Literary Terms We will be using these literary terms throughout the school year. There WILL be literary terms used on your FINAL EXAMS in May!! Don’t lose your terms! You might be able to use them – be RESPONSIBLE!!

We will use the following literary terms: Character AntagonistPlot Static character Protagonist Motivation Dynamic character FlashbackTheme Conflict ForeshadowingTone Internal Conflict SettingPoint of View External Conflict Inciting Incident

Character A character is a person or an animal that takes part in the action of a literary work.

Dynamic character A character that changes and grows throughout the story. Static character a character that does not change. *Think about the movie Despicable Me, who is a dynamic character? Who is a static character?

Antagonist The Antagonist is a character or force in conflict with a main character, or protagonist.

Do you know your Antagonists??? On your paper take a few minutes to write down some Antagonists that you can recall from movies, television shows, and video games. On your paper take a few minutes to write down some Antagonists that you can recall from movies, television shows, and video games. Remember the Antagonist is in conflict with the Protagonist or, main character! Remember the Antagonist is in conflict with the Protagonist or, main character! Helpful hint – you should now know why people use the saying “Don’t antagonize me!” Helpful hint – you should now know why people use the saying “Don’t antagonize me!”

Protagonist The Protagonist is the main character in a literary work The Protagonist is the main character in a literary work * Can you name some famous Protagonists that are found in literature? (Think about our short story The Most Dangerous Game)

Plot Plot is the sequence of events. The first event causes the second, the second causes the third, and so forth In most novels, dramas, short stories, and narrative poems, the plot involves both characters and a central conflict.

PLOTLINE Exposition Resolution Rising Action Climax Falling Action Conflict Introduced

Inciting Incident the event or decision that begins a story's problem.

Conflict Conflict is the struggle between opposing forces in a story or play. There are two types of conflict that exist in literature.

External Conflict External conflict exists when a character struggles against some outside force, such as another character, nature, society, or fate. Man vs. Man Man vs. Nature

Internal Conflict Internal conflict exists within the mind of a character who is torn between different courses of action. Man vs. Himself

Flashback A flashback is a literary device in which an earlier episode, conversation, or event is inserted into the sequence of events. Often flashbacks are presented as a memory of the narrator or of another character.

The movie Titanic is told almost entirely in a flashback. What are some other films that contain flashback to help tell stories? Holes Willy Wonka Think of some more… Flashback continued…

Foreshadowing Foreshadowing is the author’s use of clues to hint at what might happen later in the story. Writers use foreshadowing to build their readers’ expectations and to create suspense. This is used to help readers prepare for what is to come.

Can you think of an element of foreshadowing?

Point of View Point of View is the perspective, or vantage point, from which a story is told. It is the relationship of the narrator to the story. First-person is told by a character who uses the first-person pronoun “I”. * Can you think of other pronouns that might be used in first person point of view? Third-person limited point of view is the point of view where the narrator uses third-person pronouns such as “he” and “she” to refer to the characters.

Setting The setting of a literary work is the time and place of the action. The setting includes all the details of a place and time – the year, the time of day, even the weather. The place may be a specific country, state, region, community, neighborhood, building, institution, or home. Details such as dialect, clothing, customs, and modes of transportation are often used to establish setting. In most stories, the setting serves as a backdrop – a context in which the characters interact. The setting of a story often helps to create a particular mood, or feeling.

Theme The theme of a literary work is its central message, concern, or purpose. A theme can usually be expressed as a generalization, or general statement, about people or life. The theme may be stated directly by the writer although it is more often presented indirectly. When the theme is stated indirectly, the reader must figure out the theme by looking carefully at what the work reveals about the people or about life.