Fiction Terms Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Plot What happens in a story Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Exposition Tells background information Sets up plot events Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Crisis The main problem or troubling event that sets the action going Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Rising Action The series of events leading to the climax Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Climax The point at which the action and/or tension is at its height Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Falling Action The beginning of the end of the story Crisis resolved; character conflicts dealt with Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Denouement French for “unknotting” Loose ends of the plot tied up, either after the climax, or (more commonly) in the very final scenes of the story Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Protagonist The main character(s) in a story Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Antagonist The characters or forces arrayed against the protagonist(s) Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Setting The place and time in which a story occurs Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Foreshadowing Hints given in the plot as to its outcome Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Mood Also called atmosphere or ambience The “feeling” presented in the story through the way the author describes scenes or plot events Eg.: It was a dark and stormy night… Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Tone The author’s attitudes and/or biases that come through in the story, whether in character descriptions, or in their dialogue Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Moral A message the author is trying to give through the story Also, a term that indicates whether or not the actions of the characters are good or just, from a societal perspective Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Dilemma A choice that a character must make between 2 unpleasant outcomes, in response to a plot challenge Dilemmas are often hard choices that involve moral or ethical issues Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Symbolism When an important person, place or thing in a story represents both itself, and something else The secondary representation is generally figurative Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Suspense A feeling of tension that builds throughout the plot Usually linked to what will happen at the climax Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Flashback A scene inserted into the plot that shows events that occurred at an earlier time Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Subplot A secondary plot or story woven in-between the events in the main plot Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Episode A particular incident or event within the main plot of a story Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Indeterminate Ending An ending in which the reader cannot be certain of the outcome Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Surprise Ending An ending which does not naturally follow on from the main points in the plot Most effective when foreshadowed information is revealed to mean something completely different from the reader’s expectations Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Anti-Climax An effect which works against the climax Often acts to bring a lofty tone “down to earth” Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Complication A challenge or hurdle placed in the way of the protagonist Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Epiphany A term for a character’s sudden realization about something Think “lightbulb moment” – a thought or idea that occurs to a character that changes his or her outlook Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Conflict General term for negative interactions between characters Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Internal Conflict 1.Internal – struggle inside a character’s mind or self – person vs. self Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

External Conflict 1.Person vs. Person – conflict between 2 or more characters 2.Person vs. Environment – conflicts between a person and their situation – Nature, society, group, etc. Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Characterization Round – character has many traits Flat – character has few traits Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Characterization Dynamic – character’s traits change over time Static – character’s traits do not change over time Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Characterization Stereotype/Stock – character with clichéd or familiar traits which appears often in especially escapist-type literature – Eg. James Bond, Robin Hood, Wicked Stepmother, etc. Realistic – A character who is NOT based on a stereotypical cliché, but on “real life” Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Characterization Foil – a secondary character whose traits or actions contrast with those of the main character in order to draw attention to them Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Characterization Motivation – the combination of circumstance and personality that makes a character do what they do Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Characterization Presentation – how the author tells the reader about a character: – Direct – the author actually tells the reader about a character’s traits, motivations, etc. – Indirect – the author has other characters tell the reader about another a particular character, or shows us through the character’s actions Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Point of View The viewpoint through which a story is told Types: – First Person – “I” – solely the POV of the narrator; reader only knows as much as narrator Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Point of View The viewpoint through which a story is told Types Cont’d: – Third Person Omniscient – “God Mode” – narrator knows characters’ thoughts and feelings – Third Person Limited Omniscient – narrator knows thoughts and feelings of one character, but not necessarily others Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Point of View The viewpoint through which a story is told Types Cont’d: – Objective/Dramatic – “fly on the wall” – narrator is completely outside the action, and simply relates it as he/she sees it happening. Eg. Reality TV/DVD extras footage, etc. Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11

Theme The central idea or thesis of a story Can be stated directly by the author, or indirectly through the outcome of the plot Kelly Road English Department – Communications 11