1. Short Story Terms Kelly Road English Department – English 8

2. Plot What happens in a story Kelly Road English Department – English 8

3. Exposition Tells background information – time, place, etc. Sets up plot events Kelly Road English Department – English 8

4. Crisis The main problem or troubling event that sets the action going Kelly Road English Department – English 8

5. Rising Action The series of events leading to the climax Kelly Road English Department – English 8

6. Climax The point at which the action and/or tension is at its height Kelly Road English Department – English 8

7. Falling Action The beginning of the end of the story Crisis resolved; character conflicts dealt with Kelly Road English Department – English 8

8. Denouement “day-new-maw” 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 – English 8

9. Protagonist The main character(s) in a story Often seen as “good” Kelly Road English Department – English 8

10. Antagonist The character(s) or force(s) arrayed against the main character Often seen as “bad” Kelly Road English Department – English 8

11. Setting The place and time in which a story occurs Kelly Road English Department – English 8

12. Foreshadowing Hints given in the plot about what is going to happen later Kelly Road English Department – English 8

13. Dilemma A choice that a character must make between 2 unpleasant outcomes Dilemmas are often hard choices that involve decisions about what is right and wrong Kelly Road English Department – English 8

14. Symbolism When an important person, place or thing in a story represents both itself, and something else Kelly Road English Department – English 8

15. Suspense A feeling of tension that builds throughout the plot Usually linked to what will happen at the climax Kelly Road English Department – English 8

16. Flashback A scene inserted into the plot that shows events that occurred at an earlier time Kelly Road English Department – English 8

17. Conflict General term for negative interactions between characters Kelly Road English Department – English 8

18. Internal Conflict 1.Internal – struggle inside a character’s mind or self = Person vs. Self Kelly Road English Department – English 8

19. 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 – English 8

20. Characterization Round – character has many traits Flat – character has few traits Kelly Road English Department – English 8

21. Characterization Dynamic – character’s traits change over time Static – character’s traits do not change over time Kelly Road English Department – English 8

22. Characterization Stereotype/Stock – character with clichéd traits – 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 – English 8

23. Characterization Motivation – the combination of circumstance and personality that makes a character do what they do Kelly Road English Department – English 8

24. 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 – Third Person Omniscient – “God Mode” – narrator knows characters’ thoughts and feelings Kelly Road English Department – English 8

25. 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 – English 8

26. The End Kelly Road English Department – English 8