| Term | Definition |
|---|
| abstract | cannot be perceived by the senses |
| concrete | can be perceived by the senses |
| protagonist | the character confronted with the major conflict |
| antagonist | the character opposing the protagonist |
| mood/atmosphere | climate of feeling, or mood, of a literary work |
| characterization | all the means by which an author makes a character known |
| plot (4 parts) | exposition/introduction, rising action/complications, climax, denouement |
| exposition/introduction | beginning of a literary work; introduces setting, characters, mood/atmosphere |
| climax | the conflict is resolved |
| denouement | wraps up loose ends |
| conflict | the clash op opposing forces (person vs. person, nature, society, self) |
| comparison | showing similarities |
| contrast | showing differences |
| denotation | the literal or dictionary meaning of a word |
| connotation | the suggested or associated meanings of a word beyond the literal |
| dialect | the language/speech of a region (diction, syntax, pronunciation, idioms/slang/colloquialisms) |
| diction | the manner in which something is expressed in words; word choice |
| syntax | the grammatical arrangement of words in sentences; sentence structure |
| pronunciation | the manner in which someone utters a word |
| fiction | imaginative prose including short story and novel |
| flashback | when a narrator interrupts the current time frame to relate to events that happened earlier |
| foreshadowing | hints or clues of things to come |
| verbal irony | occurs when the surface meaning of what one said or writes is the opposite of the intended meaning |
| situation irony | exists when the opposite of what is expected or intended occurs |
| dramatic irony | occurs in fiction or drama when the reader or spectator knows more about the true state of affairs than the characters do |
| local color | details of speech, dress, customs, habits, attitudes, occupations, geography of a particular region |
| imagery | mental pictures created through descriptive multi-sense language |
| inference | logical conclusion based on the available evidence |
| point of view | First Person Subjective, First Person Detached, First Person Observer, Third Person Omniscient, Third Person Objective |
| First Person Subjective | the narrator is a major or minor character in the story who reports the events as if they had just happened an who appears to be unaware of the full meaning of events |
| First Person Detached | the narrator is a MAJOR character in the story who recalls the events from a vantage point of maturity and has time to reflect on the full meaning of events. |
| First Person Observer | the narrator is a MINOR character in the story who plays the roles of eyewitness and confidant. His sources of information are what he hears and sees and what the main character tells him. |
| Third Person Omniscient | the narrator is an anonymous person outside the story who plays and all-knowing role. He not only reports on what the characters do and say but also enters the minds of the characters and comments of their actions. |
| Third Person Objective | the narrator is an anonymous person outside the story who reports only on what the character do and say |
| setting | the time and place of a story |
| suspense | tension/uncertainty about the characters |
| symbol | something CONCRETE representing something ABSTRACT |
| tone | author's attitude toward change and events |
| theme | meaning or message of a story |
| dynamic | character who changes basic attitudes/values/principals |
| static | character who doesn't changes basic attitudes/values/principals |
| stereotype | someone possessed of all the traits regarded as typical of a gender, race, nationality, religion, etc. |
| flat | a character whom we know little; underdeveloped |
| round | a character whom we know a lot; developed |
| character foil | minor character who contrasts a major character for the purpose of heightening our impression of the major character |
| romanticism | life as we wish it, rather than it is |
| realism | life as its is without distortion or idealization |
| naturalism | an extremely pessimistic form of realism suggesting individuals are victims of internal and external forces beyond their control (individual is unimportant, no just or loving god, no free will) |
| narrator | person telling the story |
| external forces | emotions, disability, genetics |
| external forces | earthquake, weather, other opinion, environment |
| internal monologue | disassociated thoughts of a character which are captured in a narrative or story |
| dialogue | exchange of talking/conversing between two or more characters |
Combine with other sets
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