Literary Terms

English 11

The narrative perspective from which a story is told.

Point of view

When a nonhuman thing is talked about as if it were human.

personification

The reason behind a character’s behavior

motivation

A struggle between opposing forces

conflict

The central point or message in a literary work

theme

The turning point in the action

climax

The character or force against which the main

character is pitted

antagonist

Repeated word or phrase, used by writers to call attention to it

repetition

A character that undergoes a significant change throughout the story

Dynamic character

The use of a character’s appearance, words, or actions to reveal something about a character

characterization

A work of literature that is meant to be performed

Drama

A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things, using like or as

simile

When a writer uses hints or clues to indicate events that will occur

foreshadowing

Language that uses words or expressions with a meaning that is different from the literal interpretation; includes similes, metaphors, personification and symbols

Figurative language

When the same consonant is used at the beginning of a series of words, creating a regular sound pattern

alliteration

The attitude a writer takes toward the audience or his or her subject

tone

The use of language that appeals to the senses

imagery

A speech in a dramatic work in which a character speaks his or her feelings aloud; this is to reveal the character’s inner thoughts, feelings, and plans to the audience

soliloquy

The use of a person, place, thing, or event that stands for itself and for something beyond itself as well.

symbolism

The overall atmosphere of a literary work or the feeling the reader gets

mood

When a story is told by a voice outside of the action, not by one of the characters

Third person

The outcome of the conflict in a plot

resolution

A reference in a literary work to a person, place, or thing in history or another work of literature

allusion

The sequence of action and events in a story

plot

When the reader or audience is aware of something that the characters in the story are not aware of

Dramatic Irony

A character who provides a striking contrast to another

character

foil

A literary work that can be interpreted to

reveal a hidden meaning, typically a

moral or political one

allegory

When the author lays the groundwork for

the plot and introduces readers to

the character and setting, and conflict

exposition

A character who remains essentially

the same throughout the story

Static character

The central or main character in a story,

novel, or play

protagonist

When a person uses words to convey the

opposite of the literal meaning of those

words

Verbal Irony

The point of view in which the narrator is a character telling the

story

First person

The time and place in which a story takes

place

setting

A written conversation between two or more people

dialogue

A comparison that does not use like or as

metaphor

A dramatic work that presents the downfall of a character of high status who has a flaw

that leads to his or her destruction

tragedy

When the opposite of what is expected to

happen is what happens

Situational irony