A
The character who the main character has the most conflict with.
Is in conflict with the protagonist.
Antagonist
The means by which an author describes the appearance and personality of a person in a story or play.
Characterization
The point of view of a piece of writing in which the narrator refers to himself as “I.”Example: Not the third but the _______.
First Person
Point of View
The use of words that sound like what the mean.
Onomatopoeia
Giving an inanimate object human characteristics.Example: “The flames reached for the child hovering in the corner.”
Personification
The repetition of first consonants in a group of words.
Example: “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”
The point at which the action in a story or play reaches its emotional peak.
Typically the most exciting part of the story.
Climax
A scene in a movie or novel set in an
earlier time than the main story.
Example: This device helps explain key
things that happened before the current
time in a story.
Flashback
A comparison that does NOT use “like” or “as.”Example: He’s a rock or I am an island.
Metaphor
The main character of a novel, play, or story.Example: The “good guy” or think about another meaning of “for.”
Protagonist
A reference to something or someone, often literary.
Example: “May the force be with you.”
Allusion
Actually begins with an I: Descriptive, sensory
language that helps a reader better “paint a
picture” in his/her mind of the setting.
Example: The wispy, white clouds floated in the sky like torn pieces of cotton candy.
Imagery
The expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.
Irony
The emotional feelings that are evoked in a
reader through words and descriptions.Example: The _______ of the story is very sad.
mood
A statement that seems contradictory, but at closer inspection contains some degree of truth.Example: “I know one thing: that I know nothing.”
Paradox
A dramatic device in which a character speaks to the audience. By convention the audience is to realize that the character's speech is unheard by the other characters on stage.
Aside
The elements that create a plot. This can be internal or external.Hint: Man vs. Man, Man vs. Self, Man vs. Nature, Man vs. Society
Conflict
A technique in which an author gives clues about something that will happen later in the story.Example: What usually happens after you hear the music in JAWS!
Foreshadowing
Not actually a M-O: This device is the attitude
of a writer towards the subject or audience of
a piece. Example: The ______ is sarcastic.
Tone
A comparison that uses “like” or “as.”
Example: “I’m as hungry as a wolf.”
“Her eyes are like the stars in the sky.”
Simile
A story in which the characters represent abstract qualities or ideas.
Example: In westerns, the sheriff represents good, and the outlaw represents evil.
Allegory
Actually begins with an R:
The action of using the same words multiple
times in order to create emphasis Example: “I have a dream” in MLK speech
Repetition
Language that does not mean exactly what it says.Example: I am so mad steam is coming out of my ears!!! If it can’t happen then it usually is a __________ of speech.
Figurative Language
A phrase made up of two seemingly opposite words. Example: Cruel kindness or dumb smarts
Oxymoron
A question not meant to be answered.Example: “Why can’t you all just get along?”
Rhetorical Question