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Glossary of Literary Terms allegory alliteration allusion analogy anecdote antagonist antithesis character • flat character • round character • static character • dynamic character • stock character characterization climax composition conflict connotation denotation denouement dichotomy diction epiphany euphemism exposition falling action flashback foreshadowing hyperbole imagery every aspect of a story is representative, usually symbolic, of something else, usually a larger abstract concept or important historical/geopolitical event repetition of initial consonant sound (lovely lake lapping) reference to a famous historical, literary, mythological, or biblical person or event a comparison of two things, alike in certain respects; particularly a method of exposition by which one unfamiliar object or idea is explained by comparing with more familiar objects or ideas a brief narrative detailing an interesting, humorous, or poignant episode or event included within a longer work force or character opposing the main character opposition, or contrast of ideas or words in a balanced or parallel construction, used for emphasis acts out the plot of the story • shows only one or two traits • complex and many-sided character • character that does not change or grow in the story • character that changes or grows in the story • stereotyped character methods the author uses to reveal the characters • by what the character does • by what the character says • by what other characters say about him/her • by what the narrator says the point of greatest excitement or intensity; the turning point of the story arrangement of information to form a unified whole; argumentation, description, exposition, and narration; each may be used alone, but more frequently appear in combination; expository structures include analysis, classification, comparison, definition, identification, and illustration the problem, struggle, or clash the main character faces and must act to resolve • external conflicts = Man v. Man; Man v. Nature; Man v. Society; Man v. Supernatural; Man v. Technology • internal conflict = Man v. self the implied meaning of a word; the cluster of implications that words carry and may be… • private and personal, the result of individual experience • group (national, linguistic, racial, gender, age) • general or universal, held by all or most people the specific or exact meaning of a word, independent of its emotional coloration or associations outcome or resolution of the conflict a classification into two opposed parts or subclasses; division into two; especially, the division of a class into two subclasses opposed to each other by contradiction (the dichotomy between eastern and western culture) accurate, careful use of words to convey particular meaning; the way words are combined constitutes style rather than diction an event in which the essential nature of something—a person, a situation, an object—is suddenly perceived; the quick flash of recognition in which something is seen in a new light substitution of an agreeable or at least non-offensive expression for one whose plainer meaning might be harsh or unpleasant the background of the story the plot action that takes place as a result of the turning point; leads toward the resolution interruption of the chronological sequence of the story to reveal something that happened earlier in time hints or clues of actions to come later in the story using exaggeration to achieve effect (I nearly died from embarrassment.) using details which appeal to the senses; make the reader see, hear, smell, taste, feel (The crisp leaves crunched under foot.) irony • dramatic irony • situational irony • verbal irony juxtaposition metaphor mood motif oxymoron paradox parallelism paraphrase pathetic fallacy pathos personification plot poetic justice point of view • first person —central —peripheral • third person —omniscient —limited protagonist reversal rising action satire setting simile syntax stream of consciousness symbol theme tone tragedy understatement difference between the actual result and the expected result; what is expected is opposite of the outcome • the reader or audience knows something the characters do not know • the outcome of an event is different from or opposite of what is expected • what is said is opposite of what is meant to be placed side by side, especially for comparison or contrast implied comparison between two things without using like or as (The car is a lemon.) the emotional atmosphere or feeling created in the story an intentional recurring image, phrase, object, situation, or action that unifies the work literal meaning is “pointedly foolish”; two contradictory terms paired for sharp emphasis (“cheerful pessimist”; “wise fool”; “eloquent silence”) a seemingly contradictory or absurd statement that is nevertheless true; used for emphasis a structural arrangement of parts of a sentence, sentences, paragraphs, and larger units of composition by which one element of equal importance with another is similarly developed and phrased; coordinate ideas should have coordinate presentation a restatement of an idea in such a way as to retain the meaning while changing the diction and form assigning the moods and passions of humans to nature such that nature seems to reflect human emotions (Skies weeped during the funeral.) the quality in art and literature which stimulates pity, tenderness, or sorrow in the reader or viewer a comparison technique in which human characteristics are given to non-human things (The fire scrambled up the tree and gnawed at the branches.) the sequence of events in a story; what happens; includes exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and denouement or resolution the ideal judgment which rewards virtue and punishes vice; the logical and motivated outcome of the given conditions and terms of the tragic plan as presented in the earlier acts of the drama the angle from which the author tells the story • a character tells the story (I) —told by the main character —told by a minor character • narrator tells the story (He, She, They) —narrator is all-knowing about all characters & places; can go into all characters’ minds —narrator is limited in knowing one character; can go into one character’s mind the main character the change in fortune for the protagonist in a dramatic or fictional plot part of the story that moves toward the climax; relies on a complication of the plot a blend of criticism with humor and wit directed at human institutions or human frailty in an effort to inspire remodeling; not to be confused with invective, sarcasm, irony, or parody where and when the story takes place; time and place includes duration and movement stated comparison between two things using like or as (His hands are as rough as sandpaper.) designates the way in which words can be arranged and modified to construct sentences; writers characteristically use syntactic sub-ordination when they aim for a highly formal effect, and syntactic co-ordination when they aim for a simpler, more straight-forward effect. a narrative technique that • attempts to capture the continuous flow of a character’s mental process; • mingles sense perceptions with conscious and half-conscious thoughts and memories, experiences, feelings, and random associations; • often mixes references to present, past, and future timelines; • does not resort to objective description or conventional dialogue a concrete object that has meaning in itself and that also represents an abstract idea the universal idea of a literary work; the message the story conveys the attitude of the writer toward his/her subject; examples of words that describe tone: intimate, didactic, solemn, playful, sarcastic, ironic, bitter, condescending, inspirational, sentimental, maudlin, somber, serene, outraged, baffled, optimistic, cynical, ambivalent a drama about an important and causally related series of events in the life of a person of significance with such events culminating in an unhappy catastrophe, the whole treated with great dignity and seriousness and intended to arouse pity and fear in the audience a form of irony in which something is intentionally represented as less than in fact it is