General+Resources-+Literary+Elements

= Literary Elements = =**Plot**= = **Exposition** – the introductory material that gives the setting, creates the tone, presents the characters, and present other facts needed to understand the story. = = **Foreshadowing** (see below) = =** Inciting Force ** – the event or character that triggers the conflict = = **Conflict** (see below) = =** Rising Action ** – a series of events that builds from the conflict; begins with the inciting force and ends with the climax. = = **Crisis** – at this point the opposing forces in the story meet and the conflict becomes most intense; the crisis occurs before or at the same time as the climax. = = **Climax** – the result of the crisis; the high point of the story for the reader. Frequently the moment of highest interest and greatest emotion. = = **Falling Action** – the events after the climax that close the story. = = **Resolution (Denouement)** – rounds out and concludes the action. = = = =**Characterization**= = **Major Characters** – ‘round’ or three dimensional characters; they have good and bad qualities; their goals, ambitions and values change; the character changes as a result of what happens to him or her = = **Protagonist** – The main character in the story. = = **Antagonist** – The character or force that opposes the protagonist. = = **Foil** – A character who provides a contrast to the protagonist. = =** Minor Characters **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">– flat or two dimensional characters; they have only one or two striking qualities; usually all-good or all-bad = = = =**Point of View**= =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **First Person** – the narrator is a character in the story who can reveal only personal thoughts and feelings and what he or she sees and is told by other characters. = =**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Third-Person Objective **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – The narrator is an outsides who can report only what he or she sees and hears; this narrator can tell us what is happening, but cannot tell us the thoughts of the characters. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Third-Person Limited** – the narrator is an outsider who sees into the mind of one of the characters. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Omniscient** – the narrator is an outsider who can enter the minds of more than one of the characters. = = = =**Conflict** <span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">– the essence of fiction; creates plot; can be split into four categories = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Man vs. Man** – Conflict that pits one person against another. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Man vs. Nature** – A run-in with the forces of nature. Can express the insignificance of a single human life in the cosmic scheme of things or test the limits of a person’s strength and will to live. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Man vs. Society** – The values and customs by which everyone else lives are being challenged. = =**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Man vs. Self **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – Internal conflict; does a character give in to temptation of rise above it? Does he demand the most from his or her self or settle for something less? = = = =**Foreshadowing**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – an author’s use of hints or clues to suggest events that will occur later in the story. = = = =**Irony**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – the contrast between what is expected or what appears to be and what actually is. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Verbal Irony** – The contrast between what is said and what is actually meant. = =**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Irony of Situation **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – A happening that is opposite of what is expected or intended. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Dramatic Irony** – Occurs when the audience or reader knows more than the characters know. = = = =**Tone/Mood**= =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Tone** – attitude, stated or implied, toward a subject. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Mood** – the climate of feeling in a literary work. = = = =**Setting**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – the context and environment in which something is set. = = = =**Symbolism**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – A person, place or object which has a meaning in itself, but suggests other meanings as well. = = = =**Theme**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – the main idea or underlying meaning of a literary work. = = = =**Imagery**<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – Language that appeals to the senses. = = = =**Figurative Language**= =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Simile** – A figure of speech which involves direct comparison between two unlike things, usually with the words ‘like’ or ‘as.’ = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Metaphor** – A figure of speech which involves an implied comparison between two relatively unlike things using a form of ‘be.’ = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Alliteration** – Repeated consonant sounds occurring at the beginning of words or within words. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Personification** – A figure of speech which gives the qualities of a person to an animal, object or idea. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Onomatopoeia** – The use of words that mimic sounds. = =<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> **Hyperbole** – An exaggerated statement used to heighten effect. =