Literary terms 1
Literary terms 2
Literary terms 3
Literary terms 4
Literary terms 5
100

The highest point of tension or conflict in a story

Climax

100

Comparison of 2 unlike things saying one thing IS something else

Metaphor

100

Story is told from a narrator using "I" and "me"

1st person point of view

100

The main character in a story, often the hero or "good guy"

Protagonist

100

The time and place in which a story takes place

Setting

200

Giving human qualities to animals, objects, or ideas

Personification

200

The repetition of the same initial consonant sound in a series of words

Alliteration

200

The character usually in conflict with the hero of a story, usually referred to as "the bad guy"

Antagonist

200

An intended exaggeration used for effect and not meant to be taken literally

Hyperbole

200

A comparison between two things using "like" or "as"

Simile

300

A word that imitates the sound it represents

Onomatopoeia

300

A struggle between oppossing forces that drives the plot of a story

Conflict

300

The use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities beyond their literal meaning

Symbolism

300

The sequence of events in a story; includes exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution

Plot

300

Hints or clues about what will happen later in the story

Foreshadowing

400

The process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character

Characterization

400

A reference to a well-known person, place, event, or literary work; something the author believes is common knowledge

Allusion

400

The central message or insight into life revealed through a literary work; a life lesson

Theme

400
The distinct personality, style, or point of view of a piece of writing or its author

Voice

400

The overall feeling or atmosphere that a piece of literature creates for the reader

Mood

500

The type of irony that takes place when the audience knows something the characters do not

Dramatic irony

500

The type of irony where a character says one thing but means another

Verbal irony

500

The art of using language effectively and persuasively

Rhetoric

500

Irony that happens when the situation is opposite of what is expected

Situational irony

500

A figure of speech in which something is presented as less important or significant than it actually is

Understatement

M
e
n
u