Name/No.________________________________ Block_______________ Literary Elements
Handout
1. Plot
2. Sequence
3. Conflict
4. Internal and external
5. Internal conflict
6. External conflict
7. Exposition
8. Initiating incident
9. Rising action
10. Falling action
11. Conclusion/resolution
12. Setting
13. Suspense
14. Foreshadowing
15. Mood
16. Tone
17. Character
18. Protagonist
19. Antagonist
20. Round character
21. Flat character
22. Dynamic character
23. Static character
24. Trait
25. Character motivation
26. Dialogue
27. Dialect
Literary Elements
Sequence of events in a story
The arrangement of events in a literary work
Struggle between opposing forces; any problem that must
be solved
The two major types of conflict
A problem/struggle within a character
A problem/struggle between a character and
someone/something outside of the character
Established the setting, identifies the character,
introduces the basic situation (problem may be revealed
here)
Introduces the central conflict (sometimes it occurs before
the opening of the story)
Any events leading up the climax
Events that occur between the climax and resolution
The story’s end
The time and place of the story (where and when it takes
place)
The quality of the story that makes the reader curious and
excited about what will happen next
An author’s use of hints or clues to suggest events that
will occur later in the story
The feeling created in a reader by a literary work or
passage
The attitude toward the subject and audience conveyed
by the language and rhythm of the speaker in a literary
work
A personal/animal who takes part in the action of a literary
work
The main character in a literary work
A character or force in conflict with the main character
This character is fully developed (the writer reveals good
and bad traits as well as background
This character seems to possess only one or two
personality traits (little or no background is revealed)
This character changes as a result of the action in the
story
This character remains the same throughout the story
One of the qualities that makes up a character’s
personality
A reason that explains, or partially explains a character’s
thoughts, feelings, actions/speech
Conversation between characters
A form of language spoken by people in a particular
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Name/No.________________________________ Block_______________ Literary Elements
Handout
region or group
28. Jargon
29. Slang
30. Informal language
31. Formal language
32. Narrator
33. Point of view
34. First person point of view
35. Third person point of view
(limited)
36. Third person point of view
(omniscient)
37. Prose
38. Fiction
39. Nonfiction
40. Fantasy
41. Biography
42. Autobiography
43. Simile
44. Metaphor
45. Personification
46. Hyperbole
47. Onomatopoeia
48. Oxymoron
49. Literal Language
50. Figurative language
51. Subplot
Literary Elements
The special words/terms used by members of a particular
profession or class
An informal, often short-lived kind of language used in
place of standard words
The language of everyday speech (may use contractions
or slang)
The standard language of written communications, formal
speeches; may not use contractions or slang
The speaker or character who tells the story
The relationship between the narrator and the story
he/she is telling-the perspective in which the story is told
The narrator/speaker is in a character in the story (I, me,
my)
The narrator/speaker is limited to the
thoughts/feelings/actions of one character (he, she, them,
it)
The narrator knows the thoughts/feelings/actions of all the
characters in the story (he, she, them, it)
The ordinary form of writing; most writing that is not
poetry, drama, or song
Prose writing that tells about imaginary characters/events
Prose writing that presents/explains ideas about real
people, places, objects, events
Highly imaginative writing that has elements not found in
real life
A form of nonfiction in which a writer tells the life story of
another person
A form of nonfiction in which a writer tells his or her own
story
A comparison of two dissimilar things using “like” or “as”
A comparison of two dissimilar things which does not use
“like” or “as”
Giving human qualities to inanimate objects
Extreme exaggeration; it may be used for serious or for
comic effect
A word whose sounds seem to duplicate the sounds they
describe (buzz, bang)
A statement with two parts which are contradictory (sad
joy, wise fool, the sound of silence)
Words means exactly what they say
Words are utilize to express complexity or extend the
meaning of an idea in a literary work
An additional line of action in the story that is some way
informs or supports the main plot. Novels and long plays
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Name/No.________________________________ Block_______________ Literary Elements
Handout
are ideal for this element.
52. Allusion
53. Imagery
54. Irony
55. Verbal Irony
56. Situational Irony
57. Dramatic Irony
58. Pun
59. Symbolism
60. Understatement
A reference to a well-known place, literary or art work,
famous person, or historical event.
Language that appeals to the five senses. (sight, touch,
taste, hearing, smell)
Contrast between expectation and reality (a strange twist
of events)
Contrast between what is said or written and what is
meant
Occurs when what happens is very opposite of what you
expect to happen
Occurs when the reader or audience knows something
that the character does not know
A way of using words so that their meaning can be taken
in different ways (a play on words)
A person, place, thing, or event has it own meaning but
also represents a deeper meaning
A writer or speaker deliberately makes a situation seem
less important or serious that it is (antonym for hyperbole)
*These literary terms are vital to your understanding and comprehending of any literary work discussed both
in and out of class. You are strongly encouraged to apply these terms to any reading and allow your mind to
move from “basic to complex” thinking. Although we will discuss, learn, and apply these terms in class, I
strongly suggest you study these terms and examples independently!
Literary Elements
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