Literary Conventions
Of Literary Interest
From the Selections
What a Character
Vocabulary
100

What are the three traditional genres in literature?

prose, drama, and poetry

100

In culture, it is the explanation of how the world came to be as it is.

mythology

100

The type of irony used to develop "The Lion-Makers"

situational irony

100

a character used to emphasize another character's opposing traits within a work

foil

100

a changing or developing character

dynamic character

200

What are the two main purposes of genres?

To provide a reference point for readers and to organize previous natural developments in literature.

200

Which genre of literature traditionally begins in media res, includes descriptive catalogues, and elevates a hero of national significance.

the epic


200

"The Tortoise and the Osprey " overlaps which two genres?

fable and the myth

200

character types, plot patterns, or images that recur throughout world literature

archetype

200

a character who is complex and often undergoes changes in his thoughts or actions

round character

300

What are the traditional characteristics of a folktale?

short, usually anonymous, and repeated orally

300

What distinguishes an epic simile from a normal simile?

the length

300

Who is the foil to the Tortoise?


Tortoise's wife

300

a character who remains essentially the same throughout a story

static character

300

the main character of the story

protagonist

400

Which genre depicts a moral lesson, embodies a common problem in action, and remains a brief and focused story?

A fable

400

Used by Homer to describe a person or thing recurring in his poem. It was a stock phrase recognized by the listener and served as a memory aid and short-cut for the bard telling the story.

Homeric epithet

400

In "The Pumpkin Seeds" which character is the example of an archetype?

the poor but kind younger brother

400

the force or character who struggles against the protagonist

antagonist

400

Which character has no family but Hector and her son and she does not want to submit to her fate?

Andromache

500

What is not always true of a fairy tale?

To end happily ever after (provide a positive moral ending)

500

Moral: You should prepare for future events.

The Ant and the Grasshopper

500

In "Pandora," Zeus mitigates his revenge by adding what to the casket?

Hope

500

a character with little individuality or whose mindset the reader knows little about

flat character

500

Of what item of Hector's does Astyanax become afraid?

his helmet