Midterm exam study guide Literary terms
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Created by:
jenng14 on January 26, 2011
Description:
english 9
Classes:
Study shiz, math , his, spanish, la
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30 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 action | series of events or happenings in a story |
| allusion | a reference to a well known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art |
| Antagonist | a character or force in conflict with the protagonist |
| characterization | the act of creating and developing a character; could be direct or indirect |
| climax | the high point of interest or suspense in a literary work |
| conflict | a struggle between opposing forces; could be internal or external |
| connotation | an association or emotional feeling that a word calls to mind |
| denotation | the literal meaning of a work; its dictionary definition |
| dialogue | a conversation between characters |
| diction | a writer's or speaker's word choice; may be formal, informal, plain, etc. |
| exposition | the beginning of a story where characters and setting are introduced |
| falling action | events that follow the climax of a story and lead to its resolution |
| flashback | a selection of a literary work that interprets the story to relate to an event from an earlier time |
| foreshadowing | clues that suggest events that haven occurred yet |
| Genre | a division or "type" of literature |
| imagery | descriptive language used to create word pictures for the reader; appeals to our five senses |
| irony | a contrast between what is stated and what is meant or between what is expected to happen and what actualy happens |
| metaphor | a figure of speech in which two unlike things are compared |
| mood | the feeling created in the reader by a literary work |
| narrator | a speaker or character who tells the story |
| plot | the sequence of events in a literary work. includes the exposition through the resolution |
| Point of veiw | the perspective from which a story is told |
| protagonist | the main character in a literary work |
| resolution | the end of a story; events come to a reasonable conclusion |
| rising action | leads up to the climax; the part of the plot where the conflict intensifies |
| setting | the time and place of an action |
| simile | a figure of speech that makes a direct comparison using like or as |
| suspense | a feeling of growing uncertanty about the outcome of events in a literary work |
| symbol | anything that stands for or represents something else |
| theme | the central message or insight into life revealed by a literary work |
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