Literary Elements and Devices

Literary Elements

Antagonist: The person or force that goes against the protagonist (the bad guy) 

Character: Person, figure, inanimate object, or animal that play a huge role in the plot of a story. 

Conflict: A struggle between two opposing forces in a story 

Mood And Tone: 

Mood: How the text makes you feel. The text evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and descriptions) 

Tone: How does the text sound (evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and  descriptions.)

Plot: Describes the main events of a story (Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, Resolution)

Protagonist: The main character of the story (the good guy) 

Setting: The time or place where the story takes place

Themes: The moral, life lesson, or message of the text

Literary Devices

Allegory: abstract ideas and principles are described in terms of characters, figures, and events. Purpose is to teach some type of a lesson or a moral.  

Allusion: A brief reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or political 

significance in a text that the person should have some knowledge about

Archetype: A universal symbol, may be a character, a symbol, or even a setting that have a common and recurring theme in a particular human culture or entire human race.

Deus ex machine:  the circumstance where an implausible concept or a divine character is introduced into a storyline, for the purpose of resolving the conflict and creating an interesting outcome.

Hyperbole: Overexaggeration

Imagery:The text uses figurative language to represent objects, actions, and ideas in such a way that it appeals to our physical senses.

Metaphor: Comparing two unlike things without using like or as

Motif: A motif can be seen as an image, sound, action, or other figure that has a symbolic significance, and contributes toward the development of a theme.

Point of view: The view from which a story is told from

1st person (I, me, my, we) 
3rd person objective (Outside spectator looking in)  
3rd person ominicient (Thoughts and feelings of all characters) 3rd person limited (Thoughts and feelings of only one character

Simile: Comparing two unlike things using like or as

Symbolism: An object that stands for another object-gives it a different meaning