Literary Elements

Point of View The perspective used to tell a story First Person A story told from the point of view of a character in the story The narrator does not have to be the main character Third Person - Sympathetic A narrator tells the story, but only reveals the thoughts of one character Third Person – Omniscient A narrator who sees all, knows all, and can tell all reveals the story Second Person An uncommon point of view in which the narrator speaks directly to the reader as if he/she were a character

Exposition The primary conflict, location, time, and characters needed to understand a story Exposition exposes, it reveals

Protagonist & Antagonist The main character of the story, the character whose actions and decisions drive the story Antagonist The primary character opposing the main character

External Conflict A struggle between two opposing forces For example… Man vs. Man Individuals in conflict with each other Man vs. Society Individual(s) in conflict with a society and its beliefs Man vs. Nature/Technology Individual(s) in conflict with a non- human force For example… Ulrich and George want to kill each other Jackie Robinson wants to play baseball, but he struggles against racists/racism A man is trapped on a desert island and must struggle to survive

Internal Conflict A struggle taking place within one person’s emotions Often a struggle to decide whether/how to act

Climax The turning point of the story, usually the highest point of physical or emotional action

Irony An outcome or event different from what’s expected Like two men setting out to take action and kill each other…and instead being unable to move trapped under a branch together Like rain on your wedding day if you’re a meteorologist Like a song entitled “Ironic” that actually contains no ironic situations

Symbol An object, animal, or action that represents something other than itself

Theme A lesson or message about life found within the story This is different from a moral or advice “There’s no place like home”