Literary Elements

Setting the time and place in which events in a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem take place

Characterization all of the techniques used by an author to help readers understand the personality of the characters in a story

Plot the sequence of events or actions in a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem

Exposition Characters, setting, and sometimes the conflict are all introduced in this part of the plot. Exposition occurs at the very beginning of a story.

Conflict Conflict is the struggle between two forces in a story. Without conflict, there is no plot.

Types of Conflict External Conflict Internal Conflict External conflict occurs when a character struggles against some outside force. Internal Conflict Internal conflict takes place within the mind of a character.

Rising Action the events in a story that lead up to the climax. The readers keep wondering what will happen next.

Suspense the quality of a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem that makes the reader or audience uncertain or tense about the outcome of events

Climax the moment of highest tension in a story, when events could go one way or another. It is sometimes known as the “turning point” of the story.

Falling Action the events in the plot that follow the climax and lead to the resolution of the problem.

Resolution the way the story turns out, one way or another. The story now feels finished.

Plot Diagram Climax Resolution Exposition Falling Action Rising Action event event event event Falling Action Rising Action event event Resolution Exposition

Protagonist the central character of a drama, novel, short story, or narrative poem

Antagonist the rival of the protagonist; the bad guy

Point of View the perspective from which a story is told. Can be first person (I, me) or third person (he, she, it, they, etc.)

Theme the central message of a literary work, expressed as a sentence or general statement about life or human nature.

Foreshadowing the use of hints or clues in a story to suggest future action

Flashback a scene that interrupts the action of a story to show a previous event

Mood Mood is the over-all atmosphere or feeling in a work of literature. The mood of a story or a poem might be sad, serious, lighthearted, solemn, or any one of a number of adjectives that describe feelings.

Authors create mood in various ways: Choice of setting Descriptive details Word choice Characters’ actions, words, and emotions

Tone Tone is the writer’s or speaker’s attitude toward a subject, character, or audience, and it is shown through the author’s choice of words and detail.

An author’s tone can be serious, condescending, humorous, sarcastic, angry, sympathetic, apologetic, sad, etc.

Irony Irony = a contrast between what happens and what is expected, between what is said and what is meant, between what a character knows and what the reader knows (situation, climactic, verbal, dramatic)