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Attica High School
Literary Elements Handbook
English – Mr. Simon
I.CHARACTERS:
Main Character:
a character at the center of a story’s action
Minor Character: a character of less importance.
Minor characters
typically do not grow or change in the story; however, they support the main
character.
Dynamic Character:
a character who significantly changes. This
character shows significant change in thinking or behavior throughout the
story and usually as a result of the action of the story.
Static Character:
a character who changes little, if at all. There is
no changed in his/her thinking or behavior throughout the story.
Flat Character:
a character who is not well-developed, does not have
many traits, is easily defined in a single sentence because we know little
about the character. This character is sometimes stereotyped. Most minor
characters are flat.
Round Character:
a well-developed character, who has many traits,
both good and bad. This character is not easily defined because we know
many details about them. They are realistic and life-like. Most major
characters are round.
Stock Character:
person who fits a preconceived notion about a “type”
(Ex. villain, hero, mad scientist, etc.)
Protagonist:
the main character in a drama or literary work; the hero
Antagonist:
principal character in opposition to the protagonist or hero
of a narrative or drama
Foil:
refers to a character that provides a striking contrast (difference)
to a main character.
II.CHARACTERIZATION
Characterization: refers to the creation and development of the
characters.
Direct Characterization:
The author tells you straight out
information.
Ex. He is tall.
Indirect Characterization:
The author shows you information, and
you must make your own conclusions. This is much more colorful and
interesting to read.
Ex. When he walked into the classroom, his head almost hit the top of
the door jam.
CONFLICT
Conflict is the struggle between opposing forces
o
External Conflict refers to a character struggling against
another character or an outside force.
 man vs. man
 man vs. nature
 man vs. society
 man vs. the supernatural / fate
o
Internal Conflict refers to a struggle within a character
 man vs. self
III. PLOT
Plot Layout Worksheet-"the plot triangle"
Take a look at the diagram below. Most short and long fiction can be
broken down to its basic plot elements, what happens in what order,
and what do the characters do or how do they react?
4.
5.
3.
2.
6.
.
1.
1. Exposition: the background information of the story (setting it up;
introducing the characters; what's the "problem")
2. Inciting Incident: the first event that starts the story
3. Rising Action: sequence of events that lead to the climax (How does it build?
How does it get worse? What does the antagonist or protagonist do?)
4. The Climax, or "turning point": the high point in the story (What brings it
about? What's the "final straw?” What's the most important part of the
story?)
5. Falling Action: ties up loose ends; brings story to an end (How is
everybody dealing with it; any final surprises or "twists"?; Does anything still
need to be "fixed?”)
6. Resolution: the end, the conclusion of the story: (Where are they all now?
How have the characters changed or been changed? What's the final
"message," if any?)
IV. SETTING:
Time and place. Be specific as possible.
V. POINT OF VIEW
Point of View:
the perspective from which a story is told. There are
two general divisions of point of view:
1.
first person narrator –
tells the story with the first person
pronoun, “I,” and is a character in the story.
2.
third person narrator –
relates the events with the third
person pronouns, “he,” “she,” and “it”. There are two main types of
third person narrative.
a)
third person omniscient –
the narrator, with god-like
knowledge, presents the thoughts and actions of any or all
characters
b)
third person limited omniscient –
the narrator
presents the feelings and thoughts of only one character,
presenting only the actions of all remaining characters
VI. TONE, MOOD, and ATMOSPHERE
Tone: the author’s attitude towards what he/she is presenting.
The
attitude can be humorous, ironic, sarcastic, loving or spiteful. The author
can be sympathetic towards his characters or scornful of them.
Mood:
the attitude of the characters towards what is happening. I may
be sadness, fear, happiness, etc. In some fiction, the mood may change from
hope to despair, courage to fear, or vice versa.
Atmosphere:
story.
general emotional effect of a story or of a scene from a
Ex. Gloom, horror, joy, bewilderment
VII. THEME: the central idea (or main message) of the work that
author wants the reader to take from the reading.
VIII. FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE:
refers to the use of
words in an imaginative, non-literal sense. The terms below are examples of
figurative language.
o A simile is a comparison using like or as. Examples: She sings like a
bird. The boy was as quick as a jaguar.
o A metaphor is an implied comparison between unlike objects that
does not use like or as. Example: My mind is a dusty closet filled with
cobwebs.
o
personification applies human qualities to objects, ideas or
animals. Example: The cat hummed quietly as it waited for its prey.
o
hyperbole is exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis.
Example:
It will take me seventeen hours to complete my homework.
o
onomatopoeia refers to the use of words that sound like the
things they name. Examples: bang, buzz, crackle, sizzle, hiss . . . .
o
oxymoron is a combination of two contradictory words.
Examples:
deafening silence, a definite possibility
IX. IRONY
Irony refers to the situation or event that is the opposite of what is or
might be expected.
Three types of Irony:
a) Situational Irony: difference between what appears to be and what
really is
b) Dramatic Irony: when the audience knows something that the
characters do not
c) Verbal Irony: to say one thing, but mean something else (Sarcasm)
X. Other Important Literary Elements
Allusion:
a reference to a statement, a person, place or event that is
known from literature or history. Most Common: Bible, Mythology,
Shakespeare
Aside:
a remark in a play meant for the audience
Cliché:
overused phrase that is not original
Comic Relief:
including a humorous character in a serious work
Connotation: is using words to evoke an emotional response.
Examples: The substitute teacher reports that the class was enthusiastic.
The substitute teacher reports that the class was rowdy.
Controlling Idea is the common theme between two pieces of literature.
Critical Lens
is applying the meaning of a quote to a piece of literature.
Denotation:
definition of a word
Diction:
word choice
Euphemism - more agreeable or less offensive
substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept.
From the Greek word for “good speech”
Ex. Saying “earthy remains” rather than “corpse”
Flashback is an interruption in the chronological order of the story.
A
flashback gives the reader scenes from events that occurred earlier than
those in the story.
Foreshadowing refers to clues given by the author that prepare
readers for events that will happen in the story.
Imagery is language that emphasizes the senses and helps the reader see,
hear, feel, smell, and taste things described in the work.
Imply: author gives clues to the reader
Inference is an educated guess based on information given by the author
Juxtaposition: two contrasting elements placed side by side
Metonymy – A term from the Greek meaning “changed
label” or “substitute name.” It is a figure of speech in
which the name of one object is substituted for that of
another closely associated with it.
Ex. substituting “the White House declared” rather
than “the President declared.”
Motivation: what drives a character’s actions
Paradox: A statement that appears to be selfcontradictory or opposed to common sense; however,
contains some degree of truth or validity.
Ex. from Charles Dickens’ Tale of Two Cities: “It was
the best of times, it was the worst of times…”
Pun: a play on the multiple meanings of words
Rhetorical Question: asked for effect and not expected to be
answered
Satire: a style of writing that ridicules human weakness, vice or folly in
order to bring out social reform.
Stereotype: widely used, oversimplified idea or image of a person
Symbolism is the representation of ideas or things by symbols.
A
symbol is something that stands for something else.
Tragic Flaw: defect that brings out the or contributes to the downfall
Tragic Hero: central dignified or noble character with a defect
Understatement: technique to emphasize by saying less that is
actually or literally true
XII: Poetry Terms
Poetry: the most compact form of literature
Allegory:
characters, objects, events or ideas that have symbolic
meanings
Alliteration: repetition of initial consonant sounds
Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds in non rhyming words
Author: the person who wrote the poem
Ballads:
poems that tell a story.
Blank verse: unrhymed poetry written in iambic pentameter
Cacophony: harsh, discordant mixture of sounds
Cinquain:
an unrhymed, five-line poem. Each line has a set number of
words and specific information
Couplet:
a pair of lines that rhyme. The couplet may be complete in itself
or it may be part of a longer poem.
End-Stop line: end of a poetic line with punctuation
Foot: a unit of meter with stressed or unstressed syllables
Free Verse: poems that do not have a regular rhythm (sound more like
conversations)
Haiku:
an unrhymed, five-line poem. Each line has a set number of words
and a specific function.
Iambic: an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable
Iambic pentameter:
A type of meter in poetry, in which there are five
iambs to a line. An example of an iambic pentameter line from Shakespeare's
Romeo and Juliet is "But soft!/ What light/ through yon/der win/dow
breaks?" Another, from Richard III, is "A horse!/ A horse!/ My king/dom
for/ a horse!" (The stressed syllables are in bold.)
Line:
group of words in a poem
Lyric: poem of a single speaker who expresses his thoughts and feelings
Limerick:
a humorous five-line poem. It is made up of 13 beats and has a
rhyme scheme of aabba.
Meter: repetition of a regular rhythmic unit of poetry
Narrative: poems that tell stories
Ode:
A lyric poem of some length, usually of a serious or meditative nature
and having an elevated style and formal stanza structure.
Prose: no form or structure to the writing
Quatrain: four-line poem. Its rhyme scheme may be aabb, abab, abcb, or
abba. Quatrains are often combined to form a long poem.
Refrain:
A phrase, line, or group of lines that is repeated throughout a
poem, usually after every stanza.
Repetition is the repeating of a word or group of words for effect.
Rhyme is the repetition of identical or similar sounds.
o
External rhyme occurs at the end of lines of poetry.
Example:
I am tired today
But I don’t know why
Therefore, I have nothing to say
o
Internal rhyme occurs within a line of poetry.
Example:
o
I need money to buy something funny for my dad.
Rhyme Scheme is the pattern of external rhyme in the poem.
Rhythm is the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.
Sonnet: lyric poem of 14 lines, usually in iambic pentameter
Sound: poets choose and arrange words to create the sounds they want
the reader to hear
Speaker: the voice that talks to the reader
Stanza: group of lines that from a unit of poetry
Verse:
prose).
A single metrical line of poetry, or poetry in general (as opposed to