society or themselves
two types of conflict
internal conflict= man vs. himself
external conflict= - man vs. man or society or unknown
Connotation
what a word infers or suggests
Contrast
Stress the differences of things, qualities, events or problems
Denotation
the literal meaning or definition of a word
Description
to describe someone you explain: your relationship to them, their physical characteristics, personality traits, their job and what way they are special
Direct presentation
the narrator tells the reader everything about the character
Dramatic or objective point of view
the opposite of omniscient point of view. like a reporter or fly on the wall where everything is recorded without bias or comment. Only the present is given; very little of the future or past.
Dynamic Character
A character that changes during the story
Falling Action
Part of the plot, which occurs after the climax
First Person Point of View
the narrator tells the story in the first person “I”. The reader sees and knows only as much as the narrator
Flashback
When the present action in a story is temporarily interrupted so that the reader can witness past events
Flat Character
A character with one or two traits
Foil Character
a character that serves by contrast to stress opposing traits in another character
Foreshadowing
hints or clues to help the radar anticipate the outcome of the story
Indirect Presentation
When we know about a character by what he or says, does, or thinks or by how others react to the character
What are the three types of irony
verbal, situational, dramatic
verbal irony
when someone says something but means the other (sarcasm)
situational irony
example: a pickpocket has his own pocket picked as he is in the act of picking someone else’s pocket
example 2: a winning lotto ticket is found in the pocket of someone dead
dramatic irony
a type of irony that is used in theatres where the audience understands something but the characters don’t yet
Limited omniscient point of view
the author tells the story in the third person, but e tells it from the viewpoint of one character in the story. In effect the author stands by the side of the character and presents the story through their eyes.
Narrator
the person telling the story
Omniscient Point of View
the author tells the story in the third person and he knows everything about all the characters
plot
the sequencing of events in a story
