Literary DevicesLiterary DevicesLiterary DevicesLiterary Devices

Elements of Literature• Plot• Conflict• Setting• Character• Point of View• Theme

What is Plot?• Plot is the sequence of events

within a literary work. • The plot of a literary work can be

divided into five distinct sections that can even be graphed on a diagram.

A Closer Look at Plot:What are the Five Divisions of Plot?

• Exposition • Rising Action• Climax• Falling Action• Resolution

Exposition

Resolution

Ris

ing A

ctio

n Fallin

g

Actio

n

Climax

What Drives the Plot Within a Literary Work?• Conflict

Conflict can be INTERNAL or EXTERNAL

Man vs. ManMan vs. HimselfMan vs. Society

Man vs. Nature

-The struggle between opposing forces

What Type of Conflict Does this Picture

Represent?

Answer…

• Man vs. Society… This picture depicts racial

discrimination. It was law that African Americans use separate facilities because of their race. Therefore, this is an example of man vs. a rule of society.

What type of Conflict does this picture

represent?

Answer…• Man vs. Man

This 1942 picture illustrates two men in a boxing match

What is Setting?• Setting is the time and place of the

action

• Setting includes all details of a place and time—the year, the time of day, even the weather.

• Details such as dialect, clothing, customs, and modes of transportation are often used to establish setting

Describe the Setting Here within the next

picture…

What is the setting here?

What is Character?• Character is a person or an animal

that takes part in the action of a literary work

• Characters can be classified into several groups:

• Major or Minor• Flat or Round• Dynamic or Static

Major Characters vs. Minor Character

Major CharactersMost important

character(s) in the entire literary work

Minor CharactersCharacters with a

lesser role, but necessary for the story to develop

Flat Characters vs. Round Characters

Flat Charactersare often one-

sided and often stereotypical

Round Charactersare fully

developed and show many traits

Dynamic Characters vs. Static Characters

Dynamic Characters

grow and change as the literary work develops

Static Charactersdo not change

throughout the literary work

What is Point of View?• The perspective or vantage point

from which a story is told.

– 1st person POV– 3rd person limited– 3rd person omniscient

What is Point of View?

• 1st person POV

– story is told from the viewpoint of a character in the story

– Uses pronouns like I and we

What is Point of View?

• 3rd person limited POV

– The narrator is not a character in the story

– The story is told based on the view of a single character

– Uses pronouns like he/she and they

What is Point of View?• 3rd person omniscient POV

– The narrator is not a character in the story

– The narrator is all-knowing or “god-like”—knows thoughts and feelings of all characters

What is Theme?

• The central message, concern, or purpose of a literary work.

• The theme is often revealed indirectly and the reader may have to look carefully at what the work reveals about people or about life.

What are some themes to literary works you have already read?