Elements of Lit

8/3/2019 Elements of Lit

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Elements of Literature

These are terms that we will commonly refer to throughout the year. Please

take careful notes and ask questions for clarification. Add any examples or

abbreviated anecdotes to help you to make connections.

Plot:is the sequence of events in a story. It is the writers plan for what happens,

when, and to whom.

Point of View: is the perspective from which a story is told. In first personpoint

of view the narrator is a character in the story.Because the narrator is one of the

characters, he or she uses pronouns such as I, me, and we.In third person limited

point of view, the narrator is not a character in the story. Consequently the

narrator uses pronouns such ashe and she. 3rd person omniscient=all knowing,

even know thoughts.

Setting: is the time and place of the action of the story. This includes the time

period, time of day, and season.

Exposition: is the part of the plot that provides necessary background information

and that introduces the setting and most important characters.

Inciting Incident: is the event that introduces the conflict and sets in motion theplot of the story.

Conflict: is a struggle between two forces. This struggle creates tension and

suspense and is an essential ingredient in every play or story. A conflict may be

internal or external.

-An internal conflict takes place within a character.

An external conflict takes place between a character and another individual or

between a character and an outsideforce such as nature.

Complication: is an event that heightens, or complicates, a conflict that has

already been introduced.


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Climax: is the high point of interest or suspense in a story or play. It is the moment

where the outcome of the story suddenly becomes clear. The climax comes near

the end of the story, with action and suspense building to an emotional peak.

Resolution: is the point at which the conflict in a literary work ends. The

resolution occurs at the end of the story (perhaps in only a paragraph) when all the

struggles are over and we know what is going to happen to the people in the story.

The resolution closes the story.

Theme: Theme is the main orcentral idea in a work of literature. It is not the

same as a subject. The subject of a work can usually be expressed in a word or

two: love, childhood, death.

The theme is the idea the writer wishes to convey about that subject. A works

theme is not usually stated directly. Most often, the reader has to thinkof all theelements of the work and use them to make an inference about what the theme is.

*The THEME must always be expressed in a statement or sentence.

Literary techniques

Foreshadowing: Foreshadowing is the technique of hinting about something that

has not yet happened.Foreshadowing creates suspense and makes the reader want

to find out what will happen in the story.

Figurative language

Personification: Personification is the giving of human qualities to an object,

animal, or idea. Here are some examples of personification from James Weldon

Johnsons poem, The Creation

The pine tree pointed his finger to the sky,and the oak spread out his arms,

and the lakes cuddled down in the hollows

of the ground


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Simile: A simile is a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two things

using an explicit word such as like, as, than, orresembles

And the night shall be filled with music,

And the cares, that infest the day,

Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs,

And as silently steal away.

-Longfellow

Metaphor: A metaphor is figure of speech that makes a comparison between two

things in which one thing becomes another thing without the use of the words like,

as,than, orresemblesMy love is a red, red rose

Alliteration: The repetition of the same consonant sounds in words that are closetogether in a poem, or the repetition of consonant sounds that are very familiar.

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt

and flutter,

In there stepped a stately Raven of the stately days of

yore.

-Poe

Onomatopoeia:Onomatopoeia is the use of a word whose sound imitates or

suggests its meaning. Onomatopoeia is so natural to us that we begin using it

instinctively as children. Crackle, pop, hiss, fizz, click, zoom, and chirp are all

examples of onomatopoeia.

Hyperbole: An exaggeration used for an effect. My Grandmother is at least seven

hundred years old.

Documents

Elements of Lit