LITERARY TERMS

Comm. Skills 9 – Mr. Eckert

*Metaphor

•  is a comparison of two unlike things not using‘like’ or ‘as’. Think of this as renaming something.

•  ex. Her words are butterflies. •  ex. I am an old abandoned house.

*Simile

•  is a comparison between two unlike things using ‘like’ or ‘as’.

•  ex. “You spin a story like a spider spins her web.” - The Format.

Personification

•  is giving human qualities to inanimate objects.

•  ex. The sun smiled down on us. •  ex. The gate squawked closed.

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*Hyperbole

•  is a deliberate and obvious exaggeration used for effect

•  ex. I called you a billion times and you never picked up!

•  ex. I worked a shift that seemed to last forever.

Theme

•  is a broad idea in a story, or a message or lesson conveyed by a work.

•  How to find the theme in a work: o  1. Ask yourself, “What is the work about?”

___________ o  2. Ask yourself, “What about __________?”

•  Theme is NEVER just one word. •  “Love” isn’t a theme / “Love endures all things” is a theme

Characterization

•  The way in which the author develops a character

•  S ays •  T hinks •  E effects on others •  A acts •  L ooks

Point of View

•  is the perspective on events of the narrator or a particular character in a story.

•  1st person: __________________________ •  2nd person: __________________________ •  3rd person: __________________________

Setting

•  is the time and location in which a story takes place.

Conflict

•  The struggle between opposing forces--e.g., CHARACTERS, nations or ideas--that provides the central ACTION and interest in any literary PLOT.

Example: •  The fighting and arguing between Buzz

and Woody in the movie Toy Story.

External Conflict

There are 3 main types of external conflicts: Man (Individual) vs. Man (Individual) Man vs. Nature Man vs. Society

Internal Conflict

Is the complication that happens within a character’s head; it may be a moral dilemma the character is facing, or it may take the shape of a choice or a desire. Why is this important? Internal conflict creates individuality for a character; it sets her apart from the rest of the story and gives a motivation for choosing certain actions.

*Irony

•  incongruity between what actually happens and what might be expected to happen.

•  ex. The fireman’s house burnt down.

*Alliteration

•  is the repetition of initial sounds in neighboring words

•  generally more than 2 words •  ex. “We wink when widows wince...”

Check for Understanding

•  V for Vendetta

Literary Elements - Section Two

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Satire

•  is the use of wit, especially irony, sarcasm, and ridicule, to critique politics and society.

•  ex. South Park •  ex. The Simpsons

Source

Mood

•  is the atmosphere or state of mind of a work.

•  “Cask of Amontillado” is dark and suspenseful

Tone

•  is the author’s attitude toward the subject and/or toward the audience implied in a literary work.

•  Ex: My best friend set me up on a date with a friend of hers. It was dreadful!(negative)

Imagery

•  is writing or language that evokes one or all of the five senses

•  Ex: He fumed and charged like an angry bull.

Symbolism

•  is the use of symbols to represent something abstract by something concrete.

•  Ex: The color white often symbolizes purity.

•  Ex: 13 districts in Hungers Games

Foreshadowing

•  is a literary device in which an author drops subtle hints about plot developments to come later in the story

•  “I could see the smile on his face. It would be the last time I would ever see that smile”

*Allusion

•  is a brief reference to a person, event, or place, real or fictitious, or to a work of art

•  The 3 most common allusions: textual, biblical, and historical

*Allusion (types)

•  Textual—when another text is referenced (Maze Runner)

•  Historical—when a historical event is referenced (World War 2 or Abraham Lincoln)

•  Biblical—when some aspect of the bible is referenced (ex: Judas)

*Literary Elements – Section Three

https://www.google.com/search?q=final+round&safe=active&biw=1253&bih=598&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAWoVChMIj7Gd1_uCyAIVw6A-Ch3uSQxo#safe=active&tbm=isch&q=poe&imgrc=xpN1j58WR_Bq-M%3A

*Flashback

•  Interrupts the sequence of the story to expose an earlier event, conversation, or scene

•  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls0XS6J3fs0

*Plot

•  The entire story (beginning, middle, end) -- the sequence of events that take place in a story

*Elements of Plot

*Plot Diagram

•  Exposition – introduction where characters and setting are revealed

•  Rising Action - The sequence of events that lead to the climax

•  Climax –The highest point or the “a-ha!” moment of the story

*Plot Diagram (continued)

•  Falling Action – The events and complications begin to resolve

•  Resolution – This is how the story ends.

*Repetition

•  Recurring words, phrases, or ideas to

create emphasis

•  “Cask of Amontillado” when Fortunato keeps saying AMONTILLADO!

*Assonance

•  The repetition of vowel sounds with two

or more neighboring words.

•  Ex: And so all the night-tide, I lie down by the side of my darling-my darling-my life and my bride

(repeated “I” sound)