| A | B |
|---|
| plot | the series of events a story follows |
| conflict | the struggle between opposing forces |
| suspense | the growing tension and excitement felt by the reader |
| exposition | introduces the characters and presents the setting and conflicts |
| rising action | the part of the story that presents the complications that intensify |
| climax | the story's moment of greatest interest--the point where the conflict is resolved |
| falling action | follows the climax and where the story begins to draw to a close |
| resolution | reveals the final outcome of the conflict "...an they lived happily ever after..." |
| setting | the time and place of the action |
| inferences | logical guesses based on facts and one's own knowledge |
| citing textual evidence | when specific information from the text is provided |
| central idea | the most important idea about a topic that a writer conveys |
| supporting details | the examples, facts, statistics, and anecdotes that provide a basis for the central idea |
| editorial | an opinion piece that usually appears in the opinion and commentary section of a newspaper |
| fact | a statement that can be proved |
| opinion | a statement of belief or feeling; unlike a fact, this cannot be proved |
| claim | the writers position or opinions |
| counterarguments | responses to differing opinions |
| myth | a traditional story that attempts to answer basic questions about human nature, origins of the world, mysteries of nature, and social customs |
| theme | a message about life or human nature |
| poetry | a type of literature in which words are carefully chosen and arranged to create certain effects |
| form | the way the words are arranged on the page |
| line | the main unit of all poems |
| rhythm | a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry; similar to the rhythmic beats in music |
| stanza | lines of poems that are arranged into groups |
| alliteration | the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words, for example "coca cola" |
| author's purpose | the reason the author wrote a particular work |
| textural evidence | information form the text in the form of facts and details |
