Literary Elements
The underlying message or big idea of a book, film, or other work of fiction
What is theme?
An appeal to emotion
What is Pathos?
A comparison of two unlike things, often introduced by like or as
What is Simile?
the most important thoughts/unifying elements of a non-fiction/informational text
What is the Central Idea?
A character refuses to look in the mirror after making a difficult choice. What does this action imply about their internal conflict?
What is Guilt or Self-Loathing ?
Which is correct: "Each of the players has/have a jersey"?
What is has? (Singular subject)
Presents the struggle between two sides due to a disagreement in values, desires, motivations etc
Whta is conflict?
A salesperson uses a chart showing that their product is 50% cheaper and lasts twice as long as the competitor.
What is Logos?
"I’ve told you a million times to clean your room!"
What is Hyperbole?
Clue: A text like Night is categorized as this—a personal account of a specific period in the author's life.
What is a Memoir?
"Everyone is buying this new phone, so it must be the best one on the market." What is this fallacy called?
What is Bandwagon?
Fix the pronoun: "If a person wants to succeed, they must work hard."
What is he or she? (Traditional) or they (Modern).
This is symbolic for Intense guilt from The Tell-Tale Heart .......
What is the heartbeat?
A political candidate mentions their twenty years of military service and their reputation for honesty to convince voters they are the right choice.
What is Ethos?
In Macbeth, the line "Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player / That struts and frets his hour upon the stage" is a famous example of this.
What is a Metaphor?
An author who is a lifelong environmental activist writes an article about a new highway project, focusing entirely on the destruction of local habitats. This specific "filter" through which the author sees the subject is known as __________.
What is Author’s Perspective (or Point of View)?
"If we let students use their phones in the hallway, pretty soon they’ll be using them during exams, and then nobody will ever learn anything again!" Identify the fallacy.
What is Slippery Slope?
Does this sentence need a comma? "Because the storm was approaching we cancelled the hike."
What is Yes (after "approaching")?
This type of irony occurs when Macbeth believes he is invincible because of the witches' prophecies, but the audience knows they are tricking him.
Dramatic Irony
Why might an author use a Rhetorical Question at the very end of an argumentative or persuasive essay?
What is to leave the reader with a "call to action" or deep reflection?
In Night, Elie Wiesel describes the air as "smelling of burning flesh." This use of specific sensory details to create a vivid mental picture is known as __________.
What is Imagery?
The way a text is organized—examples include Chronological, Problem/Solution, and Compare/Contrast.
What is text structure?
A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or political significance
What is Allusion?
Correct the parallel structure: "He likes swimming, hiking, and to ride bikes."
What is riding?
Clue: The "weird sisters" in Macbeth provide this literary device, hinting at the tragic end of the play.
Foreshadowing
In a debate, someone attacks their opponent's haircut instead of their argument. What is the name of this logical fallacy?
What is Ad Hominem or Name Calling?
"Parting is such sweet sorrow" is an example of this, where two opposite words are put together.
What is an Oxymoron?
A reporter describes a new law as a "disastrous, short-sighted scheme" rather than a "legislative amendment." What is the reporter demonstrating through this specific word choice?
What is Bias? (or Slanted/Loaded Language)
A news article uses the word alleged when describing a crime. Why is this specific word choice legally and journalistically important?
What is to remain neutral and avoid stating guilt before a trial?
Use a Semicolon to fix this: "I love Italian food however I dislike pasta."
What is food; however, I
Placing two contrasting ideas or images side-by-side to highlight their differences.
Juxtaposition
A speaker repeats the phrase "We shall fight" at the start of every sentence to build momentum and passion.
What is Anaphora / Parallelism?
"He was a real Romeo when he brought her those flowers." Identify the device.
What is an allusion?
Based on the informational text "Maybe Mean Girls' Mental Games Have a Purpose," Evolutionary psychologists argue that this specific form of non-physical manipulation—often involving rumors or social "ghosting"—is used by females to minimize the risk of "maternal injury" while still asserting dominance.
What is Relational Aggression?
Nature’s First Green is Gold
Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf’s a flower; But only so an hour." — Robert Frost
What would be an appropiate theme statement for these lines?
What is the theme is impermanence—the idea that nothing beautiful or "golden" can last forever?
Correct the misplaced modifier: "The student was told that she failed the exam by the teacher."
What is "The teacher told the student that she failed the exam"?