AP LIT Unit 1 Key Terms

protagonist

the main character in a story, often facing conflicts and driving the narrative forward. The protagonist is typically central to the themes and messages of the work.

antagonist

the character or force that opposes the protagonist, creating conflict in the story. The antagonist can be another character, a group, or even an internal struggle within the protagonist.

coming of age story / bidungsroman

a story about a character growing from childhood into adulthood. the character usually learns important lessons and changes emotionally or mentally because of their experiences

epiphany

a sudden realization or moment of understanding when a character sees something differently or understands and important truth

round character

a character who is complex and has many different personality traits, emotions, and motivations

flat character

a character who has few traits or characteristics and is usually simpler or less developed

dynamic character

a character who changes significantly during the story, usually because of their experiences

static character

a character who does not significantly change throughout the story

foil

a character who is very different from another character and is used to highlight that character’s traits

direct characterization

when the author directly tells you what a character is like

indirect characterization

when the author shows you what a character is like through their actions, words, thoughts, appearance, or how others react to them

point of view

the perspective from which a story is told

motives

the reasons why a character does something

bias

a personal preference, opinion or predjudice

perspective

a way a person views, understands, and interprets a situation based on their experiences, beliefs, feelings, and background

details

specific pieces of information an author includes to help the reader understand characters, setting, events, or ideas

setting

the time and place where a story happens

exposition

the beginning of the story where the author introduces important characters, setting, background information, and the basic situation

rising action

the events that build the conflict and tension, problems become more complicated and lead toward the climax

cilmax

the turning point or most intense moment of the story, it is usually where the main conflict reaches its highest point

falling action

the events that happen after the climax as the conflict begins to be resolved

denouement

the ending or resolution of the story where remaining conflicts are settled and the story comes to a close

in medias res

the story starts in the middle of the action or climax instead of beginning

flashback

a scene that takes the reader back to an earlier event that happened before the current point in the story

tone

the authors or narrators attitude toward the subject, characters, or situation

mood

the feeling or atmosphere created in the reader while reading

foreshadowing

hints or clues that an author gives about something that will happen later in the story

claim

a statement or argument that you make about a text and support with evidence

theme

a larger message, lesson, or idea about life that a story communicates

diction

the specific words an author chooses to communicate an idea, feeling, or attitude

connotation

the emotional or cultural associations connected to a word beyond its literal meaning

denotation

the literal, dictionary definition of a word

diction

the specific choice of words an author used to express an idea, create a certian feeling, or show a character’s personality

slang

very informal language commonly used by a particular group or generation

colloquial language

casual everyday language people commonly use when speaking

abstract

something that cannot be physically touched or directly observed

concrete

something that can be physically experiences through the senses or specifically identified

figurative language

language that goes beyond the literal meaning of words to create a comparison, image, or deeper meaning

simile

a comparison between two different things using like or as

metaphor

a comparison between two different things without uses like or as

personification

giving human qualities or actions to something nonhuman

imagery

descriptive language that helps the reader picture, hear, smell, taste, feel, or otherwise experience something in their imagination, often used the 5 senses