Literary Terms and Concepts Review 1

Allusion

Allusion Definition An indirect reference to another literary work or to a famous person, place, or event

Anecdote

Anecdote Definition A brief account of an interesting incident or event, usually intended to entertain or make a point.

Anecdote Example Dave Barry’s humorous account in “Painful Memories of Dating”

Antagonist

Antagonist Definition Usually the principal character in opposition to the protagonist, or hero of a narrative or drama.

Antagonist Definition Continued *Sometimes it is not a character, but something else like force of nature

Antagonist Example The hurricane in “The Banana Tree” by James Berry

Author’s Purpose

Author’s Purpose Definition A writer usually writes to: – express himself or herself – inform or explain – persuade – entertain.

Autobiography

Autobiography Definition An account of a person’s life written by that person and usually told from the first- person point of view.

Biography

Biography Definition A true account of a person’s life told by someone else

Cause and Effect

Cause and Effect Definition When one event brings about the other.

Character

Character Definition The people who take part in the action of a story or a novel. Sometimes characters can be animals or imaginary creatures.

Major V. Minor Characters Events in a story center on the lives of one or more main characters. The other characters in a story are called the minor characters.

Characterization

Characterization Definition Refers to the methods that a writer uses to develop characters There are four basic methods of characterization.

4 Basic Methods of Characterization Description of a character’s physical appearance A character’s speech, thoughts, feelings, or actions The speech, thoughts, feelings, or actions of other characters Direct comments about a character

Climax

Climax Definition The moment when the reader’s interest and emotional intensity reach the highest point, often called the turning point.

Conflict

Conflict Definition A struggle between opposing forces that is developed in the plot of the story

External V. Internal Conflict External conflict involves a character pitted against an outside force, such as nature, a physical obstacle, or another character An internal conflict is one that occurs within a character

Context Clues

Context Clues Definition Unfamiliar words are often surrounded by words and phrases-called context clues- that help readers understand their meaning.

Description

Description Definition Writing that helps a reader to picture scenes, events, and characters