Terms : Hide Images
| 8368057192 | plot | the main events of a play, novel, movie, or similar work, devised and presented by the writer as an interrelated sequence. | 0 | |
| 8368057193 | conflict | any struggle between opposing forces. Usually, the main character struggles against some other force. | 1 | |
| 8368057194 | exposition | a comprehensive description and explanation of an idea or theory. | 2 | |
| 8388300242 | inciting incident | an episode, plot point or event that hooks the reader into the story. This particular moment is when an event thrusts the protagonist into the main action of the story. | 3 | |
| 8388300243 | rising action | when a series of events build toward the point of greatest interest | 4 | |
| 8388300244 | climax | the most intense, exciting, or important point of something; a culmination or apex. | 5 | |
| 8388300424 | falling action | the parts of a story after the climax and before the very end (like in Romeo and Juliet, when the Capulets are getting ready for Juliet's wedding and stuff before the lovers kill themselves) | 6 | |
| 8388305041 | resolution | he part of a story's plot line in which the problem of the story is resolved or worked out. This occurs after the falling action and is typically where the story ends. | 7 | |
| 8388305042 | denouement | the final part of a play, movie, or narrative in which the strands of the plot are drawn together and matters are explained or resolved. | 8 | |
| 8388305043 | in media res | into the middle of a narrative; without preamble. | 9 | |
| 8388309293 | flashback | a scene in a movie, novel, etc., set in a time earlier than the main story. | 10 | |
| 8388309294 | foreshadowing | be a warning or indication of (a future event). | 11 | |
| 8388372401 | protagonist | the leading character or one of the major characters in a drama, movie, novel, or other fictional text. (like how Batman is the protagonist of Batman) | 12 | |
| 8388372402 | antagonist | a person who actively opposes or is hostile to someone or something; an adversary. (like how Joker is the antagonist to Batman) | 13 | |
| 8388372403 | bildungsroman | a novel dealing with one person's formative years or spiritual education. (Their eyes were watching God is this) | 14 | |
| 8388372484 | epiphany | when a character has a sudden insight or realization that changes his or her understanding | 15 | |
| 8388376715 | characterization | the creation or construction of a fictional character. | 16 | |
| 8388376716 | static | a literary or dramatic character who undergoes little or no inner change; a character who does not grow or develop | 17 | |
| 8388376717 | dynamic | a literary or dramatic character who undergoes an important inner change, as a change in personality or attitude | 18 | |
| 8388379684 | round character | a character who is extremely realistic, behaving and speaking in a "real life" manner. The character is complex and increases in complexity throughout the story. | 19 | |
| 8388379685 | flat character | a character who is two-dimensional in that they are relatively uncomplicated and do not change throughout the course of a work. | 20 | |
| 8388379686 | foil | a character who contrasts with another character —usually the protagonist— to highlight particular qualities of the other character. (i.e. henry to frankenstein) | 21 | |
| 8388379687 | stock character | a stereotypical fictional character in a work of art such as a novel, play, or film, whom audiences recognize from frequent recurrences in a particular literary tradition | 22 | |
| 8388383455 | direct characterization | how an author tells his or her reader about a character | 23 | |
| 8388383456 | indirect characterization | the process by which the writer shows the character's personality through speech, actions and appearance. | 24 | |
| 8388383457 | point of view | the narrator's position in relation to the story being told. | 25 | |
| 8388386303 | reliable | A main characteristic of a reliable narrator is his or her proximity in values to the implied author. The fictional truth of the narrative is typically related to readers via this reliable narrator, so this narrator should demonstrate a breadth of knowledge of situations and characters | 26 | |
| 8388402946 | unreliable | a narrator, whether in literature, film, or theatre, whose credibility has been seriously compromised. | 27 | |
| 8388402947 | second-person POV | when the narrator says "you" as a means of point of view | 28 | |
| 8388406497 | first person POV | when the narrator says "i" or "me" as a means of point of view | 29 | |
| 8388406498 | third person POV | when the narrator says "he" "she" "they" etc. as a means of point of view | 30 | |
| 8388406499 | objective | a thing aimed at or sought; a goal. | 31 | |
| 8388408970 | omniscient | the narrator knowing everything. | 32 | |
| 8388408971 | limited omniscient | when the narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of one character. | 33 | |
| 8388408972 | narrative frame | a literary technique that sometimes serves as a companion piece to a story within a story, whereby an introductory or main narrative is presented, at least in part, for the purpose of setting the stage either for a more emphasized second narrative | 34 | |
| 8388414657 | setting | the place or type of surroundings where something is positioned or where an event takes place. | 35 | |
| 8388414658 | Theme | 36 | ||
| 8388438789 | Allusion | an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference. | 37 | |
| 8388438790 | Analogy | a comparison between two things, typically for the purpose of explanation or clarification. | 38 | |
| 8388438791 | Aphorism | a pithy observation that contains a general truth, such as, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it.". | 39 | |
| 8388438891 | Apostrophe | a term used when a speaker directly addresses someone or something that isn't present in the poem. The speaker could be addressing an abstract concept like love, a person (dead or alive), a place, or even a thing, like the sun or the sea. i.e. hamlet: [holds up skull] alas poor yorick! | 40 | |
| 8388441493 | Cliche | a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought. | 41 | |
| 8388441494 | Conceit | a kind of metaphor that compares two very unlike things in a surprising and clever way. Often, conceits are extended metaphors that dominate an entire passage or poem. | 42 | |
| 8388445707 | Understatement | the presentation of something as being smaller, worse, or less important than it actually is. | 43 | |
| 8388454757 | euphemism | a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing. | 44 | |
| 8388454758 | Hyperbole | exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally. | 45 | |
| 8388454759 | litotes | ironic understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary (e.g., you won't be sorry, meaning you'll be glad ). | 46 | |
| 8388454760 | Malapropism | the mistaken use of a word in place of a similar-sounding one, often with unintentionally amusing effect, as in, for example, "dance a flamingo " (instead of flamenco ). | 47 | |
| 8388459201 | Metaphor | a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. | 48 | |
| 8388459202 | Simile | a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion, crazy like a fox ). | 49 | |
| 8388462028 | Metonymy | the substitution of the name of an attribute or adjunct for that of the thing meant, for example suit for business executive, or the track for horse racing. | 50 | |
| 8388462029 | Synecdoche | a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa, as in Cleveland won by six runs (meaning "Cleveland's baseball team"). | 51 | |
| 8388466632 | Mixed metaphor | a combination of two or more incompatible metaphors, which produces a ridiculous effect (e.g., this tower of strength will forge ahead ). | 52 | |
| 8388503565 | Dead metaphor | a figure of speech which has lost the original imagery of its meaning due to extensive, repetitive, and popular usage | 53 | |
| 8388503566 | onomatopoeia | the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (e.g., cuckoo, sizzle ). | 54 | |
| 8388503567 | Paradox | a seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when investigated or explained may prove to be well founded or true. | 55 | |
| 8388506198 | Oxymoron | a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction (e.g., faith unfaithful kept him falsely true ). | 56 | |
| 8388506199 | Personification | the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form. | 57 | |
| 8388506200 | Pun | a joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word or the fact that there are words that sound alike but have different meanings. | 58 | |
| 8388509391 | Syllogism | an instance of a form of reasoning in which a conclusion is drawn (whether validly or not) from two given or assumed propositions (premises), each of which shares a term with the conclusion, and shares a common or middle term not present in the conclusion (e.g., all dogs are animals; all animals have four legs; therefore all dogs have four legs ). | 59 | |
| 8388509392 | Rhetorical question | a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer. | 60 | |
| 8388509393 | Synesthesia | the production of a sense impression relating to one sense or part of the body by stimulation of another sense or part of the body. | 61 | |
| 8388512775 | Tautology | the saying of the same thing twice in different words, generally considered to be a fault of style (e.g., they arrived one after the other in succession ). | 62 | |
| 8388512776 | Alliteration | the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words. | 63 | |
| 8388512777 | Verbal irony | irony in which a person says or writes one thing and means another, or uses words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of the literal meaning | 64 | |
| 8388516577 | Dramatic irony | the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect. | 65 | |
| 8388516578 | Situational irony | irony involving a situation in which actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was expected. (mrs. kuhn's favorite: fireman's house burning down) | 66 | |
| 8388519728 | Loose or cumulative sentence | a type of sentence in which the main idea (independent clause) is elaborated by the successive addition of modifying clauses or phrases. Like "I went to the movies yesterday, bought candy, and shopped at the mall." | 67 | |
| 8388519729 | Periodic sentence | a stylistic device employed at the sentence level, described as one that is not complete grammatically or semantically before the final clause or phrase. | 68 | |
| 8388519730 | Balanced sentence | a sentence made up of two parts that are roughly equal in length, importance, and grammatical structure, as in the advertising slogan for KFC: "Buy a bucket of chicken and have a barrel of fun." | 69 | |
| 8388550780 | Telegraphic sentence | a concise sentence typically containing five words or less. | 70 | |
| 8388550781 | Inversion / anastrophe | Yoda :-) | 71 | |
| 8388550782 | Juxtaposition | the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect. | 72 | |
| 8388550834 | Repetition | the action of repeating something that has already been said or written. | 73 | |
| 8388554322 | Rhetorical fragment | sentence fragment used to deliberately for a persuasive purpose or to create a desired effect | 74 | |
| 8388554323 | Anaphora | the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses. | 75 | |
| 8388557393 | Asyndeton | the omission or absence of a conjunction between parts of a sentence. | 76 | |
| 8388557394 | Chiasmus/Antimetabole | a rhetorical or literary figure in which words, grammatical constructions, or concepts are repeated in reverse order, in the same or a modified form; e.g. 'Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds.'. | 77 | |
| 8388557395 | Polysyndeton | a literary technique in which conjunctions (e.g. and, but, or) are used repeatedly in quick succession, often with no commas, even when the conjunctions could be removed. | 78 | |
| 8388561277 | Stichomythia | dialogue in which two characters speak alternate lines of verse, used as a stylistic device in ancient Greek drama. | 79 | |
| 8388561278 | Zeugma | a figure of speech in which a word applies to two others in different senses (e.g., John and his license expired last week ) or to two others of which it semantically suits only one (e.g., with weeping eyes and hearts ). | 80 | |
| 8388561279 | Antithesis | a figure of speech in which an opposition or contrast of ideas is expressed by parallelism of words that are the opposites of, or strongly contrasted with, each other, such as "hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins". | 81 | |
| 8388561280 | Anacoluthon | a sentence or construction that lacks grammatical sequence, such as while in the garden, the door banged shut. | 82 | |
| 8388564723 | Elegy | a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead. | 83 | |
| 8388564724 | Satire | the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. | 84 | |
| 8388564725 | Adage | a proverb or short statement expressing a general truth. | 85 | |
| 8388564726 | Allegory | a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. | 86 | |
| 8388568342 | Epigram | a pithy saying or remark expressing an idea in a clever and amusing way. | 87 | |
| 8388568343 | Epigraph | an inscription on a building, statue, or coin. | 88 | |
| 8388568344 | Epitaph | a phrase or statement written in memory of a person who has died, especially as an inscription on a tombstone. | 89 | |
| 8388571467 | Epithet | an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned. | 90 | |
| 8388571468 | Eulogy | a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly, typically someone who has just died. | 91 | |
| 8388571469 | Fable | a short story, typically with animals as characters, conveying a moral. | 92 | |
| 8388571470 | Legend | a traditional story sometimes popularly regarded as historical but unauthenticated. | 93 | |
| 8388574366 | Maxim | a short, pithy statement expressing a general truth or rule of conduct. | 94 | |
| 8388574367 | Myth | a traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or explaining some natural or social phenomenon, and typically involving supernatural beings or events. | 95 | |
| 8388574368 | Parody | an imitation of the style of a particular writer, artist, or genre with deliberate exaggeration for comic effect. | 96 | |
| 8388574369 | Parable | a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, as told by Jesus in the Gospels. | 97 | |
| 8388574370 | Homily | a religious discourse that is intended primarily for spiritual edification rather than doctrinal instruction; a sermon. | 98 |
