Literary Terms for English II classes

Here is the list of terms we will go over this week in class.  Make sure you know them because there will be a quiz on Friday, August 28th.

Antagonist -- A character or force in conflict with a main character.

Conflict -- A struggle between opposing forces.

Connotation -- The set of ideas associated with a word in addition to its explicit meaning.

Denotation -- A words dictionary definition or meaning.

Diction -- Word choice, including the vocabulary used, the appropriateness of the words, and the vividness of the language.

Foreshadowing -- Clues that suggest events that have yet to occur.

Genre -- A category or type of literature (short story, poetry, play)

Imagery -- Descriptive of figurative language used in literature to create word pictures using the sense of sight, sound, taste, touch, smell or movement.

Irony -- Literary techniques that portray difference between appearance and reality, or expectation and result. (For example, dramatic irony is when the audience knows what is going to happen before the actors do.)

Plot -- The sequence of events in a literary work.

Protagonist -- The main character in a piece of writing.

Setting -- The time and place of the action.

Symbol -- Anything that stands for or represents something else. (Example: a dove represents peace)

Theme -- Central message or insight in a piece of writing (Life and death)

Tone -- The writer's attitude toward his or her audience and/or subject.