Diagnostic of Literary Terms

central message, idea, or concern expressed directly or indirectly in a literary work

character causing the conflict/problem in a story

a character that grows and changes over the course of a story

a reason that explains/partially explains a character's thoughts, feelings, actions, or speech

attitude the writer takes toward their subject or audience such as informal and formal

main character experiencing the conflict/problem in a story

can be internal or external struggle between opposing forces/characters in a story

types of literature: poetry, prose, drama, science fiction, etc

comparison using "like" or "as"

beginning of a story that introduces the characters, setting, and basic situation

a non-human subject is given human characteristics

A character not fully developed or is a stereotype

clearly and directly stated

repetition of first letter sound - Rabbits ruined my roses.

comparison made without using "like" or "as"

anything that stands for or represents something else

a reference to a well-known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art

use of extreme exaggeration

a fully developed character having both faults and virtues the reader knows well

an author's use of clues to hint at what might happen later in the story

understood, but not directly stated

a character who does not undergo a change over the course of a story

creative writing technique used to appeal to the imagination and create visual images

the perspective from which story is told

a situation where the opposite of what is expected to occur or exist does occur or exist

The inciting force of a story is...

the atmosphere or feeling an author creates within the piece of writing

positive or negative emotional feeling a word is associated with or causes

words/phrases that appeal to one or more of the five senses and help create a vivid description

interrupts the sequence of events in order to relate an earlier incident or set of events