Literary Elements
a person in a novel, play, or movie
character
descriptive language used to appeal to a reader's senses: touch, taste, smell, sound, and sigh
imagery
appeals to the audience’s reason, building up logical arguments
logos
the narrator is a person in the story, telling the story from their own point of view.
1st person pov
the main idea or underlying meaning a writer explores in a novel, short story, or other literary work.
theme
the main events of a play, novel, movie, or similar work, devised and presented by the writer as an interrelated sequence
plot
highlights the similarities between two things using comparison words such as "like", "as",
simile
appeals to the speaker’s status or authority, making the audience more likely to trust them
ethos
the action is driven by a character ascribed to the reader, one known as "you"
2nd person pov
an author's attitude toward his/her audience and characters
tone
the time, place, and circumstances in which a story occurs
setting
the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman
personification
appeals to the emotions, trying to make the audience feel angry or sympathetic
pathos
the narrator exists outside the events of the story, and relates the actions of the characters by referring to their names or by the third-person pronouns he, she, or they
3rd person pov
a memory techniques that systematically change difficult to remember material into more easily remembered material
mnemonic device
a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonis
antagonist
a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.
metaphor
three persuasive appeals
ethos, pathos, and logos,
the vantage point from which a story is presented
point of view
a story, picture, or other piece of art that uses symbols to convey a hidden or ulterior meaning, typically a moral or political one.
allegory
a clash between two opposing forces that creates the narrative thread for a story
conflict
the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words
alliteration
As a professor of economics at Princeton, I say we need tax reform!
ethos
a method of storytelling in which the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all of the characters in the story
3rd person omniscient pov
a literary element that evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and descriptions.
mood