Test Notes Flashcards
Rising action
Complications that intensify the situation; continues through the conflict to the crisis
Exposition
Background, information, needed for understanding, creates tone gives setting, intros characters
Climax/turning point
The point at which the protagonist makes a decision he can not reverse. It is usually the moment or greatest suspense.
Falling action
Emphasizes the activity of forces against the protagonist it’s usually shorter then the rising action and is the result of the decision made by the protagonist during the climax.
Resolution
Literally, unknowing. It’s the final unraveling of the plot; the solution of a mystery; the explanation or outcome.
Character
An imagined person in the story.
Types of characters
Protagonist, antagonist, dynamic, static, flat, round, stock, foil
Protagonist
The main character in a work
Antagonist
The character or force directly opposed to the protagonist
Dynamic
Changes in some way throughout the story
Static
Changes little if at all. The readers view of this character itself.
Flat
A character which is constructed around a single idea or quality
Round
Complex, multi-faced characters
Stock
Conventional character types, a.k.a stereotypes. Readers can identify these characters because they are familiar with the pattern.
Foil
Literally, a “leaf” of bright metal placed under a jewel to increase (reflect) it’s brilliance a character wig through contact emphasizes the distinctive characteristics of another.
(Work in pairs)
Characterization
The crayon of imaginary persons so that they seem lifelike.
Two major forms of characterization
Direct and indirect
Direct characterization
The author tells the reader directly what the character is like.
Indirect characterization
The author uses one of the following methods to convey information to the reader about the character: A. Speech B. action C. Private thoughts D. Appearance E. Response of other characters
Motivation
Reasons, justification, and explanation for the action of a character. Results from a combination of the characters morals nature with the circumstances in which the character is placed. Understanding motivation helps the reader analyze the character.
Conflict
The struggle between two opposing force
Types of conflict
Internal and external
Internal conflict
Man vs self- struggles with something personally
External conflict
Man vs man
vs society
vs supernatural
vs machine
vs natureConflict in literature seldom involves_ _ _ _ _ instead, readers will see a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
- A single type of conflict
* Complex combinations of two or more of the four basic types
Point of view
Refers to who tells the story and how it is told. Point of view can contribute to meaning and reveal the authors attitude toward a subject.
Narrator
The actual teller of the story (not usually the author)
Editorial omniscient (third person)
Narration that gives evaluative statements about the character
Neutral omniscient (third person)
Narration that allows the characters actions and thoughts to speak for themselves
Limited omniscient (third person)
- Restricted to a single character. Long work perspective between 3 characters
- The reader will see people, events and places the way they appear to the chosen character.
- The reader will have access to only the thoughts and feelings of the chosen character, not any other character.
Objective (third person)
- Employs a narrator who does not see into the kind of any character.
- Detached and impersonal perspective.
- Narrator reports action dialogue without telling the reader directly what is going on.
- Plays a heavy premium on dialogue = actions and details to reveal characters.
First person
- The I presents the point of view only one characters consciousness, so the reader is restricted to the perceptions, thoughts and feelings of that single character.
- Can be from the perspective of a major or minor character.
Unreliable Narrator (first person)
A narrator whose interpretation of events is different from the authors
Naïve narrator (first person)
Lack the sophistication to interact accurately what they see; they are unreliable because the trade must go beyond their understanding to comprehend the situations described.
Setting
The background against which action take place
Elements of setting
- Geographical
- Daily manner if living
- Time period or season
- General occupation
Irony
A device that reveals a reality different from what appears to be true.
Types of irony
Verbal-sarcasm, situational, dramatic
Verbal irony
A persons saying one thing but meaning the opposite. In lit, it is not usually aggressive; more suitable and restrained.
Sarcasm (irony)
Verbal irony that is calculated to hurt someone by false praise
Situational irony
Exists when there is an incongruity, between what is expected to happen and what actually happens. The ironic situation creates a distinct between appearance and realities, leading the reader closer to the central meaning of the story(THEME)
Dramatic irony
Creates a discrepancy between what a character believes or says and what the reader understand to be true can be an effective eye for an author it have a character unwittingly reveal himself/herself
Symbol
A person, object, or event that suggest more than its internal meaning
Conventional symbols
Symbols that are widely recognized by a society or culture.
Objects: Christian cross, Star of David, a swastika
Experiences: winter, setting sun, the color black=death, spring, rising sun, color green=youth/new beginning.
Literary symbols
- Can include traditional, conventional or public meaning, but can also be internally by literary work.
- Can be setting, character, actions,objects, names or anything else.
- Are economical devices or evoking complex ideas without explaining everything.
Allegory
When a character, object, or incident indicates a single, fixed meaning. Allegory is the abstract idea identified by the concrete object
Flashback
When the author talks about something that happens before the opening scene of a work. (A daydream or lost in thought)
Foreshadowing
When the author gives you ideas about what is going to happen later on in the story
Suspense
Anticipation of the outcome of events, partially as they affect a character for whom the reader has sympathy.
Two methods for suspense
- You don’t know what the ending is going to be
2. Knowing the end and not knowing when/what will happen
Theme
The central idea or meaning of a story. It’s tell you about the point of the whole story using all the elements of a work.
Guidelines to determine theme
- Pay attention to the title of the story
- Look for the details that have potential for symbolic meaning.
- Decide whether the protagonist changes or develops some important insight as a result of the action.
- Always one complete sentence (never a single word)
- Your expression of the theme should he a generalization statement rather than a specific description of a particular thing.
- Don’t use clicheś as a way of stating theme
- Some stories emphasize theme less than others
Basic procedure of theme
- List subjects of the work: love revenge family death innocence loneliness
- Decide what statement the story is making about one subject
3 describe it in a complete sentence
Omniscient (third person)
- Narrator is all-knowing
- Reports the characters feelings and thoughts as well as what they say or do.
- Can move from one place, time to time; character to character
Third person
- Omniscient (the narrator takes us inside the character)
- Limited omniscient (the narrator takes us inside only one or two characters)
- Objective (the narrator is outside the characters)
