LITERARY TERMS

Know them, use them, LOVE them!

PLOT• A series of events

– Linear plot development• Author reveals events in the order in which they

occur– Non-linear plot development

• Author interrupts the sequence of events• Flashbacks, sub-plots, and parallel plots

POINT OF VIEW• the way the author allows you to "see" and

"hear" what's going on

– First-person point of view– Second-person point of view– Third-person point of view

CONFLICT– External conflict

• Man vs. Nature• Man vs. Society• Man vs. Man

– Internal conflict• Man vs. Self

IRONY• A contrast or discrepancy between

appearance and reality, or between what is expected and what actually happens.– There are three types of irony:

• Situational irony – the actual outcome of a situation is the opposite of someone’s expectations

• Verbal irony – a person says one thing and means another (You wreck your car and exclaim, “Well this is great!”)

• Dramatic irony – the audience has important information that characters in a literary work do not have

INFERENCE• The act of concluding from evidence;

deduction. In literature it describes the act of figuring something out by using what you already know.

– Example:A + B = C

If A = 2 and B = 3 then using what you know, you can deduce what C equals.

CHARACTERIZATION• The method a writer uses to reveal the

personality of a character.

– Direct characterization: the writer makes direct statements about a character’s personality

– Indirect characterization: the writer reveals a character’s personality through the character’s words and actions and through what other characters think and say about the character

CHARACTER TYPES• Static character – a character who

remains the same

• Dynamic character – a character who changes

DENOTATION• The literal or dictionary meaning of a word

– Example: Home - a house, dwelling, a place where one lives permanently

CONNOTATION• The suggested or implied meanings

associated with a word beyond its dictionary meaning– Example: Home - family, loving, safe, warm

SYMBOL• An object, person, place or

experience that means more than what it is

MOOD• The emotional quality or

atmosphere of a story

– Example:“The ‘Red Death’ had long devastated the

country. No pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous. Blood was its Avatar and its seal—the redness and the horror of blood.”

From “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe

TONE• A reflection of a writer’s or speaker’s

attitude toward the subject

– A writer’s tone may convey a variety of attitudes, including, sympathy, objectivity, seriousness, irony, sadness, bitterness, or humor

– Example: “Don’t talk to me about voting or politics. I’m not interested. All politicians are self-serving and corrupt. My vote won’t change a thing!”

FORESHADOWING• The use of clues by the author to

prepare readers for events that will happen later in a story

IMAGERY• The “word

pictures” that writers create to help evoke an emotional response.– Writers use

sensory details , or descriptions that appeal to one or more of the five senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell.

"The commander's voice was like thin ice breaking. He wore his full-dress uniform, with the heavily braided white cap pulled down rakishly over one cold gray eye."

From The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber

SIMILE• A figure of speech using like or as to

compare seemingly unlike things– Example:

The corn was as high as an elephant’s eye.

I mean really! Do corn and anElephant have ANYTHING in

common?

METAPHOR• A figure of speech that compares two

or more things that have something in common. In contrast to a simile, a metaphor implies the comparison instead of stating it directly.

– ExampleHe’s a bear when he’s angry!

PERSONIFICATION• A figure of speech in which an

animal, object, force of nature, or idea is given human qualities or characteristics

– Example:The shadow crept along the hallway.

DICTION• The writer’s choice of words; an

important element in the writer’s voice or style

– Good writers choose their words carefully to convey a particular meaning or feeling