Literary Terms/Vocabulary

“My Favorite Chaperone”

PlotThe series of events in

a story

Event #1

Event #2Event

#3

And so on…

Exposition(Introduction)

The beginning of the story where the setting,

background, and characters are introduced.

Exposition

Rising ActionThe events that move the story forward and create

some kind of conflict.Ri

sing

Actio

n

Conflict

Struggles or problems between opposing forces in the story

ClimaxThe turning point in the

story where the conflict is at its peak.

Climax

Falling ActionThe events that start to

wrap up the story.Falling Action

ResolutionThe conflict is completely wrapped up and the story

ends.

Resolution

PLOT DIAGRAM

Risin

g Ac

tion Falling Action

Resolution

Climax

Exposition

Conflict

• What is the difference between falling action and resolution?

• What do we learn during the exposition?

• When is the conflict introduced in the story?

Characterization

Characterization is the way an author develops the personality of a character.

Direct characterization

tells the audience what the personality of the character is.

Example: “The patient boy and quiet girl were both well mannered and did not disobey their mother.”

Explanation: The author is directly telling the audience the personality of these two children. The boy is “patient” and the girl is “quiet.”

Indirect characterizationshows things that reveal the

personality of a character.

showing the character's appearance displaying the character's actionsrevealing the character's thoughts letting the character speakgetting the reactions of others

Example: A character smiles shakily and says, “That’s all right,” while turning away to hide a tear.

What can we infer?

Readers sometimes must infer to gather indirect details about a character

SummarizationRetelling the main points, events, or ideas, while leaving out the less important details

dispatcherSomeone who sends out vehicles

according to a schedule

scuffleA fight

sponsorSomeone who supports someone else’s admission into a group

stunTo shock someone

whimperA soft cry