Unit 1: Literary Elements - Vocabulary Flashcards

Point of View

• Point of view is the perspective from which the story is told.

• 1st Person Point of View

• 3rd Person Omniscient Point of View

• 3rd Person Limited Point of View

1st Person Point of View

• The narrator is one of the characters.

• We only know what that character knows.

• The character uses the pronouns “I”, “me”, “my”, etc.

3rd Person Omniscient Point of View

• ALL KNOWING

• The narrator of this story knows everything about everyone and tells us the whole thing.

• It’s as though an all-knowing being is observing and recording the physical, emotional, and mental events as they happen.

• The story is told in third person, using “he”, “she”, “him”, “her”, etc.

3rd Person Limited Point of View

• The story is told from only one character’s perspective.

• We only know what this one character is thinking and feeling.

• We only know what this one character sees, smells, hears, and tastes.

Perspective

• Perspective is a person’s experiences, background knowledge, preferences, feelings, and thoughts.

• An author’s perspective affects the way he or she presents information.

• An author reveals his or her perspective through:

  • Word Choice

  • Descriptions

  • Detail Choice

  • Character Actions

  • What’s left out

• The author/narrator’s opinions, feelings, and past experiences change how the story is told.

Point of View vs Perspective

• Point of View

  • 1st person, 2nd person, or 3rd person (limited or omniscient)

  • The speaker in the text

• Perspective = viewpoint

  • How the author feels about the topic or views the information shared in the text.

  • It relates to the author’s experiences and attitudes about the topic.

Setting

• Setting is where and when a story takes place.

  • Place: Where the story takes place. Example: state, country, specific location.

  • Time: When the story takes place. Example: Time of day; Time of year; Year.

• Any change in the time or place can have a dramatic effect on the plot or what happens in the story. This change in setting affects the plot.

• Example prompts:

  • Walking Alone at Night in the Country

  • Walking Alone at Night in the City

Theme

• Theme is the central message, lesson, or moral of a story.

• It is universal – it applies to many different people, places, and times.

• A text can have more than one theme.

• You should be able to support the theme with evidence from the text.

• Theme is NOT:

  • A complete sentence or statement. ✓

  • An insight about life or human nature. ✓

  • Something supported by events, conflicts, and character changes in the story. ✓

  • One word only (e.g., “friendship,” “love,” “courage”). X

  • A summary of the plot (what happened). X

  • Specific to just the characters in the story. X

• Example of a correctly written theme statement: The theme of the fairytale Cinderella is to treat others as you want to be treated.

• Example of an incorrectly written theme statement: The theme of the fairytale Cinderella her stepmother is mean to her.

• Steps to determining the theme:

  1. Read the story carefully – Know what happens and how it ends.

  2. Identify the main conflict – What problem is being solved or lesson learned?

  3. Look at the character’s change – How are they different by the end?

  4. Ask yourself: What does the story teach about life or people?

  5. Write it as a statement – Avoid just one word.

• Real-world connections and implications:

  • Understanding point of view and perspective helps with critical thinking and recognizing bias in real-world sources.

  • Recognizing how setting shapes behavior can illuminate how environments influence decisions in real life (e.g., safety, social norms).

  • Analyzing theme promotes transferable insights about life, ethics, and human relationships beyond fiction.