| A | B |
|---|
| character | a person (or creature) responsible for thoughts and actions within a story. |
| characterization | the way the author makes a character realistic, through description and by the characters thoughts, words, and actions |
| plot | the series of events in the story |
| conflict | the struggle between opposing forces; usually between the main character and some other force. The MAIN CONFLICT is what puts the PLOT into action and gives us a story. WITHOUT CONFLICT, THERE IS NO STORY. |
| climax | the turning point of the story where the CONFLICT IS RESOLVED. Ususally, this is the HIGHEST POINT OF INTEREST or SUSPENSE. |
| point of view | PERPSECTIVE from which the story is TOLD |
| 1st person point of view | the NARRATOR is an ACTIVE CHARACTER in the story (you see FIRST PERSON PRONOUNS outside of quotation marks.) |
| 3rd person point of view | narrator is an OBSERVER OUTSIDE the action of the story. (There are no first person pronouns outside of quotation marks.) |
| setting | the LOCATION (place) and TIME during which a story happens. Setting is important because it affects characters' choices and reactions. |
| irony | the CONTRAST between what is EXPECTED and what REALLY IS. (EXAMPLE: A windshield repairman with a busted windshield is ironic--it's the OPPOSITE of what you'd expect). |
| theme | the underlying message the author wants the reader to understand from his/her work. (This is NOT ALWAYS what the story is "about." Examples: A theme in 'Crossing the Wire' is responsibility to one's family.) |
