Literary Elements and Figurative Language Flashcards

Flashcards covering literary elements and figurative language for review.

Protagonist

The main character in a story, with whom the reader is meant to identify. Not necessarily "good," but the character the reader is most invested in.

Antagonist

Counterpart to the protagonist and source of the story's main conflict. This may not even be a person.

Plot

The sequence of events in a story.

Setting

The time and place in which the story occurs.

Conflict

A struggle between opposing forces that drives the action in a story. Can be Man vs. Self, Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature, Man vs. Society, or Man vs. Machine.

Climax

The most dramatic part of a story, often following a turning point where something goes wrong, leading to a resolution.

Diction

The choice of words used in writing. Authors use diction to change the meaning of the sentence.

Theme

The main universal idea or message conveyed by a story, expressed as a complete sentence.

Mood

The general sense or feeling the reader is supposed to get from the story. How we feel when we read the story.

Tone

The attitude a writer has towards what they're writing about, shown through word choice, style, and opinion. How the author feels when writing a story.

Point of View

The perspective from which the reader sees the story, either first person (no narrator, told by a character) or third person (told by an observer).

Foil

A character who represents characteristics, values, or ideas opposite to another character, usually the protagonist.

Foreshadowing

When future events or the outcome of a story are suggested by the author before they happen, through flashbacks, objects, or reflecting situations.

Imagery

The sensory details and images evoked by the words of a story, including sensory details, metaphors, and similes.

Parallelism

The use of similar or identical language, structures, events, or ideas in different parts of a text.

Repetition

When a specific word, phrase, or structure is repeated to emphasize a particular idea.

Symbolism

The use of an object, color, person, character, or figure to represent abstract ideas. Must be visible.

Alliteration

The repetition of the same initial letter, sound, or group of sounds in a series of words.

Cliché

An expression that has been used so often that it has become common and sometimes boring.

Hyperbole

An exaggeration that is so dramatic that no one would believe the statement is true.

Idiom

An expression that has a meaning apart from the meanings of its individual words; not meant to be taken literally.

Irony

A literary device involving a discrepancy between what is said and what is meant, or between what's expected to happen and what actually occurs. (Dramatic, Verbal, Situational)

Metaphor

A direct comparison between two unlike things, stating that something is something else.

Extended Metaphor

When a metaphor is carried over many sentences or lines.

Onomatopoeia

The use of a word to describe or imitate a natural sound or the sound made by an object or an action.

Oxymoron

When something is described using contradictory terms.

Personification

A figure of speech in which human characteristics are given to an animal or an object.

Pun

A play on words that involves using a word or words with more than one meaning.