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FICTION NOTESAEII

*This information will be on both semester exams so SAVE it in a safe place!

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PLOT

Series of events (blueprints) What happens in the story Chronological orderEXAMPLE: Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Goldilocks is hungry She finds the bears’ house She tastes the porridge Etc.

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PLOT TERMINOLOGY

Exposition Exposes characters and setting Background information is given

Inciting action Beginning of the conflict

Rising action Suspense/tension builds

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PLOT TERMINOLOGY (CONTINUED)

Climax Highest point of action/tension Turning point

Falling action Conflict starts to be resolved

Resolution All conflict is resolved Loose ends are tied up

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CONFLICT – STRUGGLE OR PROBLEM

EXTERNAL CONFLICT Occurs outside of the character

1. Man vs. man• physical/verbal fight or argument with another individual

2. Man vs. nature• form of nature such as tornadoes, snowstorms, etc.

3. Man vs. society• laws, social codes, etc.

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CONFLICT (CONTINUED)

INTERNAL CONFLICT Occurs inside the character

Man vs. self• Feelings, thoughts, decision making

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SETTING – WHEN AND WHERE ACTION TAKES PLACE (A STORY CAN HAVE MORE THAN ONE SETTING)

Mood Feelings created by the story The reader’s emotions that are a result of reading the story (scared, happy, etc.)

Tone Author’s attitude toward the topic he or she is writing about (serious, sarcastic, lighthearted)

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POINT OF VIEW - THE EYES THROUGH WHICH THE READER SEES/EXPERIENCES THE ACTION OF THE STORY

First person A participant in the story I, me, we, us

Second person An advisor (self-help books) You

Third person An observer; the fly on the wall that watches everything

and everyone and reports on it They, he, she, it

limited-narrator knows one of the characters’ thoughts and feelings

Omniscient-narrator knows all of the characters’ thoughts and feelings

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CHARACTERIZATION - METHODS OF REVEALING CHARACTERS (HOW WE GET TO KNOW A CHARACTER)

Methods

1. Narrator’s description (appearance of characters)

2. Character’s own words, thoughts, and feelings

3. Character’s own actions (what he or she does)

4. Other characters’ words, thoughts, and feelings

5. Other characters’ actions or reactions to the

character

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TYPES OF CHARACTERS

Flat (minor character usually) We see only one trait (ex: Sally skiing; that’s all,

nothing else is revealed about her)

OR

Round (major character) We see many traits (we see Sally skiing, scuba

diving, bike riding, happy, sad)

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TYPES OF CHARACTERS (CONTINUED)

Static Stays the same throughout

OR

Dynamic Different: Changes on the inside; personality,

behavior, or opinions change

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TYPES OF CHARACTERS (CONTINUED)

Protagonist Good guy; hero; keeps the action going

OR

Antagonist villain; tries to stop action from progressing; anything the main character struggles with or against

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THEME - MAIN IDEA OF THE STORY ABOUT LIFE OR HUMAN NATURE (WHAT IS LIFE LIKE? WHAT ARE HUMAN BEINGS LIKE?)

Literary techniques used to illustrate theme

Figurative Language Wording not meant literally (face value) Example: I hit

the books last night. (means I studied hard)

1. Simile - comparison using like or as (She was like a rose.)

2. Metaphor – direct comparison; does not use like or as (He is a bear!)

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LITERARY TECHNIQUES (CONTINUED)

3. Personification – giving human traits to something that is not human (The wind screamed.)

4. Imagery – language that creates a mental picture using the senses (sight, smell,

hearing, taste, touch)

5. Symbol – object stands for/represents more than it is (American flag=freedom)

6. Flashback – relive past as if it were the present (The movie Scrooged.)

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LITERARY TECHNIQUES (CONTINUED)

7. Foreshadowing – hints about what will happen later in the story

8. Allusion – reference to a famous person, place, event, or work of literature (Harriet Tubman was called the Moses of her time.)

9. Onomatopoeia – word sounds like the sound it represents (hiss, drip, buzz)

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LITERARY TECHNIQUES (CONTINUED)

10. Irony – opposite of the expected (A Shriner on a motorcycle who works to save kids’ lives, hits a child and injures him at the parade.)

Situational irony – event that happens that is an unexpected twist at the end of the story

Dramatic irony – audience knows something a character doesn’t know (Friday the 13th “ch ch ch”)

Verbal irony – spoken words are the opposite of what is actually meant, felt, or true (“I love kids,” said the mom as she locked them out of the house all day.)