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Short Stories Vocab
Writing About Short Stories
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Allegory | a work that conveys a hidden meaning—usually moral, spiritual, or political—through the use of symbolic characters and events. |
| Allusion | an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to other literary works, famous individuals, historical events, or philosophical ideas. |
| Antagonist | someone or something that stands in opposition of the main character |
| Antihero | a protagonist who does not embody traditional "heroic" values. |
| Archetype | the original model for a type of character |
| Catharsis | an experience in which the audience or reader experiences the same emotions that the characters are experiencing on stage or on the page. |
| Climax | the turning point or culminating event of the conflict |
| Coherent | writing that communicates in a logical and organized way |
| Conflict | drives the plot; two opposing sides in a story, usually centering on characters' values, needs, or interests. |
| Critical thinking | breaking down the basics of what you are reading to form an argument or judgment about a literary text |
| Diction | overall word choice, often impacting tone or mood |
| Dramatic Irony | a plot device often used in theater, literature, film, and television to highlight the difference between a character's understanding of a given situation, and that of the audience. |
| Dynamic (or round) character | lifelike or complex--typically have fully fleshed-out and multi-faceted personalities, backgrounds, desires, and motivations. |
| Exposition | reveals important background info on the setting, characters, etc. |
| Extended Metaphor | a metaphor that unfolds across multiple lines or even paragraphs of a text, making use of multiple interrelated metaphors within an overarching one. |
| External Conflict | a struggle outside of a character or between individuals or groups |
| Falling action | the events that signal the conflict is coming to an end |
| Figurative Language | language that uses words in ways that deviate from their literal interpretation to achieve a more complex or powerful effect. |
| Figure of Speech | a literary device in which language is used in an unusual—or "figured"—way in order to produce a stylistic effect. |
| Foil | a character who emphasizes the traits of the protagonist through contrast |
| Foreshadowing | a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. |
| Hyperbole | a figure of speech in which a writer or speaker exaggerates for the sake of emphasis. |
| Idiom | a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on a literal interpretation of the words in the phrase. |
| Imagery | descriptive language that engages the human senses |
| Inciting incident | sets the main conflict into motion |
| Internal Conflict | a struggle within a character |
| Internalized setting | when aspects of the story external to the main character represent their internal conflict or development |
| Irony | when the opposite of the expected meaning or event happens or is implied |
| Juxtaposition | when an author places two characters, ideas, images, or actions side by side as a way of highlighting their differences. |
| Metaphor | a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other. |
| Minor character | another perspective or sidekick in the story |
| Monologue | an extended speech by one person said to themselves or to another character |
| Mood | the general feeling we have while reading, or atmosphere of the story |
| Motif | an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. |
| Objective reading | evidence-based analysis or critical argument about literature |
| Oxymoron | a figure of speech in which two contradictory terms or ideas are intentionally paired in order to make a point—particularly to reveal a deeper or hidden truth. |
| Paradox | a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel of truth or reason. |
| Parody | a work that mimics the style of another work, artist, or genre in an exaggerated way, usually for comic effect. |
| Personification | a type of figurative language in which non-human things are described as having human attributes |
| Plot | the main events or storyline |
| Protagonist | a main character who faces the conflict |
| Resolution | the unraveling of the plot and settling of the conflict |
| Rhetorical Question | a figure of speech in which a question is asked for a reason other than to get an answer—most commonly, it's asked to make a persuasive point. |
| Rising Action | the series of events that create and build tension |
| Satire | the use of humor, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule to criticize something or someone. |
| Setting | time and place of the story; its social, historical, or cultural context |
| Simile | a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things using the connecting words "like" or "as," |
| Situational Irony | refers to an unexpected, paradoxical, or perverse turn of events. |
| Static (or flat) character | a character that does not undergo any substantial internal changes as a result of the story's major plot developments. |
| Subjective reading | personal feelings, opinions, or reactions to a text, its character, conflict, themes, etc. |
| Symbolism | a literary device in which a writer uses one thing—usually a physical object or phenomenon—to represent something more abstract. |
| Syntax | the order in which the sentence is put together grammatically? |
| Theme | a universal idea, lesson, or message explored throughout a work of literature. |
| Tone | the attitude writing can take towards its subject or audience. |
| Tragic Hero | a character with traits that earn them the sympathy of the audience, but also have flaws or make mistakes that ultimately lead to their own downfall. |
| Understatement | a figure of speech in which something is expressed less strongly than would be expected, or in which something is presented as being smaller, worse, or lesser than it really is. |
| Verbal Irony | a figure of speech in which the literal meaning of what someone says is different from—and often opposite to—what they actually mean. |
Created by:
pshankar
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