Literary Terms-A
The sequence of events in a story. This includes the opening event, the rising action, the climax, the falling action and the resolution.
What is plot?
The means through which an author reveals a character's personality.
What is characterization?
The main or central character of a work of literature.
What is a protagonist?
The comparison of two unlike things to illuminate a particular quality or aspect of one of those things. For example, "Karen was a ray of sunshine."
What is metaphor?
The use of words whose sounds imitate the sounds of what they describe, such as hiss, murmur, growl, honk, buzz, woof, etc.
What is onomatopoeia?
The opponent or enemy of the main character.
What is antagonist?
The time and place of a story.
What is setting?
The perspective from which the story is told.
What is point of view?
Language that portrays sensory experiences, or experiences of the five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch.
What is imagery?
Describing nonhuman animals, objects, or ideas as though they possess human qualities or emotions. For example: "The moon smiled down on her."
What is personification?
When two or more words in a group of words begin with the same sound. For example: Fred's frozen french fries.
What is alliteration?
A reference to another piece of history, art, literature, etc.
What is allusion?
Clues or hints about something that is going to happen later in the story. Authors use ________ to build suspense and to prepare the reader for what happens later.
What is foreshadowing?
When two unlike things are compared using like or as. For example, "Randy's voice is like melted chocolate."
What is simile?
A story's main message or moral.
What is theme?
A struggle between opposing characters or forces.
What is conflict?
A scene in a story that occurred before the present time in the story. _________ provide background information about events happening during the current narration.
What is a flashback?
Extreme exaggeration used for emphasis or effect; an extravagant statement that is not meant to be taken literally.
What is hyperbole?
The conversation between characters in a work of literature.
What is dialogue?
The emotional impact of a word.
What is connotation?
An object, setting, event, animal, or person that represents something else (a feeling, etc.). For example, in a story or play, rain could represent sadness or leaving the past behind.
What is a symbol?
The author's attitude toward the subject matter or toward the reader or audience. _______ is conveyed through the author's word choices and the details that he or she includes.
What is tone?
The feeling the reader gets from a work of literature. It's the atmosphere that makes you feel a certain way when you "walk into" a story. For example: creepy, calm, romantic, sad, or tense.
What is mood?
The dictionary definition of a word.
What is denotation?
When the unexpected happens; a strange twist.
Irony