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A plot is the sequence of events that make up a story.

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Exposition is a literary device that is meant to relay background information about the main character, setting, event,or other elements of the narrative

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Rising Action is a series of incidents in a literary plot that builds toward the point of greatest interest.

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Climax is the point at which the highest level of interest and emotional response is achieved.

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Falling action refers to the period after the dramatic confrontation of the climax.

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Resolution is the end/ending of the story.

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Setting is the time and place in which a story is told.

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Protagonist and Antagonist are nouns that prefer to a character in the story, Protagonist being good and Antagonist being bad.

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Conflict means thwarted, endangered, or opposing desire. Basically means problems occur.

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Internal conflict is when a character struggles with their own opposing desires or beliefs.

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External conflict sets a character against something or someone beyond their control.
EX: -Man vs. Man
-Man vs. Society
-Man vs. Nature
-Man vs. Technology

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Theme is the main idea or underlying meaning a writer explores in a novel, short story, or other literary work.

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Diction is the choice of words, especially with regard to correctness, clearness, or effectiveness.

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Syntax refers to the set of rules that determines the arrangement of words in a sentence.

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DENOTATION: The direct definition of the word that you find in the dictionary. CONNOTATION: The emotional suggestions of a word, that is not literal.

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Connotation vs. Denotation | Literature | Chegg Tutors

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Tone expresses the writer's attitude toward or feelings about the subject matter and audience.

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Mood is a literary element that evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and descriptions.

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Flashback is a scene that takes place before a story begins.

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What Is a Flashback?

Have you ever been in a situation that triggered memories about something that happened in the past? If so, this is what you call a flashback. A flashback is defined as an interruption in the present of a vivid memory set in the past. There are a variety of things that can cause a flashback to occur, which include songs, food, people, places, or similar events to those in the past. Through flashbacks, we are able to reflect upon experiences we have had in life, both positive and negative, and apply them to the present. Flashback is one of the most popular literary devices used in writing.

Flashbacks in Literature

Authors use flashbacks as a means of adding background information in the present events of their story. They interrupt a specific event within their story by using events that have already occurred or that have not been presented. This gives the reader added information about a character's past, including his or her secrets, inner or external conflicts, or significant events that affected his or her life. If the author is able to do this well, the reader will begin to convey reasoning for the actions of the characters throughout the story and develop a better understanding of present events. This also helps the author create a theme for the story and increase the emotional impact it will have on the reader.

Identifying Flashbacks

Identifying when flashbacks are occurring is crucial when reading a story, otherwise the reader will become confused. An author can do this in a variety of ways, which include dream sequences, memories, or even bringing it up in a straightforward way through character narrative.

Dream Sequence - Occurs when a character has fallen asleep and dreams about events of the past.

Sarah was nervous about her performance. She had a dream about her performance last year when she fell in front of everyone.

Memory - Occurs when the character is interrupted by thinking about an event in the past. The author will typically put the character in a place in which something from the past occurred. The character may see something, taste something, or encounter a person who played a role in their past. Through this process the author will successfully indicate to the reader that a flashback is occurring.

After the teacher took attendance, Sandra was shocked when she saw that James was back in class. Sandra thought about what happened last week at school when James was involved in several fights with other students.

Straightforward - Occurs when it is obvious that the flashback is presented to the reader.

After talking to friends about certain fads in the past, Andrew remembered about a time he was in high school and dressed a certain way to impress a girl he liked.

Examples in Literature

Example #1

In chapter two of S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders, the protagonist/narrator, Ponyboy, shares information about his friend Johnny. One of the things he mentions is that Johnny always carries around with him a knife. Ponyboy uses a flashback to tell the story about the time Johnny was beaten up by a rival gang. He includes feelings of the people involved and helps set up the background conflict between the two gangs in the story. This also gives readers an understanding for why Johnny carries around the knife.

Example #2

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what is a flashback in literature? - definition & examples - video & lesson transcript | study.com

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What is a Flashback in Literature? - Definition & Examples - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

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Have you ever been in a situation that triggered memories about something that happened in the past? If so, this is what you call a flashback. A flashback is defined as an interruption in the present of a vivid memory set in the past.

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Foreshadowing is a narrative device in which suggestions or warnings about events to come are dropped or planted.

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POV is the vantage point from which a story is presented.

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First Person  the narrator is a person in the story, telling the story from their own point of view.

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Second person a little-used technique of narrative in which the action is driven by a character ascribed to the reader, one known as you.

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Third person objective is the narrator reports the events that take place without knowing the motivations or thoughts of any of the characters.

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Third person limited a narrative viewpoint where the story is told from the close perspective of one character.

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Third person omniscient the most open and flexible POV available to writers.

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Simile is a figure of speech and type of metaphor that compares two different things using the words “like” or “as.”

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Metaphor and extended metaphor A metaphor is a literary device that figuratively compares and equates two things that are not alike. An extended metaphor is a version of metaphor that extends over the course of multiple lines, paragraphs, or stanzas of prose or poetry.

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Personification attribution of personal qualities especially : representation of a thing or abstraction as a person or by the human form.

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Hyperbole is a figure of speech that is an intentional exaggeration for emphasis or comic effect.

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Symbolism is the idea that things represent other things.

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OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film

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"What is Symbolism?": A Literary Guide for English Teachers and Students

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Oxymoron is a rhetorical term that describes words or phrases that, when placed together, create paradoxes or contradictions.

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Oregon State University - School of Writing, Literature and Film

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"What is an Oxymoron?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

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A euphemism is an appropriate expression used in the place of a phrase or words that may be found inappropriate or offensive.

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Allusions are generally regarded as brief but purposeful references, within a literary text, to a person, place, event, or to another work of literature.

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OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film

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"What is an Allusion?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

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Assonance is a resemblance in the sounds of words/syllables either between their vowels or between their consonants. However, assonance between consonants is generally called consonance in American usage.

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Oregon State University - School of Writing, Literature and Film

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"What are Assonance and Consonance?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

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Alliteration is the repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession whose purpose is to provide an audible pulse that gives a piece of writing a lulling, lyrical, and/or emotive effect.

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Oregon State University - School of Writing, Literature and Film

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"What is Alliteration?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

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A cliche is a scenario or expression that is used excessively, to the point that it is considered unoriginal.

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An idiom is a widely used saying or expression that contains a figurative meaning that is different from the phrase's literal meaning.

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19 Useful Most Common Idioms That Native Speakers Use (with examples)

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A pun is a literary device that is also known as a “play on words.” Puns involve words with similar or identical sounds but with different meanings.

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Learn English Pun Jokes | Funny Examples and Meanings | Advanced English Lesson

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Irony whenever a person says something or does something that departs from what they (or we) expect them to say or do.

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OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film

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"What is Irony?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

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Verbal irony is a figure of speech. The speaker intends to be understood as meaning something that contrasts with the literal or usual meaning of what he says.

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Situational irony is the irony of something happening that is very different to what was expected.

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dramatic irony, a literary device by which the audience's or reader's understanding of events or individuals in a work surpasses that of its characters.

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Characterization is a name for the methods a writer uses to reveal a character's values, feelings, goals, etc. to readers.

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Direct characterization is when an author describes a character in a straightforward manner, as if telling the reader directly.

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Indirect characterization is a type of literary device that reveals details about a character without stating them explicitly.

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A static character, in this vocabulary, is one that does not undergo important change in the course of the story, remaining essentially the same at the end

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dynamic character means simply a character who undergoes some important change in the course of the story.

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Flat characters are two-dimensional in that they are relatively uncomplicated and do not change throughout the course of a work.

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round characters, characters as described by the course of their development in a work of literature.

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What is the difference between a FLAT and ROUND character?

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Rhetoric is the art of speaking or writing effectively.

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Rhetoric meaning | VocabAct | English Vocabulary Builder | NutSpace

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ethos, in rhetoric, the character or emotions of a speaker or writer that are expressed in the attempt to persuade an audience.

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Pathos is an appeal made to an audience's emotions in order to evoke feeling.

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Ethos, Pathos, and Logos | Rhetoric | The Nature of Writing

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Logos is a rhetorical or persuasive appeal to the audience's logic and rationality.