setting is the time and place of the events of the story. this doesn’t just mean which town or...

LITERARY TERMS

KEEP THESE NOTES WITH YOU SO THAT WHEN WE

NEED TO ADD TO THE LIST, YOU WILL HAVE IT.

You are responsible for the terms once they have been provided!

I. PlotThe events in a story.

The elements are...

I. Plot A. ExpositionBackground on story

and characters.Example:

“Once upon a time, in a forest far, far

away, there lived an evil queen and her

lovely granddaughter.”

I. Plot B. Conflict

Issue/problem that results from the struggle between two opposing

forces

There are two main categories of conflict...

I. Plot B. 1. Internal Conflict

occurs within a character. Character v. him/herself

I. Plot B. 2. External Conflict

occurs outside of a character.

Ex.character v. society, world,

nature, or another

character.

I. PLOT C. RISING ACTION

Events stemming

from conflict.

I. Plot Point D. Climax

HIGHEST POINT OF ACTION

IN A STORY.

I. Plot E. Falling Action

Events leading to the conclusion.

I.Plot Point F.: Resolution

The resolution of the original conflict. Also called

the Dénoument and includes any action after

the resolution.

Setting

Is the TIME and PLACE of the events of the story. This doesn’t just mean

which town or country the story is set in, it can refer to the culture, the

region, the room, the weather, etc. Or, the setting may include place, but leave the time period ambiguous

because the story’s plot and circumstances are timeless.

Tone and MoodTone is the narrator or author’s attitude

about the subject of the piece of literature. Some sample tone

adjectives are: angry, romantic, frightened, cheerful, condescending,

thoughtful, etc.

Mood is the effect of the images, word choice, conflict, tone, etc. on the

audience.

Figurative Language: A. SimileIndirect comparison of two unlike things using like, as, seems, or than.Example: They flew like birds to the party. She is

as mean as a snake.

Figurative Language

B. Metaphor

Direct comparison of two unlike things.

Ex: The man is a pig. Our father is a rock.

Figurative Language

C.Personification

Giving human characteristics to an animal or inanimate

object. Ex. “The sea licked greedy

lips in the shadows.”

AnthropomorphismSpecific type of personification

wherein we attempt to understand/translate non-

human behavior/motivations through the human, hence

“anthrop,” lens.Ex. The puppy was crying because he was scared.

Hyperbole

Extreme exaggeration Example: I have told you

a million times what hyperbole is!!!!

Symbol

Something that represents more than

what it is―more than the thing itself. Example: Red

rose=love.

Sound Devices...

Alliteration: Repetition of initial sounds.

Example: Mild mannered millionaire, and silly, silly

students.Onomatopoeia:

When a word sounds like what it is. Example: Whack, buzz, tinkle, sizzle, pop, and

ding!

Sound DevicesCacophony—use of harsh or

clashing sounds. Often used in descriptions of war, violence, hate,

etc.

Euphony—use of smooth or flowing sounds. Often used in description

of love, happiness, joy, etc.

Sound Devices...

Dialect—when literature is written, and words are spelled to indicate

how the speech of a region or character sounds.

Such as southern dialect with words like: y’all, fixin’ ta, howdy,

etc.

Consonance

Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds.

Example:lady lounges lazily , dark deep dread crept in

Assonance

Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds.

• Examples: fleet feet sweep by sleeping geeks.

Communion

Whenever an author writes about eating or drinking, he/she is assessing the relationship of characters. If food and drink is shared, the relationship is good. If food and drink are uncomfortable or are refused, the opposite is true.

Allusion

A reference to anything from art, history, mythology, The Bible,

Shakespeare, etc. Example: In “The Most Dangerous

Game” Zaroff's dog who sinks in the quicksand is named for Lazarus from The Bible who was raised from the

dead.

Imagery

Words that are used to help readers experience

something through their senses.

There are several specific types of imagery you should

know...

Imagery Types...

Sight:Visual Imagery Ex. The pool was crystal clear and deep blue with waters calmly rippling.

Imagery Types...

Hearing=aural imageryEx. I knew my mom was really mad when I heard

the SLAM of the door.

Imagery Types...

Touch=Tactile imagery Ex. The bunny’s fur felt like

silk against my hand.

Imagery Types...

Taste=Gustatory imagery Ex. The salt lingered on his lips long after he had eaten

the olives.

Imagery Types...

Smell=Olfactory Imagery Ex:The scent of rotten

eggs wafted through the halls.

Imagery Types...

Thermal Imagery to show us how warm or cold

something is Ex. The blood warm

waters of the Caribbean closed over his head.

Imagery Types...

Kinetic Imagery is used to show us how

something moves. Ex: The boat rocked back and forth and back and

forth and back and forth.

Poetic ApostropheWhen the speaker

addresses someone or something that is not

present.

Ex: “Oh, Elvis. Your words inspire me to

tears!”

CHARACTERIZATION

Is process of informing an audience about a character. There are two

methods authors employ:

Direct characterization—the speaker tells us directly about a character and what to think about him/her.

Example: “Ms. Labor was the meanest teacher at Sumner High.”

Characterization, cont.

Indirect characterization—the speaker reveals a character

through his/her words and actions and the audience draws

conclusions. Example: “When we walked

into 18A, Ms. Labor was kicking a puppy and throwing students' folders around the

room.”

PROTAGONIST

Main character of a story, sometimes

referred to as a hero.

ANTAGONIST

Character that is in conflict with the

protagonist. Sometimes called

the “bad guy,” and often shown in dark

clothing in films.

Flat Character

A character that is one-dimensional. A stereotype. We have no clue about the hopes,

dreams, etc. of these characters, nor do we care to.

Examples: dumb jock, ditzy blond, absent-minded professor, pencil-necked geek, macho cop, kooky

artist, etc.

Round Character

A three-dimensional character who is well

fleshed-out for us. We understand who they are,

what they love, dream, hate, etc.

These are the memorable characters that we think of almost as real people

we know.

Dynamic Character

These characters change as a result of the action of the plot. The conflict changes them in some way—usually

enlightening them and making them better.

#27: Static Characters

These characters do not change as a result of the action or

conflict. They stay the same from the beginning to the end.

These static characters are most often also the flat

characters.

Point of View

is the vantage point from which a story is told. For the purpose of discussing literature we usually focus

on the following four types:

First Person Point of View

The narrator (story teller) is involved in the story and uses

“I” to unfold the plot.

Second Person Point of View

The narrator tell the story using the

pronoun “you” as the driver of the plot. Most rarely used narrative point of

view.

Third Person Limited Point of View

The narrator is not involved in the story and reveals the thoughts and

feelings of only ONE character.

Third Person Omniscient Point of View

The narrator is not involved in the story, and can see into

the minds (thoughts and feelings) of all the

characters.

Suspense and Foreshadowing

Suspense is the quality of a work that makes us continue to read to see what

will happen next. Writers create suspense with details that arouse curiosity by foreshadowing, or

hinting at what is to come. Ex. A thunderstorm on the morning of an outdoor wedding might foreshadow

a bad marriage.

Diction

Diction is word choice. Each time a writer

chooses one word over another it effects the readers’ experience.

Three Types of Diction1. High/Formal Diction: Many Polysyllabic

words, formal sounding, sometimes considered “pedantic”

This is the language you would hear in a college-level discussion.

2. Neutral Diction: This is deliberately clear language. Not overly formal. It is the

language we should be using with each other in the classroom.

3. Low Diction: This is language that is full of slang, dialect, and informality. This is the language of the high school hallway.

Explication

Line-by-line or stanza-by-stanza explanation of

poetry.

Rhetorical Questioning

Questioning that you don’t expect anyone to answer. Its purpose is to make people think, and sometimes

work out internal conflict in literature and in life.

Types of Irony

Situational: when what happens is ABSOLUTELY not what could have

been predicted. Example: My neighbor kept talking

about his cat, Lucky, and when I saw him he only had three legs

and one eye!

Types of IronyVerbal: when what is said what is not

what is meant. Example: When my brother dropped my super expensive sculpture and it

broke into one thousand pieces, I said, “You are BRILLIANT!”

Types of Irony Dramatic: when the audience

knows things that the character’s don’t know.

Example: When the husband has purchased an anniversary

gift for a wife, and the audience saw him do it, but the wife didn’t, every time she gives

him a hint or nags him about it, the audience gets a laugh.

Theme

Theme is the most important concept to understand for the purpose of encountering art of any kind. Everyone who writes, sings, draws, sculpts, acts, directs, designs, etc. has a vision

or an opinion about some aspect of life that he/she wishes to share with his/her audience.

This vision or opinion is called the theme! We should phrase our theme statements

universally, U.M.

Synecdoche Synecdoche is a type of metaphor;

one word or a part that represents the whole.

Examples: • One man can change his stars. • All hands on deck. • Lend me your ears.

Metonymy

Metonymy is substituting a word for another word closely associated with it.

Examples:• The White House said in a press

release.• The peasants bowed to the crown.

• The central office makes the rules.

Malapropism

• Malapropism is an act or habit of misusing words ridiculously, esp. by the confusion of words that are similar in sound.

• Example: You say one thing but mean your mother.

• Or, on a more serious note: You say weary when you mean wary.

AnaphoraAnaphora [LLat. Gk. anapherein, to repeat:

ana-, again + pherein, to carry]• The deliberate repetition of a word or

phrase at the beginning of several successive verses, clauses, or paragraphs.

• One of the devices of repetition, in which the same phrase is repeated at the beginning of two or more lines.

• "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills" (Winston S. Churchill).

•

Paradox

Paradox is a seeming contradiction.

Ex.• The blind prophet (someone who can

see the truth/future). • Innate wisdom in the uneducated. • Parents who want their children to have

an easier life, but are then disappointed in their kids for having it too easy.

Ethos

• Ethics• Authority• Integrity

Logos

• Logic• Reasoning,

deductive/inductive

Pathos

• Emotion

Verisimilitude

The appearance of truth; the quality of seeming to be true. Something that has the appearance of being true or real.

Character Foil

Foil is a character that contrasts second character that highlights certain qualities of that first character.

Ex: Tybalt/Romeo (the fighter/the lover)

Anachronism Anachronism something that occurs out

of its time period.

Example:• The clocks in Julius Caesar

• 1962 Pennies in the opening scene of 1932 set To Kill a Mockingbird

• Music from A Knight’s Tale/Mulin Rouge• Knight’s Tale and the Nike Swoop.

Oral Tradition

Oral tradition is the way in which stories were passed down from generation to generation before written language was common.

Epic

An Epic is a long poem about the adventures of a hero or of the gods.

• Ex. The Odyssey is an epic about Odysseus’ ten-year journey home.

• Other Epics: Virgil’s Aeneid , Don Juan, Paradise Lost, The Divine Comedy, Beowulf, Metamorphoses, Gilgamesh, and of course, The Iliad

Kenning

Is a compound expression used in place of a name or noun.

Examples:• Whale-road = ocean• Flashing-steel=sword• Light of battle=sword• Battle sweat=blood

Beot Beot (Anglo-Saxon: "vow"; becomes Modern English

"boast") A ritualized boast or vow first made publicly by Anglo-Saxon warriors known as thegns before the hlaford in a mead-hall the night before a military engagement. A typical warrior's boast might be that he would be the first to strike a blow in the coming battle, that he would kill a particular champion among the enemy, that he would not take a single step backward in retreat during the battle, that he would claim a renowned sword from an enemy warrior as booty, and so on.

Example: • From A Knight’s Tale: Introductory speech by Chaucer

for Ulrich/William. • Tons of them in Beowulf

Xenia Xenia is the Greek concept of the

guest/host reciprocal relationship. • Concept at the heart of the Greek culture.• It is not as simple as “hospitality.” • Hospitality in our culture is voluntary. • It is an obligation/ bond , between the two Xenos and

is hereditary• You would choose a Xenos based on your social

station.• Xenia was mandatory, and enforced by none other

than Zeus Xenios. Violators were punished!• Translation: If you eat at my table or sleep under my

roof, I will do you no harm, and you will do me no harm.

• You can only ask the identify of a guest AFTER you have fed him.

• Interesting tidbit: it is the source of our word Xenophobia—fear of strangers (Xenos--foreigner)