Donna Oja Smith's English Class at Trenton High School

Literary Concepts and Story Elements

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1. PLOT - the story line; a unified, progressive pattern of action or events in a story

2. SETTING - the time and place of the action in a story

3. TONE - the attitude of the author toward his subject or toward the reader (Think of tone of voice when someone is talking.)

4. MOOD - the feeling or state of mind that predominates in a story creating a certain atmosphere

5. CHARACTER - person portraying himself or another

6. POINT OF VIEW - the position from which the story is told (as seen through whose eyes?)

þ     PERSONAL – 1st Person - (if told as seen through the eyes of one of the characters in the story)

þ     OMNISCIENT – 3rd Person (the author stands outside of the story and knows what each of the characters is doing or thinking at any given moment) 

7. CENTRAL CONFLICT - the main struggle of opposing forces around which the plot revolves

þ     Internal Conflict - Inner conflict occurs when one is confronted with a problem that presents difficult choices involving one's beliefs and values. 

§         PERSON vs. SELF (internal struggle)

þ     External Conflict - External conflict occurs when one faces someone else or some situation that is working against one's own desires or goals.

§         PERSON  vs. PERSON

§         PERSON  vs. SOCIETY

§         PERSON  vs. BEAST

§         PERSON  vs. THE ELEMENTS (forces of nature)

§         PERSON  vs. FATE or DESTINY

§         PERSON  vs. MACHINE

8. PROTAGONIST - the main character (usually the hero of the story)

9. ANTAGONIST - the rival (the bad guy)

10. THEME - the main idea or message of the story; its generalized meaning; a statement about life or human nature that the author seeks to prove through specific developments of the story

11. IRONY - events contrary to what is expected

12. FORESHADOW - a hint or clue to future events in the story 

13. FLASHBACK - a break in the continuity of a story to introduce an earlier event

14. INCITING CAUSE - the event that begins and motivates the action in the story

15. RISING ACTION - events that build up the plot and lead to the climax

16. CLIMAX - (the turning point) - the critical point in the story which changes the course of events; the point in the story where the main character faces a crisis and must make a crucial decision that will effect the outcome of the story.

17. FALLING ACTION - events that unwind the plot and lead to resolving the conflict

18. RESOLUTION - the event in a story that resolves the conflict

19. FICTION - written from the imagination; not true

20. NON-FICTION - true; based upon actual fact

21. GENRE - kind or type of art or literature

22. SUSPENSE - anxiety or apprehension resulting from uncertainty

"He who learns but does not think is lost! 
He who thinks but does not learn is in great danger!" 
Confucius 551-479 B.C. (Chinese philosopher)

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"YOU make choices, but  CHOICES make you." (DOS)
 
“Men are not prisoners of fate, but prisoners of their own minds.” (FDR)

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DID YOU KNOW THAT NO PIECE OF PAPER CAN BE FOLDED IN HALF MORE THAN SEVEN TIMES?  TRY IT.  THEN GET BACK TO WORK.

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