Literary Elements
An extreme exaggeration
Example: I'm grounded forever
Hyperbole
Process of creating and describing characters.
Example: "She was a kind and generous woman, always willing to help others".
Characterization
The central message of a literary work or an important lesson in life.
Example: For A Long Walk to Water it was the importance of helping others regardless of differences.
Theme
The main events of a story.
Plot
A character in literature who undergoes a significant internal change, throughout the course of a story.
Example: Scrooge in 'A Christmas Carol'
Dynamic Character
The use of words that imitate sounds
Example: BOOM!
Onomatopoeia
Clues that suggest or predict what will occur later in the story.
Foreshadowing
The feeling created in the reader by the literary work.
Example: At the end of 'A Long Walk to Water' it is uplifting and hopeful.
Mood
The events that occur after the climax (how things end up).
Example: The successful establishment of a water well in Nya's village.
Resolution
A struggle between opposing forces.
Example: People fighting over a problem.
Conflict
Repetition of initial sounds.
Example: Ted took ten turns.
Alliteration
The use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities
Symbolism
A writer's attitude toward his or her subject.
Example: In 'A Long Walk to Water' it is one of hopeful determination amidst hardship.
Tone
The time and place of the action in a literary work.
Example: For A Christmas Carol it is London around 1843.
Setting
The main character in a story (the good guy).
Example: Salva and Nya (Long Walk to Water) or Jonas (The Giver).
Protagonist
A comparison of 2 similar things using 'like' or 'as'.
Example: She is as slow as molasses.
Simile
A reference to a well known person or thing.
Example: Moonwalk by MJ
Allusion
It's a literary style where the narrator is a character in the story.
Example: Jack in 'Love That Dog!'
First Person
The most exciting point of a story.
Example: For "A Christmas Carol" it occurs when Scrooge, after his final ghostly visit, is confronted with a grave bearing his own name.
Climax
The character or force in conflict with the main character in a literary work.
Example: The cobras in 'Rikki Tikki Tavi'.
Antagonist
A direct comparison of 2 similar things without the use of 'like' or 'as'.
Example: He's a gem.
Metaphor
A non-human thing is given human characteristics.
Example: The cookie called to me.
Personification
The perspective used when writing about someone or something that is not a character in the story.
Example: A Long Walk to Water
Third Person
The events that lead up to the most exciting part of a story.
Rising Action
This is a type of character who doesn't undergo significant internal change throughout the story.
Example: Nya in 'A Long Walk to Water'
Static Character