Literary Elements
Where and when a story takes place.
What is setting?
The turning point in a narrative; the moment when the conflict is at its most intense.
What is the climax?
An exaggeration or overstatement.
What is hyperbole?
A comparison of two unlike things in which a word of comparison (like or as) is used (e.g., The ant scurried as fast as a cheetah.)
What is a simile?
The repetition of initial sounds in neighboring words.
What is alliteration?
A conversation between characters or speakers in a literary work; in its most specific sense, it refers specifically to the speech of characters in a drama.
What is dialogue?
A person, animal or inanimate object portrayed in a literary work.
What is a character?
The part of a story where the plot becomes increasingly complicated. Rising action leads up to the climax, or turning point
What is rising action?
The comparison of two unlike things in which no words of comparison (like or as) are used (e.g., The speech gave me food for thought.)
What is metaphor?
Giving an object or abstract idea human qualities or human form (e.g., Flowers danced about the lawn.)
What is personification?
The pattern of end rhymes in a poem.
What is rhyme scheme?
The written text of a play
What is a script?
The sequence of events in a story.
What is plot?
The portion of a story in which the conflict is resolved.
What is resolution?
An device used in literature to give hints about or to set up an explanation of later events or information.
What is foreshadowing?
Descriptive or figurative language in a literary work; the use of language to create sensory impressions.
What is imagery?
A group of lines that form a paragraph in a poem.
What is a stanza?
An extended speech spoken by one speaker, either to others or as if alone.
What is a monologue?
A struggle or clash between opposing characters, forces, or emotions.
What is conflict?
The part of a literary plot after the climax that is characterized by decreasing tensions, moving toward the end of the story.
What is falling action?
The use of a word or phrase to mean the exact opposite of its usual meaning; or a difference between actual events and the expected result.
What is irony?
A literary approach that ridicules or examines human vice or weakness.
What is satire?
An author’s choice of words, phrases, sentence structures and figurative language, which combine to help create meaning and tone.
What is diction?
A playwright’s written instructions provided in the text of a play about the setting or how the actors are to move and behave in a play.
What is stage direction?
A topic of discussion or work; a major idea broad enough to cover the entire scope of a literary work; the message of the work.
What is theme?
A narrative device, often used at the beginning of a work that provides necessary background information about the characters and their circumstances.
What is exposition?
The overall emotions or atmosphere of a work created by literary devices such as dialogue and literary elements such as setting.
What is mood?
A form of extended metaphor in which objects, characters, and actions in a narrative represent meanings that lie outside the narrative itself or connect to another text or historical event. The underlying meaning may have moral, social, religious, or political significance, and characters are often personifications of abstract ideas such as charity, greed, or envy.
What is allegory?
A word that is pronounced like the sound it describes.
What is onomatopoeia?
A dramatic speech, revealing inner thoughts and feelings, spoken aloud by one character while alone on the stage.
What is a soliloquoy?