Character
Protagonist
A structural element of a narrative that interrupts linear chronological time to show readers events that happened in the past.
Flashback
A writer's unique style of expression, especially his or her choice and arrangement of words.
Diction
A credible, trustworthy and consistent storyteller.
Reliable Narrator
Universal idea + insight that one gets from a literary work.
Thematic Statement
A figure who creates opposition to the main character of the story.
Antagonist
A narrative, drama, or poem that does not follow a linear, chronological sequence; it may incorporate flashbacks, stream of consciousness, and other techniques to develop a story.
Nonlinear
The literal, dictionary-definition meaning of a word.
Denotation
The lens through which a narrator perceives and presents the characters, setting, and events of a story, influenced by the narrator’s background.
Narrative Perspective
Abstract Idea
One-word universal ideas (love, courage, destiny, poverty, etc.)
A character’s physical attributes, values, beliefs, assumptions, biases, and cultural norms.
Characterization
A temporary departure from the main point or story.
Digression
The implied meaning of a word.
Connotation
A storyteller who lacks credibility because of bias, deception, inexperience, cognitive impairment, lack of information, or other factor that undermines the accuracy of a narrative.
Unreliable Narrator
Saying the opposite of what you mean; also used to describe situations in which the results of an action are dramatically different than intended.
Irony
A character who develops or changes perspective over the course of a narrative or drama.
Dynamic Character
A narrative technique that communicates a character’s interior thoughts, feelings, sensations, and associations in a continuous flow without regard for logic or formal structure.
Stream of Consciousness
A commonly used phrase that signifies something very different than its literal meaning.
Idiom
The structure of a narrative in which conflict creates a plot, leading to a climax and an ending with a resolution.
Narrative Arc
A phrase or assertion that appears to contradict itself (but the contradiction itself may have its own meaning).
Paradox
A character who remains unchanged throughout a narrative or drama.
Static Character
A placement of things side by side for the purpose of comparison.
Juxtaposition
A figure of speech that plays with words that have multiple meanings, or that plays with words that sound similar but mean different things.
Pun
An author’s choice of order and tempo to reveal the events of the story’s plot.
Narrative Pace
The noun the pronoun is referring to.
Antecedent