Introduction to literature literary terms

Prose Prose – any writing that is not poetry; written in sentences and paragraphs essays, short stories, novels, newspaper articles, and letters B.. Poetry Poetry – beautiful thought

Introduction to Literature

Literary Terms

English 8 Mrs Cowan

 I Literature is the author’s

written form of expression that

reflects his views or opinions on life and living.

II There are

II There are three main divisions three main divisions of literature.

A Prose Prose – any writing that is not poetry; written in sentences and paragraphs (essays, short stories, novels, newspaper

articles, and letters)

B

B Poetry Poetry – beautiful thought, image, or emotion, often expressed in rhythmical language and often written according to patterns of lines

 C Drama C Drama (play) – written by a playwright; tells a group of actors what to do or say on stage

 III III There are two kinds of writing There are two kinds of writing in

 literature.

 A Fiction – literature that is not true

1 Short story 1 Short story – a form of prose

fiction that can be read in a single sitting and produces a single effect; few

characters; one setting

 2 Novel 2 Novel – a long work of fiction that

contains more characters, settings, complicated plots, and subplots

B Non-fiction – literature that is

true

1 Biography 1 Biography – a story about a

person written by someone else

2

2 Autobiography Autobiography – a story about a

person written by the person

3 Essay Essay – a short prose

composition about a particular subject

4 4 Article Article – a prose composition

5 5 News writing News writing – prose writing

about recent events

 IV There is a key IV There is a key (or point of emphasis) to each major type of literature.

A

A Novel Novel – unfolding plot

B

B Short story Short story – single character

C Play Play – Struggle or conflict

 V The following list of words are literary terms that we will be

using when discussing or analyzing literature in this class.

A Plot – the events (action) of the

story

1 1 Exposition Exposition (opening situation; conflict or problem ( opening situation; conflict or problem ) – the beginning events; introduces us to the characters, setting, etc.

2 2 Rising action Rising action (complications ( complications ) – the events in the central

part of the story where various problems arise; leads to the climax

 3 Climax – the event that changes the main character; the turning point

 4 Falling action – the event(s) that follow the climax; the action or

dialogue necessary to lead to the

resolution; helps the reader solve

the conflict

 5 Resolution (Denouement) – the

event that happens at the end to help

us solve the conflict

 6 Plotline – a visual that shows the main events (action) of the story

B Conflict – a struggle between

opposing forces; problems and

complications in the story

1 Internal conflict (man vs

himself) – conflict within the character

2 External conflict – a struggle with an outside force or problem

a Man vs Man – one against one

b Man vs Society – one against a social issue or problem

c Man vs nature – one against an element or animal

 d Man vs Supernatural – one against ghosts, fantasies, etc.

C Characterization – the description of people in a story

1 static character – remains the same

2 dynamic character – changes during the story; grows and develop

3 stereotype (consistent) – acts like you would expect

him/her to act

4 protagonist – hero; main character; good guy

5 antagonist – person (force) against the protagonist; the villain; bad guy

D Flashback – info about the past

E Foreshadowing – clues (hints) of what is to come

F Point-of-view – who is telling the story

1 First person – one of the characters in the story is telling the story

2 Third person omniscient – the narrator knows the feeling and thoughts of all the

characters

3 Third person limited omniscient - narrator knows the

feelings and thoughts of one character

4 Third person objective (camera view) – we know what the characters are doing, not what they are thinking or feeling

G Setting – time and place of events

1 Time – when events take place

a Day c Season

b Year d Historical Time

2 Place – where events take place

H Theme – the central message

about life or human nature; a universal truth

I Symbol - an object that stands for an idea or belief

J Irony – a statement, action, or

situation that is the opposite of what it normally means or what is expected

a a verbal irony - say the opposite of what is meant

 b situational irony b situational irony - something happens that is the opposite of what is expected

 c c. dramatic irony – the reader knows something a character doesn’t know

K Mood – the feeling a reader gets

from reading an author’s words (the

overall feeling of a work)

- frightening - joyful

- gloomy - romantic

- happy - suspenseful

L Moral – the lesson taught by a story

M Style – how the author writes; his choice and arrangement of words; his use of language

N Dialect – a non-standard sub-group of a language that often reveals region, economic, or social class

O Suspense – a feeling of anxious uncertainty about the outcome of events

P Realism – actual or possible experiences in a story

Q Tone – the writer’s attitude toward a subject, character, or audience (the way feelings are expressed)

- serious - humorous - angry - ironic - formal

R Diction – a writer’s choice of words

S Syntax – the arrangement of words

in a sentence; how the writer

constructs a sentence

T Imagery – descriptive words and

phrases that appeal to the senses

U Connotation – not the original (dictionary) definition of a word; a cultural meaning

V Denotation – the dictionary

definition of a word

W Idiom – a word or expression peculiar to certain language; means something different that the literal meaning

It’s raining cats and dogs.

X

X Blank verse Blank verse – unrhymed poetry

written in iambic pentameter

Y.

Y Free verse Free verse – poetry that has no

regular pattern of rhythm or rhyme; generally arranged in lines.

Z Affix – a prefix or suffix

AA Prefix – an addition to the

beginning of a word

BB Suffix – an addition to the end of a word

part

DD

FF Alliteration – the repetition of

consonant sounds

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled

GG Assonance – the repetition of

vowel sounds at the beginning of a word Every elephant eats enormous eagles.

 HH Metaphor – comparison of two

unlike things not using the words l like or as

 She is the picture of health.

II. Personification – when an animal or object

is given human qualities.

The trees sighed as the wind blew through them.

JJ Onomatopoeia – words that mimic the sounds they describe.

The bee buzzed around my head.

KK Allusion – a reference from the arts, history, literature, mythology, politics, religion, sports, or science.

LL Inference – an educated guess

 MM Analogy – a comparison using

something that is familiar to explain

something that is unfamiliar.

not a playground.