Literary Elements

DAY 1

Plot Diagram• Plot – all the events that happen in a story• Exposition – story background, meet

characters, see setting• Rising Action – events leading to the climax• Climax – most intense part; the turning

point• Falling action – event after the climax that

helps to reach a decision• Resolution – problem is solved;

denouement

Setting•Both the time and place of the story.

Point of View• The perspective from which the story is

told:1st Person - Narrator tells the story using I, me, my, etc. We know only what this character knows and only what he/she observes.3rd person limited - the narrator is not a part of the story, but tells the thoughts and feelings of only one character.

• 3rd person Omniscient (all knowing) - the narrator is not a part of the story, but knows everything about the characters and their problems.

•Objective - The narrator never discloses anything about what the characters think or feel, remaining a detached observer.

ConflictThe problem in a story that triggers the action.

• External Conflict – struggle with an outside force:

man vs. man man vs. fate man vs. society man verses nature

• Internal Conflict – struggle with selfman vs. self

ThemeThe message

• In most cases the theme will be implied rather than directly told.• A hidden message about life, people or

nature.

Characterizationreveals characters and their personalities.

Two types:Direct - tells us directly what a character is like or what their motives are.Indirect - allows us to interpret the kind of person we are meeting by their speech, actions, thoughts appearance, or how other characters feel about them.*****************************************Motivation - why the character does what he or she does.

DAY 2

Kinds of CharactersProtagonist - Main character

Antagonist - The person or thing working against the protagonist

• Dynamic (round) – undergo some kind of change throughout the story.

• Static (flat) - do not change

Similecompares two things that are alike in some way using the words “like” or “as”

EX: The desert is as dry as a bone.

His temper erupts like a volcano.

Metaphor• The comparison in which one thing is said

to be another; does not use like or as:

EX: A man is but a weak reed.The road was a ribbon of moonlight.

Foreshadowing

clues to hint at events that will occur later in the story

Flashback

scene that takes the story back in time

DAY 3

Suspense

The uncertainty or anxiety we feel about what is going to happen next.

Irony

A difference between the appearance and the reality

EX: I posted a video on YouTube about how boring and useless YouTube is.

The name of Britain’s biggest dog was “Tiny”.

Symbolism

When the author adds an object to represent something it isn’t

Allegory

a story in which the characters and events are symbols

Inference

When you use clues from the story to figure out something that the author doesn’t tell you.

DenotationThe dictionary definition of a word.

ConnotationThe implied meaning of a word.

EX: The words childish, childlike and youthful have the same denotation but a different connotation. “Childish” and “childlike” have a negative connotation as they refer to immature behavior of a person. Whereas, “youthful” implies that a person is lively and energetic.

DAY 4

DialogueA conversation between characters. Quotation marks indicate a speaker’s exact words.

Allusion

a reference to a place, person, or something that happened.

EX: “I was surprised his nose was not growing like Pinocchio’s.” This refers to the story of Pinocchio, where his nose grew whenever he told a lie.“He was a Good Samaritan yesterday when he helped the lady start her car.” This refers to the biblical story of the Good Samaritan.

Paradox

two opposite things that seem impossible but are actually true or possible

EX: The beginning of the end.Deep down, you're really shallow.You can save money by spending it.Truth is honey which is bitter.

DIDLS

• Diction - The author’s word choices. • Imagery - sensory language• Details – Facts which are included or

omitted• Language – Words that describe the

entire body of words in a text • Syntax – sentence structure

DAY 5

Mood

How we are made to feel as readers

Tone

the author's attitude toward a subject.