Literary Terms (also know as English jargon)
Also referred to: literary devices, literary elements, literary techniques, and figures of speech
1. Jargon – language used by a certain group or profession
2. Genres – classifications of literature (short stories, novels, plays, poetry)
o Fiction –a story the author made up from his imagination
o Non-fiction - a story that is true based on real people and real events
1. Autobiography - a story about someone’s life that is written by that person. The word
“I” is used in the story.
2. Biography - a story written about someone by another person. The words “He” and
“She” are used in the story.
3. Memoir – a person’s memory written in connection with a certain historical event
o Essay - a brief composition that offers an opinion about a subject
o Epic – a long narrative poem following the adventures of a hero who represents his civilization
3. Plot – the actions or what happens in the story; sequence of events
4. Structure -- how the plot is organized (Exposition, Narrative Hook, Rising Action, Climax, Falling
Action, Resolution.)
 Exposition – introduces the characters, establishes the setting, and identifies the conflict of the story
 Narrative hook – initial incident or event that begins the action of the story
 Rising action -- conflict develops with a series of complications and twists
 Climax – turning point of the story; outcome becomes clear (not necessarily the most exciting part)
 Falling action – events start to come to a conclusion
 Resolution – conflict is resolved or the problem is solved
5. Setting – the time period (when) and geographical location (where) of the story; creates atmosphere
6. Historical time frame – the time period in which the literature was written
7. Character – people or animals in the story
8. Characterization – method used to present the characters; character traits that show details about the
character (personality, speech, behavior/actions, thoughts/feelings, interaction with others)
 Direct – author directly tells about the character
 Indirect – author indirectly shows about the character (by what he/she says or does or what others say
about him/her
 Round – multi-dimensional; we know many different aspects about the character
 Flat –one dimensional; we know very little about the character
 Dynamic – character changes in some important or significant way
 Static – character stays the same and doesn’t change
9. Protagonist (pro)– central character, hero or heroine; the character we sympathize with (not necessarily the
main character
10. Antagonist (anti) – works against the hero or heroine; does not have to be a person
11. Conflict – struggle between two opposing forces (can be external or internal)
 External conflict - conflict or struggle between a character and another character,
society, or force of nature
 Person vs. Person
 Person vs. Society
 Person vs. Nature
 Person vs. “Fate”
 Internal conflict - conflict or struggle within the character
 Person vs. Self
12. Theme – the author’s intended message; the lesson we are supposed to learn; the main idea
13. Symbolism – an object that holds a figurative meaning as well as its literal meaning;
something that stands for or represents something else
14. Point of View – vantage point or viewpoint from which the story is told; influences how we understand
the story
 Omniscient 3rd person – narrator knows everything about all the characters; uses he/she/they
 Limited 3rd person – narrator knows only about one character; uses he/she/they
 1st person – narrator only knows about himself/herself/ uses I or we
15. Flashback – within the story, we are suddenly shown events in the past
16. Foreshadowing – hints or clues of what’s to come; helps create mood or suspense
17. Prediction – use of context and content clues (foreshadowing) to anticipate what might
happen next
18. Figurative language -- language which makes use of certain literary devices or literary
techniques often called “figures of speech” in which something other than the literal meaning
implied.
 Imagery - words and phrases that “paint a picture” for the reader
 Simile – a comparison that compares using like or as in the comparison. (Her eyes are like stars.)
 Metaphor – a direct comparison of two unlike things; they are the same. (Her eyes are stars.)
 Personification – people-like qualities given to animals or inanimate objects
 Hyperbole – exaggeration for effect used to convey meaning (Understatement is the opposite)
 Oxymoron – a figure of speech that is a combination of seemingly contradictory words
 Euphemism--“softer” words substituted for phrases that might be offensive
19. Sound devices – words to help create sound: alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia, rhythm, rhyme
 Alliteration – repetition of the initial consonant sound in stressed syllable or words in a sequence
 Assonance – resemblance of sound inside the words and syllables (repetition of vowels without the
repetition of consonants)
 Onomatopoeia – echoes or suggests its meaning, so that sound and sense are reinforced (hiss, splash,
zap, whoosh, etc.)
 Rhythm – a musical quality created by a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables
 Rhyme – sound device marked by the repetition of identical or similar stressed sounds (“bee’ and “see”)
o End rhyme: the rhyme occurs at the end of lines of poetry
o Internal rhyme – words occur within the lines of poetry
20. Tone – the author’s attitude toward his subject
21. Irony - contrast or discrepancy between expectation and reality, between what the reader expects to
happen and what really happens or is
 Verbal irony – when a person says one thing and means another
 Situational irony – when the reader thinks one thing is going to happen and something else does
 Dramatic irony – when the reader or audience knows something the character doesn’t know
 Structural irony – when the reader knows more than the character
22. Mood – the feeling the author creates in the reader by the words he chooses
23. Voice/style – the distinctive tone or style of a particular writer; can be a reflection of the
personality of the writer
24. Satire – a literary work that scorns or makes fun of human weaknesses and faults
25. Denotation – the dictionary meaning of the word
26. Connotation – the suggested or implied meaning of a word; the feelings associated with the word