plot
a series of events in a narrative that is carefully constructed by the author
simple narrative account
a chronological description of real events (to tel what happened)
plotless short story
a very modern creation, that is pleasurable to read as it describes chracters in a situation, but does not employ the development or resolution of a conflict
in media ras
this structure is when the story starts in the middle of the action, andthen information about the beginning of the action is supplied to the reader through flashbacks along with other expository devices
frame story
a story within a story
typical plot structure is… (steps?)
exposition, compilation, technical climax, resolution, conclusion
exposition
conflict is introduced & background information on the characters, setting, and other events necessary for understanding the story are given in this step
compilation
the conflict is developed, suspense is created, and forshadowing may be used here
suspense
anticipation, as to the outcome of events
forshadowing
hints at later events
conflict
the interplay between opposing elements
protagonist vs.
self
conflict involving… internal struggle
protagonist vs.
others
conflict involving… external struggle with people & society
protgonist vs. environment
conflict involving… external struggle with nature
technical climax
the turning point in the plot at which the outcome of the action is determined; the conflict starts to end
dramatic climax
the point greatest interest or intensity in a story (subjective)
resolution
events following the technical climax, in which the outcome is actually worked out
conclusion
the final event of a story’s plot
setting
the represented time and place of events in a literary work
4 functions of setting
to help in understanding the characters & their actions, to help create mood and atmosphere, to facilitate plot development by being involved in the conflict
pathetic fallacy
technique authors use, using the setting, or nature, to parallel/mirror the mood of a character or of the story
character
a fictional personality created by an author
characterization
technique an author uses to create and reveal characters in a work of fiction
credibility & consistency
two things that are essential for a good character
expository character revelation
i.
e. Mary is a nice girl.
dramatic character revelation
i.e. Mary likes to help little children with their homework.
motivation
the reasons that cause characters to act the way they do
protagonist
the central character in a work of fiction; they sat the action of the plot
antagonist
the principle opponent of the main character, the person or thing working against
round
character who is well described and whose thoughts and actionsare revealed to the reader
flat
a non-developed character in a story
dynamic
character who grows, learns, an changes in some significant way throughout
static
character who resists change or refuses to change in a story
foil
character who constraints in some important way with a more important character (with their contrasts, they underscore the distinctive characteristics of another)
consistent
character whose speech, thoughts, and actions are what the reader has been led to ecpect from that particular character
stock
type of character who is always found “in stock” in a particular type of story
stereotyped
character created according to widely held, often narrow-minded ideas (no individuality; not developed)
point of view
the physical and phychological relationship between the narrator and the story’s characters/events
narrator
the teller of the story
first person
the narrator is a character in the story
third person objective
the narrator is not a character in the story, and reports only what can be seen and heard
third person limited omniscient
the narrator is not a character in the story and reports not only what can be seen and heard, but also the thoughts and feelings of one of the chararacters
third person omniscient
the narrator is not a character in the story and reports not only what can be seen and heard, but also the thoughts and feelings of all of the important characters
theme
a controlling idea of a literary work that is a general truth or commentary about life, people, and the world that is brought out in a story (moral/lesson of the story)
3 guidelines for stating theme
complete declarative sentence, general truth about life, clearly brought out throughout the entire story
2 step process for determining theme
“This story is overall about _____.” and “What is it about _____ that the author is trying to tell me?” **the words in these blanks are the theme
mood
described the reader’s state of mind after she finishes the story (emotions left with the reader)
atmosphere
describes the general feeling of the story itself, established by the story’s description
style
the distinctive handling of language by a writer through the purposeful selection of words and sentence structure; this helps to indicate tone
diction
the purposeful selection of words
syntax
sentence structure
tone
the author or speaker’s attitude toward the characters, events, or audience which is created by details & descriptive words used by the author
symbolism
the use of something concrete to represent something abstract; using a thing to represent an idea, concept, quality, or condition
irony
contrast between the way things truly are & the way they appear to be
verbal irony
a discrepancy between the menaing (literal) of a word & the meaning actually conveyed; sarcasm could be an example (say something bu mean another)
dramatic irony
a discrepancy between knowledge held by a reader & the characters ignorance of that knowledge (readers know somehting the character doesn’t)
situational irony
a discrepancy between the expected outcome of a situation & the actual outcome (twist in the plot)
narrative
a long poem told in verse form; an epic is an example
lyric
a brief personal poem that uses many sound devices, as well as rhythm, adn meter, and is full of emotion; sonnets, odes, elegies are examples
ballad
a type of poem that is actually meant to be sung and is both lyric and narrative
figures of speech
words or phrases that describe one thing in terms of another & is not meant to be taken on a literal level
simile
two dissimilar things that are compared using words such as “like” “than” “as” or “resembles”
metaphor
this makes a comparison between two unlike things
direct metaphor
the literal term and the figurative term are both named
implied metaphor
the literal term is named while the figurative term is implied
extended metaphor
a metaphor, direct or implied, that is developed over more then one line of poetry
personification
giving human or animate qualities to an animal, object, or concept
apostrophe
addressing someone, absent or dead, or something non-human as if it were alive and present and could reply
literary allusion
a reference to a person, place, or thing from previous literature
common literary allusions
Bible, Greek/Roman mythology, Shakespeare
hyperbole
using exaggeration for emphasis; overstatement
litotes
a special form of understatement; it affirms something by negating the opposite
irony
states one thing when, in fact, the opposite meaning is intended
antithesis
a strong contrast of words, clauses, sentences, or ideas that shows opposing grammatical structures
synecdoche
using a part of something to represent the whole thing
metonymy
the substitution of one word for another closely related word (not synonym though)
paradox
a statement that although seemingly contradictory or absurd may actually be well-founded or true
symbol
something that means more than what it truly is
sound device
figures of speech that pertain to the words sound in a line of poetry
alliteration
the repetition at close intervals of the initial consonant sounds of certain words
consonance
the repetition at close intervals of middle or end consonant sounds of certain words
assonance
the similarity and repetition at close intervals of vowel sounds of certain words
onomatopoeia
the use of words that mimic their meaning in their sound
repetition
repeating a word or phrase within a poem in order to…
make rembering it easier, emphasize it, unite the poem’s structure
parallelism
the repetition of the structure of two or more lines in a poem
cataloging
the listing of words, images, or attributes
refrain
the repetition of a word or phrase or line(s) at definite intervals of a poem
stanza
a group of consecutive lines in a poem that form a single unit; often referred to as a “paragraph” of poetry
couplet
a 2 line stanza
triplet
a 3 line stanza
quatrain
a 4 line stanza
quintet
a 5 line stanza
sestet
a 6 line stanza
septet
a 7 line stanza
octave
an 8 line stanza
rhyme
th similarity or llikeness of sound in two or more words
perfect rhyme
the repetition of accented vowel sounds and all succeding sounds in important words
imperfect rhyme
this occurs when there are changes within the vowel sounds intended to rhyme, but only the final consonant sounds of the words are identical (soul/oil)
eye rhyme
rhyme that appears correct from spelling but does not rhyme because of pronounciation
internal rhyme
rhyme between words that occurs within a single line of poetry
rhyme scheme
the pattern of end rhyme throughout a poem
rhythm
the pattern of stressed/unstressed syllabes in words in a line of poetry
meter
a regularized pattern of stressed/unstressed syllables in a line of poetry; the intentional arrangement of language in which the accented syllables occur at equal intervals of time
scansion
the process of marking lines of poetry to determine the meter; stressed= “/” and unstressed= “u”
foot
the basic unit of meter used in the scansion or measurement of verse, either consisting of two or three syllabes
u/
iambic
/u
trochaic
//
spondaic
uu
pyrrhic
uu/
anapestic
/uu
dactylic
monometer
one foot per line
dimeter
two feet per line
trimeter
three feet per line
tetrameter
four feet per line
pentameter
five feet per line
hexameter
six feet per line
heptameter
seven feet per line
octameter
eight feet per line
rhymed verse
has a regular meter & rhyme scheme
blank verse
unrhymed iambic pentameter (Shakespeare wrote mostly this)
free verse
no regular metrical rhythm or end rhyme
metrical verse
has regular meter & no rhyme scheme
enjambment
the continuation of the sense and grammatical construction of a line onto the next line or stanza (no end punctuation)
end-stopped lines
lines in which both the grammatical structure and the sense reach completion at the end
causura
a pause within a line of verse
present
verbs should be in this tense
start a sentence
“there,” “here,” and “it” cannot ____.
superlatives
“every,” “perfect,” “never,” and “always” are _____.
no
can superlatives be used in formal writing
very
avoid this modifier
active voice
write in ____ rather than in passive voice.
false
True or False: First and second person pronouns can be used in formal writing.
false
True or False: The word “thing” and its forms are perfectly acceptible in the terms of formal writing.
true
True or False: Abbreviations such as “w/” or “b/c” or others are not okay to use in formal writing.
false
True or False: Slang words or phrases can be used freely in formal writing.
true
True or False: Contractions such as can’t, don’t, i’m, etc. need to be separated (without an ‘) in formal writing
1 inch
margin size of an MLA style paper
double
spacing allowable for MLA papers
Times New Roman; size 12
the font should be ____; size ___ when writing a formal paper (two answers with a “;” between them
name, teacher’s name, course, date (day month year= due)
MLA format includes…