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LA terms & examples
Various terms and ideas for a secondary Language Arts class
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Plot | All fiction is based on conflict and this conflict is presented in a structured format called. |
| Exposition | The introductory material which gives the setting, creates the tone, presents the characters, and presents other facts necessary to understanding the story. |
| Foreshadowing | The use of hints or clues to suggest what will happen later in the story. |
| Inciting Force | The event or character that triggers the conflict. |
| Conflict | The essence of fiction. It creates plot. The conflicts we encounter can usually be identified as one of four kinds. (Man versus…Man, Nature, Society, or Self) |
| Rising Action | A series of events that builds from the conflict. It begins with the inciting force and ends with the climax. |
| Crisis | The conflict reaches a turning point. At this point the opposing forces in the story meet and the conflict becomes most intense. The crisis occurs before or at the same time as the climax. |
| Climax | The climax is the result of the crisis. It is the high point of the story for the reader. Frequently, it is the moment of the highest interest and greatest emotion. The point at which the outcome of the conflict can be predicted. |
| Falling Action | The events after the climax which close the story. |
| Resolution (Denouement) | Rounds out and concludes the action. |
| MAJOR CHARACTERS | Almost always round or three-dimensional characters. A round character changes as a result of what happens to him or her. |
| Protagonist | The main character in the story |
| Antagonist | The character or force that opposes the protagonist. |
| Foil | A character who provides a contrast to the protagonist. |
| MINOR CHARACTERS | flat (static) or 2D characters. They have only one or two striking qualities. They are usually all good or all bad. Such characters can be interesting or amusing in their own right, but they lack depth. STATIC characters because they do not change. |
| POINT OF VIEW | The viewpoint or perspective that the story is told from. |
| First Person | The narrator is a character in the story who can reveal only personal thoughts and feelings and what he or she sees and is told by other characters. He can’t tell us thoughts of other characters. |
| Third-Person Objective | The narrator is an outsider who can report only what he or she sees and hears. This narrator can tell us what is happening, but he can’t tell us the thoughts of the characters. |
| Third-Person Limited | The narrator is an outsider who sees into the mind of one of the characters. |
| Omniscient | The narrator is an all-knowing outsider who can enter the minds of more than one of the characters. |
| CONFLICT | Conflict is the essence of fiction. It creates plot and is the problem of the story. The conflicts we encounter can usually be identified as one of four kinds. |
| Man versus Man | Conflict that pits one person against another. |
| Man versus Nature | A run-in with the forces of nature. On the one hand, it expresses the insignificance of a single human life in the cosmic scheme of things. On the other hand, it tests the limits of a person’s strength and will to live. |
| Man versus Society | The values and customs by which everyone else lives are being challenged. The character may come to an untimely end as a result of his or her own convictions. |
| Man versus Self | Internal conflict. Sometimes people are their own worst enemies. An internal conflict is a good test of a character’s values. Does he give in to temptation or rise above it? The internal conflicts reveal the character’s inner strength. |
| FORESHADOWING | An author’s use of hints or clues to suggest events that will occur later in the story. Foreshadowing builds suspense by raising questions that encourage the reader to go on and prepares reader for events to come. |
| IRONY | Irony is the contrast between what is expected or what appears to be and what actually is. |
| Verbal Irony | The contrast between what is said and what is actually meant. |
| Irony of Situation | This refers to a happening that is the opposite of what is expected or intended. |
| Dramatic Irony | This occurs when the audience or reader knows more than the characters know. |
| Tone | The author’s attitude, stated or implied, toward a subject. Some possible attitudes are pessimism, optimism, earnestness, seriousness, bitterness, humorous, and joyful. An author’s tone can be revealed through choice of words and details. |
| Mood | The climate of feeling in a literary work. The choice of setting, objects, details, images, and words all contribute towards creating a specific mood. |
| SYMBOLISM | A person, place or object which has a meaning in itself but suggests other meanings as well. Things, characters and actions can be symbols. Anything that suggests a meaning beyond the obvious. |
| THEME | The main idea or underlying meaning of a literary work. A theme may be stated or implied. It becomes one of the most important ideas in the story. Minor themes are ideas that may appear from time to time. |
| IMAGERY | Language that appeals to the senses. Descriptions of people or objects stated in terms of our senses. |
| Simile | A figure of speech which involves a direct comparison between two unlike things, usually with the words like or as. Example: The muscles on his brawny arms are strong as iron bands. |
| Metaphor | A figure of speech which involves an implied comparison between two relatively unlike things using a form of be. The comparison is not announced by like or as. Example: The road was a ribbon of moonlight. |
| Alliteration | Repeated consonant sounds occurring at the beginning of words or within words. Alliteration is used to create melody, establish mood, call attention to important words. |
| Personification | A figure of speech which gives the qualities of a person to an animal, an object, or an idea. (gives non-human abject human qualities like the sun screamed) |
| Onomatopoeia | The use of words that mimic sounds. They appeal to our sense of hearing and they help bring a description to life. A string of syllables the author has made up to represent the way a sound really sounds. Example: Caarackle! |
| Hyperbole | An exaggerated statement used to heighten effect. It is not used to mislead the reader, but to emphasize a point. Example: She’s said so on several million occasions |
| Idiom | Cultually-based expression in which we understand meaning differently than literal meaning of words (i.e. "cold feet" meaning nervous or "when pigs fly" meaning never going to happen) |
Created by:
kmcwhert
Popular English Vocabulary sets