Fiction: story that is made up

Setting: time and place

Characterization: how we know about the characters
• Physical appearance
• Behavior (verbal – what and how they talk)
• Other’s perception of them
What people say
How people treat them

Main Character(s):
Protagonist: story revolves around them

Minor Characters: others

Antagonist: “bad guy”, goes against protagonist

(hint: it is possible for the protagonist and antagonist to be the same person, think of the phrase “to be your own worst enemy”

Plot: series of events in a story

Traditional Plot structure:

Exposition: introduction to setting, main character, background info necessary for understanding the story

Rising Action: minor characters, character’s problem is revealed, suspense

Climax: highest point of the story, conflict is at its most complicated
The main character has to make a decision

Falling Action: see the results of decision made in the climax

Resolution: all loose ends are tied up

Conflict: Problem
Person vs. Person
Person vs. Self - internal conflict
Person vs. nature
Person vs. technology
Person vs. society
Person vs. fate, destiny

Irony: appearance vs. reality

Verbal Irony: when you say one thing but you mean another (sarcasm, puns)
Situational Irony: when expected does not happen (hint: the ironic situation is not always the opposite of what is expected)
Dramatic Irony: when you (audience/reader) know something the characters don’t

Foreshadowing: clues or hints about what is going to occur in the story

Symbolism: when something stands for or represents something other than or greater than itself (hint:?)

Point of View: who is telling the story

• 1st Person: “I”, narrator telling about him/herself
* the most limited info
• 3rd Person Limited: “they”, “he/she”, outside narrator, focuses on 1 or 2 characters
• 3rd Person Omniscient (all knowing): “he/she”

Tone: mood

Theme: author’s purpose, lesson, message