Lit Terms -Daniel Halverson -Vitolo

Plot

Introduces characters, conflict, and setting; includes rising action, climax, falling action, and denouement.

Rising Action

Suspense increases, and we learn more about characters and conflict.

Climax

The turning point or main event of a story.

Falling Action

Suspense decreases, and we learn the outcomes or consequences of the turning point.

Denouement

The end of a story where loose ends are tied up.

Myth

A traditional, sacred story that ancient and traditional cultures used to explain the origins of the world, natural phenomena, and human customs.

Archetype

A type of character, detail, image, or symbol that appears in literature throughout history and has a universal importance.

Epic

A long narrative poem about the deeds of gods or heroes; generally contains a hero on a quest, legends of the past, battles between good and evil, and supernatural elements.

Epic Hero

A larger-than-life character in an epic who displays qualities valued by their society.

In Medias Res

A Latin phrase meaning "in the middle of things"; a storytelling technique where a narrative begins in the middle of an exciting action, conflict, or plot point rather than at the chronological start.

Flashback

A part of writing that interrupts the story to show an event that happened in the past.

Hubris

Extreme or excessive pride, dangerous overconfidence, or complacency; often associated with arrogance.

Omen

The use of an animal or aspect of nature to foretell an event and indicate whether the event will be good or evil.

Personification

A figure of speech that gives human traits, emotions, or actions to nonhuman things like animals, objects, or ideas.

Poetic Justice

When a character gets what they deserve.

Foreshadowing

A hint of things to come.

Allusion

A brief indirect reference to something in literature.

Symbolism

A symbol is an object, person, place, etc. that means more than what it is.

Internal Conflict

A character struggles with their own opposing desires, beliefs, or needs; person vs. self.

External Conflict

A character struggles against an outside force, such as man vs. man, nature, or society.

Ballad

A short musical narrative song or poem that usually recounts an exciting or dramatic episode.

Blank Verse

Poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter lines.

Prose

The ordinary form of spoken or written language without metrical structure.

Syntax

Sentence structure.

Context

A set of facts or circumstances surrounding an event or situation in a piece of literature.

Idiom

A saying that takes on a special meaning different from the actual words that make it up.

Dramatic Irony

A contradiction between what a character thinks and what the reader or audience knows to be true.

Situational Irony

When the actual outcome of a situation is the opposite of someone's expectation.

Verbal Irony

Words used to suggest the opposite of what is meant.