Literary Terms Record these in a separate section of your binder; add to it throughout the semester

Protagonist The main character Not necessarily the “good” guy Should be complex Note: realistically, all characters are likely to be flawed in some way

Antagonist Opposes the protagonist Not necessarily the “bad” guy Does not have to be human

Discussion: Who is the strongest protagonist/antagonist pair you’ve encountered in a body of work? Literature, film, tv, drama

Foreshadowing When the author gives hints on what is to come

Symbolism When an object represents an idea, theme, or person

Activity What objects symbolize the following: Peace Death Innocence Evil Nobility Fear

Allusion When an author refers to another author’s work (ie. title of a novel, phrases from a book, a song, etc., a historical event, or a place) For example: Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” refers to Romeo and Juliet Twilight alludes to Romeo and Juliet by quoting lines from the play When your mom walks into your room and says, “It looks like WWII in here!” She’s referring to the fact that it looks like a war zone.

Internal conflict: Occurs when a person is struggling within himself his conscience, his fear, or his indecision Man vs. self

External conflict: When a character comes into opposition with another person (antagonist), with the environment, or with anything apart from himself Man vs. Man Man vs. Environment

Suspense The author creates a state of tension for the reader. It makes you wonder: “What’s next?”

Atmosphere/Mood The emotional setting that fills a literary work with the intention of evoking a certain emotion or feeling from the audience.

Tone The attitude of an author toward his/her characters, subject matter and/or audience. Ex. The author may not like the characters, and may make fun of them in a subtle way. Note: Tone is different from mood in that it describes how the author feels about the characters, whereas mood describes how the reader feels when reading the story.

Point of View The perspective from which a story is told Point of view determines what kinds of information are shared with the reader It can also influence how a reader feels about characters and events in a story

Point of view There are different kinds of point of view: First Person: A character from the story narrates using the pronoun I. Second Person: The reader is placed in the story with the use of the pronoun you. Limited Omniscient: The narrator is outside the story and tells the story through the eyes of only one character. The narrator uses the pronouns he and she. Omniscient: The narrator tells the story and accounts for the feelings, motives, and actions of all the characters. The narrator uses the pronouns he and she.

Theme The main idea of a text, expressed directly or indirectly. A theme must be written as a complete sentence. “Friendship” is an idea, but “Friends stick together” is a theme.

Setting The time, place, physical details, and circumstances in which a story takes place.

Character A person portrayed in a novel, short story, or play. Characters can be animals or objects, also, but those are almost always personified.

Character Characters may be classified as: Stock: a character who exemplifies cultural stereotypes through speech, dress, behavior, and relations to other characters. Flat: a character who is two-dimensional and not fully developed. (Having only a few traits or only enough traits to fulfill their function in the work). Round: a character who is three-dimensional and multi-faceted. Dynamic: a character who undergoes a fundamental personality change as a result of the conflicts he or she has endured. Static: a character who does not change in the course of a literary work, regardless of the conflicts he or she endures.