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| Point of View | The Vantage point from which a narrative is told. There are first person and third person points of view. Also, there are third person omniscient and third person limited. |
| Plot | The sequence of events or happenings in a literary work. |
| Conflict | A struggle in the story. The conflict is the most important element of the plot. A conflict can be internal or external. |
| Internal Conflict | A struggle within a character's mind. |
| External Conflict | A clash between two or more characters on the outside. This struggle may be between characters, a character and his society, or a character and nature. |
| Exposition | A part of the rising action. The action of the story is usually introduced in the exposition. |
| Rising Action | The period after the exposition in which a complication is formed. |
| Climax | The clash and turning point of a story. |
| Falling Action | The falling action occurs after the climax and is a more calm part of the story. |
| Resolution | The moment in the plot in which the conflict or problem is ended. |
| Narrator | One who tells the story. |
| Irony | A contrast or an incongruity between what is stated and what is really meant, or between what is expected to happen and what really happens. |
| Dramatic Irony | A situation where the audience or reader understands more than than what the charater is aware of. |
| Verbal Irony | A situation in which a character says one thing, and means something totally different. |
| Situational Irony | An occurence where one thing is expected to happen, yet another thing happens. |
| Theme | The main idea or the basic meaning of a literary work. |
| Foreshadowing | The use of hints and clues in a narrative to suggest what action is to come. |
| Simile | A comparison made between two very dissimilar things through the use of a specific word of comparison. Main words used are like, as, or resembles. |
| Characterization | The personality a character displays in a story. Also, the means by which an author reveals that personality. Writers develop characters by using inderect or direct characterization. |
| Paradox | A statement that initially appears contradictory but then, upon closer inspection, makes sense. |
| Pseudonym | A false name or alias used by a writer desiring not to use his real name |
| Parody | A humerous imitation of another more serious work |
| Satire | The literary art of ridiculing a folly or vice in order to expose or correct it (people, institutions, ideas) |
| Utopia | An ideally perfect place, especially in its social, political and moral aspects |
| Vernacular | The everyday language spoken by a people distinguished from the literary language |
| Euphemism | The substitution of a mild or less negative word or phrase for a harsh or blunt one |
| Existentialism | A philosophy that points out the absurdity and meaninglessness of existence |
| Allusion | A reference to a person, place, an event, or a literary work that a writer expects the reader to recognize |
| Anecdote | A very short story that is told to make a point |
| Antagonist | A person or force opposing the protagonist in a drama or narrative |
| Analogy | A comparison made between two things to show the similarities between them |
| Direct Characterization | A direct statement revealing the writer's idea of the character |
| Indirect Characterization | When a writer develops a character's personality through the character's actions, speeches and thoughts, physical description, and what other characters say or think about the character |
| Conflict (External) | A struggle between two persons, a person and society, or a person and nature, in a novel or narrative |
| Conflict (Internal) | A struggle within a character's conscience |
| Diction | A writer's choice of words, particularly for clarity, effectiveness and precision |
| Figurative Language | An umbrella term for language that is not meant to be interpreted in the literal sense |
| Foil | A character who sets off another character by contrast |
| Foreshadowing | The use of hints or clues in a narrative to suggest what action is to come |
| Hyperbole | A figure of speech using exaggeration or overstatement for special effect |
| Imagery | Words or phrases that create pictures in the reader's mind |
| Metaphor | A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two things which are dissimilar |
| Extended Metaphor | The comparison of two dissimilar things throughout a body of work |
| Mood | The prevailing feeling or emotional climate of a literary work, often developed, at least in part, through descriptions of setting |
| Motif | A recurring feature (such as a name, image, or a phrase) in a work of literature |
| Oxymoron | A figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory ideas or terms, such as "sweet sorrows" or "living death" |
| Paradox | A statement that reveals a kind of truth, although it seems at first to be self-contradictory and untrue |
| Parody | The humerous imitation of a work of literature, music, or art |
| Pathos | The quality in a work of literature that arrouses feelings of pity or sorrow or compassion in the reader |
| Personification | A figure of speech in which something nonhuman is given human qualities |
| First Person Point of View | The story is told by the character in his or her own words "I,me, my" |
| Third Person Point of View Limited | Told by a narrator who is not a character in the story at all, but focuses on the thoughts and feelings of only one character |
| First Person Point of View Omniscient | The third person narrator is all-knowing and can share the thoughts and feelings of all characters in the works |
| Protagonist | The central character in a drama, novel, short story, or narrative poem |
| Pun | The use of a word or phrase to suggest two or more meanings at the same time, or the use of two different words or phrases that sound alike |
| Sarcasm | Verbal irony -- when something is said that means its opposite |
| Symbol | Any object, person, place or action that has a meaning in itself and that also stands for something larger than itself, such as a quality, an attitude, a belief, or a value |
| Tone | The attitude a writer takes toward his or her subject, characters, and readers |
| Tragedy | A literary work in which the protagonist meets and unhappy or disastrous end |
| Tragic Hero | A protagonist, usually or noble birth, who has a fatal personality flaw that leads to his or her eventual demise |
