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Literary Study Stack
Term | Definition |
---|---|
First person | one of the characters, using the personal pronoun “I,” tells the story. |
Third person omniscient | the narrator knows (sees) everything about ALL the characters and their problems; can tell the reader what characters are thinking and what is happening in several places at one time; is not part of the story’s action at all. |
Third person limited | the narrator is not part of the story’s action and focuses on the thoughts and feelings of only ONE character (LIMITED to that person); the reader observes the action through only one of the characters in the story. |
Protagonist | main character |
Antagonist | character that opposes the main character |
Static | a character who stays the same |
Characterization | A description of the distinctive nature or features of someone or something. This includes how a character speaks, acts, feels, and how other characters talk to/about the character. Often listed as one-word adjectives. |
Motivation | The reason(s) a character behaves in a certain way. Among the many reasons for a person’s behavior are feelings, experiences, and commands by others. |
Setting | The time AND place during which a story is set |
Tone | The author’s attitude (feelings) toward his/her subject matter, characters, and audience. Tone is interpreted through the author’s choice of words similar to the way a person’s tone of voice adds meaning to what they say. |
Atmosphere | the physical surrounding that adds to the overall feeling of a story |
Mood | the way a reader feels as he/she reads a story as described with one or two adjectives. |
Internal Conflict | a struggle within a character’s own mind over feelings or a decision |
External Conflict | a struggle between a character and an outside force. |
Suspense | The uncertainty or anxiety that a reader feels about what will happen next in the story. |
Suspense | The uncertainty or anxiety that a reader feels about what will happen next in the story. |
Symbolism | A person, a place, a thing, or an event that has meaning in itself and stands for something beyond itself as well. |
Motif | Any element of a story that is repeated in different stories at different times. Motifs can be a character, an image, or a storyline! |
Theme | The overall message or truth about life in a piece of literature. |
Forshadowing | The use of clues or hints to suggest events that will occur later in the story. Foreshadowing is used to build suspense or anxiety for the reader. |
Flashback | Interruption in the present action of a plot to show events that happened at an earlier time. |
Situational Irony | what happens is very different from what we expected would happen |
Verbal Irony | a contrast between what is said or written and what is really meant |
Dramatic Irony | the reader/audience knows something the characters don’t know |
Allusion | A reference to a statement, a person, a place, or an event from literature, the arts, history, religion, mythology, sports, |
Simile | A comparison of two things that are not alike using words such as “like” or “as.” |
Metaphor | A comparison of two things that are not alike where one becomes the other. |
Alliteration | Repetition of the same beginning consonant sound of words that are close together. |
Personification | An object or animal is spoken about as if it had human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes. |
Onomatopoeia | Words whose sounds imitate or suggest their meaning. |
Imagery | Language that appeals to the five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, or smell. |
Rhyme Scheme | Rhymed poetry is identified by the pattern of the rhyming lines (based upon the last word in the line) and identified by LETTERS |
Free Verse | Free verse poetry does not have a regular rhyme scheme and resembles prose |
Hyperbole | Overstating something for the purpose of creating a comic effect. |