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IGHS literary terms
literary terms
Question | Answer |
---|---|
fiction | narrative writing about imaginary people, places and events |
short story | work of fiction to be read in one sitting; it has one conflict, few characters, limited details |
characters | people or animals who take part in the action |
round character | personality of the character is more developed; we know more about how the character thinks |
flat character | only part of the character's personality is revealed |
dynamic character | character changes during the story usually as a result of the conflict |
static character | character does not change during the course of the story |
stock character | character who fits a fixed or conventional type of personality (ex. wicked stepmother) |
protagonist | main character of the story, not always a "good guy" |
antagonist | force against the main character (protagonist); not always a person, can be good or evil |
foil | character who provides a stricking contrast to another character |
characterization | techniques used by the writer to develop characters |
setting | refers to where and when the action of the story takes place- cultural references |
plot | plan of action, arrangements of events in a story; plot comes from conflict or struggle between opposing forces |
theme | the message of the story conveyed through character, meaning, and plot, "universal idea" |
narrator | the teller of the story |
point of view | how a story is narrated |
first person point of view | in his or her own words: "I" |
third person point of view | narrator is outside, onlooker: "his/her" |
third person omniscient | narrator is all-knowing an can see into the minds of others |
external conflict | conflict is between main character and someone/something |
Man vs. Man | conflict between two characters |
Man vs. Society | conflict between character and society |
Man vs. Nature | conflict between character and a storm, etc... |
Man vs. Supernatural | conflict between character and ghost, etc... |
internal conflict Man vs. Self | conflict is between opposing tendencies in a character's mind |
interpersonal conflict | between character and another or others |
intrapersonal conflict | conflict within the person |
irony | contrast between what seems to be and what actually is |
situational irony | what the character expects and what really is, are two different entities (things) |
dramatic irony | reader or viewer knows something the character does not know |
verbal irony | someone knowingly exaggerates or says one thing and means another |
symbol | person, place, or thing that stands for something beyond itself |
surprise ending | unexpected turn near the end of the story |
dialect | a special way of pronouncing or using language that is characteristic of a certain region or place |
allusion | a reference to another work of literature, person, place or event with which the reader should know |
imagery | five senses; use of words to create vivid sensory experience |
suspense | excitement or tension readers feel as they become involved with the story and want to know the resolution |
foreshadowing | a writer's use of hints and clues that indicate events, which will occur later in the story |
mood | the feeling or atmosphere that the writer creates for the reader |
flashback | conversation, scene, or events that happened before the beginning of the story that interrupts the sequence of events |
figurative language | language that conveys ideas beyond ordinary meanings |
style | the way language is used in the story |
pseudonym | fake name assumed by the author |
simile | comparison using "like" or "as" |
metaphor | a direct comparison between two things that are essentially unalike |
exposition | background information on setting and characters |
initial incident | first event in a series of events that make up the plot of the story |
rising action | events between initial incident and crisis |
crisis (climax) | turning point, moment where interest and intensity are highest |
falling action | events in between crisis and resolution |
resolution | ending/conclusion; conflict is resolved |
denouement | French word "unknotting," mysteries unravel, final scene |