| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Direct Characterization | the writer makes direct statements about a character's personality and tells what the character is like. |
| Indirect Characterization | the writer reveals information about a character and his personality through that character's thoughts, words, and actions, along with how other characters respond to that character, including what they think and say about him. |
| Climax | The climax is the result of the crisis. It is the high point of the story for the reader. Frequently, it is the moment of the highest interest and greatest emotion. The point at which the outcome of the conflict can be predicted. |
| Inference | the act or process of inferring: as a : the act of passing from one proposition, statement, or judgment considered as true to another whose truth is believed to follow from that of the former |
| Conflict | the struggle found in fiction. Conflict/Plot may be internal or external and is best seen in (1) Man in conflict with another Man: (2) Man in conflict in Nature; (3) Man in conflict with self. |
| Symbolism | A person, place or object which has a meaning in itself but suggests other meanings as well. Things, characters and actions can be symbols. Anything that suggests a meaning beyond the obvious. |
| Setting | determining Time and Place in fiction. |
| Point of View | the perspective used. |
| Flashback | action that interrupts to show an event that happened at an earlier time which is necessary to better understanding. |
| Irony | an implied discrepancy between what is said and what is meant. |
| Suspense | a feeling of uncertainty and anxiety about the outcome of certain actions, most often referring to an audience's perceptions in a dramatic work. |
| Identify Patterns | look for similarities in literature |
| Simile | the comparison of two unlike things using like or as. Related to metaphor |
| Metaphor | comparison of two unlike things using the verb "to be" and not using like or as as in a simile. |
| Foreshadowing | the use of hints or clues to suggest what will happen later in literature. |
| Hyperbole | exaggeration or overstatement. |
| Rising Action | A series of events that builds from the conflict. It begins with the inciting force and ends with the climax. |
| Theme | the general idea or insight about life that a writer wishes to express. All of the elements of literary terms contribute to theme. A simple theme can often be stated in a single sentence. |
| Exposition | The introductory material which gives the setting, creates the tone, presents the characters, and presents other facts necessary to understanding the story. |
| Falling Action | The events after the climax which close the story. |
| Resolution | Rounds out and concludes the action. |
| Dialogue | The conversation between characters in a drama or narrative. A dialouge occurs in most works of literature. |
| Drawing a Conclusion | to bring everything together and make an assumption |
| Allegory | a form of extended metaphor, in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative, are equated with the meanings that lie outside the narrative itself. The underlying meaning has moral, social, religious, or political significance, and characters are often personifications of abstract ideas as charity, greed, or envy. |
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