Lit Devices
Definition: The principle actor or character.
What is the Protagonist?
A character or force in conflict with a main character.
What is the Antagonist?
A character in conflict with himself or herself.
What is Internal conflict?
The atmosphere of a piece of writing; the emotions a selection creates in a reader.
What is Mood?
Saying "Oh, wonderful" when you drop your brand new phone in a muddy puddle.
What is Verbal irony?
"New York City during a harsh winter in the 1920s." is an example of what literary device?
What is Setting?
Define "Climax."
The part of the story at which a crisis is reached and a resolution becomes inevitable.
The audience knows the villain poisoned the apple, but the hero takes a bite anyway.
What type of irony is this?
What is Dramatic irony?
Define "Dynamic character."
A character who develops and grows during the course of the story.
An often easily recognized character type (archetype) useful for a narrative purpose, but is one-dimensional.
What is a Flat character?
Define "Tone."
The speaker's, narrator's or writer’s attitude towards the subject or theme.
A fire station burning down.
What type of irony is this?
What is Situational irony?
A character whose personality, background, and motives are fully delineated; a three-dimensional character.
What is a Round character?
A protagonist battling a severe blizzard to survive the night.
What literary device is this an example of?
What is External conflict?
Define "Resolution."
Those events which explain the outcome of the climax.
A character who does not change during the course of the story.
What is a Static character?
The writer makes direct statements about a character's personality and tells what the character is like.
What is Direct Characterization?
The sequence of events that immediately follow the turning point of the story.
What is Falling action?
Introduces the setting, the characters, and the basic situation or central conflict.
What is Exposition?
An outside narrator tells the story, but we only know the inner thoughts of one specific character.
What point of view is this?
What is Third person limited POV?
"I walked into the dark room, my heart pounding in my chest."
What point of view is this?
What is First person POV?
Define "Third person omniscient POV."
The narrator moves from character to character with complete freedom to access their thoughts and feelings.
The atmosphere of a piece of writing; the emotions a selection creates in a reader.
What is Mood?
Define "Indirect Characterization."
Revealing a character's personality through their thoughts, words, actions, and how others respond to them.
All the events leading up to the climax.
What is Rising action?