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Short Story Unit
Literary Terms
Fiction
 Fiction is prose writing that tells
about imaginary characters and
events.
 Some fiction is entirely made-up,
while other fiction is based on real
events and/or people
Setting
 The setting of the

literary work is the
time and place of the
action.

Time can include not only
the historical period—past,
present, or future—but also a
specific year, season, or time
of day.
Place—though usually
physical—may also
involve the social,
economic, or cultural
environment of the
story
Protagonist
The protagonist is the main
character in a literary work.
He/she is NOT necessarily
the “good guy”, just the main
character
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character or
force in conflict with the main
character
This is NOT necessarily the
“bad guy”, just the person or
thing that is working against the
main character
Conflict
A conflict is a struggle between opposing
forces.
There are two types of conflict:
INTERNAL
-Conflict that
occurs inside
the character
-man Vs. self
EXTERNAL
–Conflict that occurs
outside of the
character
-man Vs. man
-man Vs. nature
-man Vs. society
-man Vs. fate
Symbol

Something that has a literal meaning, but
also stands for or represents an abstract
idea.
Example: The American Flag– on a
literal level, it is just a flag, a piece of
cloth. However, it also stands for this
particular county, for freedom, etc.
Denotation Vs. Connotation

Denotation:
The dictionary
meaning of a word,
independent of
other associations
that the word may
have

Connotation:
The set of ideas
associated with a
word in addition to
the word’s actual,
explicit meaning
Irony

The difference between appearance and
reality, expectation and result.

There are THREE kinds of Irony:
-Verbal Irony: a word or phrase used to suggest the
opposite of its actual meaning
-Dramatic Irony: When there is a contradiction
between what a character thinks and what the
readers know is true
Irony (continued)
-Situational Irony: When an event directly
contradicts expectations of the reader or of
the characters
Dialogue


A dialogue is a
conversation between
characters.
It is often used to
reveal things about a
character’s thoughts,
motivations, and
personality to the
reader, and to
advance the action of
the plot.
Example:
After walking into the
kitchen, Susie cried,
“Mom, how could you
eat the last cupcake?!”
Mom replied, “I was
hungry, and you
weren’t here. It was
delicious, my dear!”
Diction
 Word choice, including vocabulary
used, word appropriateness, and
vividness of language
Mood
 The feeling created in the reader
by a literary work
Tone
 The attitude toward the subject
that an author conveys in a piece of
writing
Purpose
 The author’s reason for writing a
specific piece
(Examples: To entertain, to inform, or
to persuade the reader)
Foreshadowing

Clues in a literary work that suggest events
that have yet to occur
This literary device
helps to create
suspense, keeping
readers wondering
about what will happen
next.
Generalization

A broad principle that is supported by evidence
or particulars
Evidence

Particulars, or details, that lead to generalizations
Evidence
Evidence
Evidence
Evidence
GENERALIZATION
(BIG PICTURE!!!)
Theme
 The central message or insight into life
revealed through a literary work
– This is the deeper meaning, the main
lesson/message/moral that the author
hopes the reader will understand at the
end of the story
Simile
A comparison between two unlike things
using “like” or “as”.
 Similes are used to make descriptions of
objects or people more powerful.

Example:
Without a simile: “It was dark outside.”
With a simile: “The night was as dark as thick,
black velvet.”
Allusion

When one literary work references a wellknown person, place, event, work of art, or
another literary work to make a point.
Example: In Taylor Swift’s song “Love
Story”, she alludes to the play “Romeo
and Juliet” and the novel The Scarlet
Letter to enhance her message.
Metaphor
A comparison between two unlike things,
without using the words “like” or “as”.
 Instead, one thing is spoken of as though it is
something else completely.

Example (from the Langston Hughes poem
“Dreams”):
“…if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly”
Personification

A type of figurative language, where a nonhuman object is given human characteristics
Examples:
-The desk coughed and grunted as I shoved
it across the old wooden floor.
-The tea kettle whistled once the water was
boiling.
Imagery
 The descriptive or figurative language
used in literature to create word pictures
for the reader.
 These word pictures/images, are
created by details of sight, sound, taste,
touch, smell, or movement.
Point of View

The perspective or angle from which a story
is being told

There are several types:
– First-Person-Point-of-View: When the narrator
telling the story is one of the characters, and tells
the story as a personal account
– Third-Person-Point-of-View: When the
narrator is not one of the characters (has no
name, and does not participate in any of the
action of the plot)
Point of View (continued)

There are also two types of Third-PersonPoint-of-View:
– Third-Limited-Point-of-View: When the
narrator sees the world through one character’s
eyes and reveals only that character’s thoughts
– Third-Omniscient-Point-of-View: When the
narrator sees into the minds of all the characters
Dynamic Character

A character that develops and changes
through the course of a story
Example: Ebenezer Scrooge at the
beginning of “A Christmas Carol”, he is a
mean, lonely man that is only interested in
money. By the end of the story, he is
generous, and interested in the “true spirit of
Christmas.”
Static Character

A character that does not change or
develop through the course of the story
Example:
Wile E. Coyote
Characterization

The way a writer reveals a character’s
personality and traits

There are two methods:
– Direct Characterization: The author directly
states a character’s personality and/or physical
traits
– Indirect Characterization: Uses a character’s
thoughts, actions, and feelings, to suggest the
character’s traits.
Narrator
The person
from whose
perspective a
story is told
Round Character

A character that exhibits many traits, faults
as well as virtues
Flat Character

A character who seems to have only a single
personality trait
Fantasy
 A work of
fiction with
characters,
places, and
events that
could not really
exist
Plot
The sequence of events
that make up a story,
usually centering around a
main conflict
The Five Stages of Plot
Exposition
 The first stage of plot!
 In the Exposition, the scene is set:
–this part of the story introduces the
characters, tells the reader the
setting, and provides all of the
necessary background information
Rising Action

The second stage of plot!

This is where the action usually begins. In
the Rising Action, the conflict is introduced
(either between characters, or with an
outside force). This conflict will build up
pressure until the Climax
Climax
 The climax is the
highest point of
conflict in the
story!!

Generally, this is the
point after which
everything is different.
All of the pressure or
events of the Rising
Action have stacked
up to this moment,
when something must
change
Falling Action
 This stage begins the downward
slope the conflict lessens, and the
plot moves towards closure
Resolution/Denouement

In the final stage of plot, the conflict
concludes, and loose ends are tied up.