Literary Terms 2021

The main character in a story.

Where an object represents itself but also stands for something else on a figurative level.

The author's central idea or main message. Often it is in the form of a life lesson based on a universal idea.

Where the narrator is outside the story and tells the story from only one character's perspective.

When something different happens other than what the audience expects.

The turning point in a story where the conflict changes.

Giving human characteristics to something that is not human.

Using a literal comparison (not like or as) to compare two unlike things. Ex: It IS something else.

Referring to something well-known or famous.

Simile, metaphor, personification, allusion, juxtaposition, imagery, symbolism, etc. are all examples of...

A struggle or problem in a story.

What the characters are saying, word for word, in a narrative.

When the narrator is telling the story to a specific audience. "You..."

A writer's word choices.

The person telling a story.

The time and place in which a story happens

When the narrator is outside the story and is able to offer perspectives of several characters.

Using like or as to compare two unlike things.

When something happens that is opposite of what is expected.

When a speaker says one thing but means the opposite.

Giving human characteristics to something that is not human.

A sequence of related events that make up a story.

A writer's or speaker's attitude toward a subject, character, or audience.

A conclusion about ideas or information not directly stated (educated guess)

An interruption or transition to a time before the current events in a narrative.

The arrangement of two or more things to highlight their differences.

A type of irony where the reader knows something that the character(s) don't know.

The part of the story where the characters, setting, and conflict are introduced.

Using sensory details (sight, touch, smell, hearing, taste) to describe.