Stover & Bingaman English 9 Short Story Terms
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33 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 plot | sequence of events in a story |
| exposition | provides important background information and introduces the characters |
| inciting incident | event that introduces the central conflict |
| rising action | presents complications that intensify the conflict; builds suspense |
| climax | the turning point in the story and the moment of greatest suspense |
| falling action | shows how the main characters resolve the conflict; reveals the outcome of the story's climax; eases the suspense |
| resolution | reveals the outcome; ties up loose ends |
| protagonist | main character who is involved in the central conflict; character usually changes in some way after the central conflict reaches a climax; character is sometimes a hero |
| antagonist | character who opposes the protagonist |
| characters | individuals who participate in the action of a literary work |
| static | characters who remain the same throughout story |
| dynamic | characters who change in some important way during a story |
| point of view | the method of narration; the lens through which the reader sees the action |
| first person | narrated by the central character in the story |
| third person | narrated as if the action were seen by an objective observer who merely records what happens |
| third person omniscient | an all-knowing narrator who tells not only what happens but also what the characters think and feel |
| setting | the time and place of the action of a story |
| theme | message about life or human nature that the writer wants the reader to understand; central idea in a literary work |
| conflict | a struggle between opposing forces or points of view |
| person vs person | struggle between two individuals |
| person vs nature | struggle between an individual and some natural force or animal |
| person vs society | struggle between an individual and a societal belief |
| person vs self | struggle with conscience, morals or ideas |
| external conflict | a struggle that occurs outside of a character |
| internal conflict | a struggle that occurs within an individual |
| suspense | the excitement or tension that readers feel as they wait to discover how a story ends or a conflict is resolved; the quality that makes the readers eager to know what happens next |
| foreshadowing | hints or clues to suggest events that will occur later in a story |
| verbal irony | a contrast exists when a character knowingly exaggerates one thing and means something else |
| dramatic irony | the contrast between what a character expects and what the audience knows is true |
| situational irony | a contrast between what the audience and a character expect and what actually happens |
| mood | the feeling or atmosphere that a writer creates for a reader |
| third person limited | the narrator tells what only one character thinks, feels, and observers |
| imagery | consists of descriptive words and phrases that create sensory experiences for the reader |
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