ALLUSION A passing reference to historical or fictional characters, places, or events, or to other works that the writer assumes the reader will recognize. –if you were trying to instill confidence in a friend and said, “Use the force,” that would be an allusion to Star Wars.

ANTAGONIST The character who stands in direct opposition to or in conflict with the central character.

CHARACTERIZATION The method by which an author creates the appearance and personality of imaginary persons and reveals their character. –DYNAMIC CHARACTER A character who changes and grows over the course of the story. –STATIC CHARACTER A character who does not change significantly over the course of the story –STOCK CHARACTER A character who represents a stereotype or universally recognized persona. –FOIL CHARACTER A character who, by contrast, points out the qualities or characteristics of another character.

Conflict The struggle between opposing forces that determines the action in drama and most narrative fiction. –Conflicts may be EXTERNAL Person vs. nature Person vs. fate/God Person vs. person Person vs. society Person vs. machine –Conflicts may be INTERNAL Person vs. self

DICTION A writer’s choice of words.

EPIPHANY A moment of revelation or profound insight.

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE Language that contains figures of speech, such as metaphor, simile, or personification, that make comparisons or associations meant to be interpreted imaginatively rather than literally.

FLASHBACK A way of presenting scenes or incidents that took place before the story began

Giving hints or clues that suggest or prepare for events that occur later in the story.

IRONY The opposite of what might be expected. The recognition of the difference between reality (what is) and appearance (what seems to be). There are four types of irony: –VERBAL IRONY A contrast between what is said and what is actually meant. –SITUATIONAL IRONY Refers to the contrast between what is intended or expected and what actually occurs. –DRAMATIC IRONY Involves the audience or reader knowing something important that a character does not know. –IRONY OF FATE The view that fate, destiny, or God, seeking diversion or amusement, manipulates human beings like puppets and thwarts their plans.

MOOD The prevailing emotional attitude in a literary work, for example, regret, hopefulness, bitterness.

PLOT The careful arrangement by an author of incidents in a narrative to achieve a desired effect. There are four basic parts in a plot: –EXPOSITION The immediate or gradual revelation to the audience of the setting, relationship between characters, and other background information needed for understanding the plot. –COMPLICATIONS (RISING ACTION) The part of a plot that leads through a series of events of increasing interest and power to the climax, or turning point. –CLIMAX The moment of highest intensity in which something happens to determine the outcome of the main conflict. The climax is usually also the crisis or turning point of the fortunes of the protagonist, the peak of the rising action. –DENOUEMENT (RESOLUTION) The “unraveling” of the plot. The final resolution of the conflicts and complications of a story.

Conflict Rising Action Climax Falling Action Resolution

POINT OF VIEW The teller or narrator of a story. The vantage point, or stance, from which a story is told: –FIRST PERSON An “I” tells the story and only that character’s thoughts are known. –THIRD PERSON LIMITED This focuses on the thoughts of a single character and presents the other characters only externally. –THIRD PERSON OMNISCIENT Here the narrator moves about freely in time and space revealing the thoughts and motives of all the characters, knowing the present, past, and future, and (sometimes) commenting on or interpreting the actions of the characters. –THIRD PERSON OBJECTIVE The story is told in a completely objective manner. The author avoids entering the minds of any characters.

PROTAGONIST The principal and central character of a literary work.

REPETITION The return of a word, phrase, stanza form, or effect in any form of literature. Repetition is an effective literary device that may bring comfort, suggest order, or add special meaning to a piece of literature.

SETTING The time and place in which the action of a story occurs. Some functions of setting include: –contributing to a story’s emotional effect and mood –revealing character –often carrying the importance of a major character –including cultures –establishing contrast –affecting the conflict

STRUCTURE The design or arrangement of the parts of a work of literature. Stories are not always chronological.

SYMBOL/ISM Anything that signifies, or stands for, something else.

THEME The central or dominating idea, the “message,” implicit in a work.

TONE The reflection in a work of the author’s attitude toward his or her subject, characters, and readers. Tone in writing is comparable to tone of voice in speech.