Short Story Literary terms
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36 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 internal conflict | a struggle between opposing needs, desires, or emotions within a single character |
| external conflict | a problem or struggle between a character and someone or something outside of the character |
| human vs. self conflict | when the main character in the story has a problem with him or herself |
| human vs. human conflict | as a conflict arising between two or more characters of the same kind |
| human vs. nature conflict | the theme in literature that places a character against forces of nature |
| human vs. supernatural conflict | a theme in literature that places a character against supernatural forces |
| human vs. fate conflict | a theme in which one attempts to break free of a predetermined path before him chosen without his knowledge |
| plot | the sequence of events in a literary work |
| exposition | introduces the characters, setting, and basic situation |
| rising action | the series of conflicts or struggles that build a story toward a climax. |
| climax | the point of highest interest in a literary work |
| falling action | The events after the climax which close the story. |
| resolution | End of the story where loose ends are tied up |
| first person point of view | a character in the story is actually telling the story himself/herself |
| third-person limited point of view | narrator outside the story sees the world through one character's eyes and reveals only that character's thoughts. |
| third person omniscient point of view | narrator knows everything in the story and reveals the thoughts of all the characters |
| flashback | a transition (in literary or theatrical works or films) to an earlier event or scene that interrupts the normal chronological development of the story |
| theme | central idea of a work of literature |
| foreshadowing | the presentation of material in such a way that the reader is prepared for what is to come later in the work |
| symbolism | A device in literature where an object represents an idea |
| irony | the general name given to literary techniques that involve surprising, interesting, or amusing contradictions |
| verbal irony | occurs when what is said contradicts what is meant or thought |
| dramatic irony | occurs when another character(s) and/or the audience know more than one or more characters on stage about what is happening |
| situational irony | occurs when the outcome of a work is unexpected, or events turn out to be the opposite from what one had expected |
| setting | where and when the story takes place |
| characterization | the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character |
| direct characterization | the writer specifically states what a character is like |
| indirect characterization | the writer reveals information about a character and his personality through that character's thought, words, and actions |
| imagery | the use of vivid description to create a picture in the reader's mind |
| mood | the feeling created in the reader by a literary work or passage |
| protagonist | the principal character in a work of fiction |
| antagonist | the character who works against the protagonist in the story |
| dynamic character | one whose character changes in the course of the play or story |
| static character | a character that does not change from the beginning of the story to the end |
| round character | this character is fully developed - the writer reveals good and bad traits as well as background |
| flat character | a character who embodies a single quality and who does not develop in the course of a story |
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