Unit 1: Short Story Terms

Question 1

What provides the setting of the story?

Answer 1

The Introduction

Question 2

What introduces the characters of the story?

Answer 2

The Introduction

Question 3

What sets the mood and atmosphere of the story?

Answer 3

The Introduction

Question 4

What creates interest in the reader of a story? What is the interest called?

Answer 4

The Introduction, Suspense

Question 5

What is a protagonist?

Answer 5

The most important character of the story - the center of attention and focus of the conflict.

Question 6

What is the most important character of the story, the center of attention and focus of the conflict known as?

Answer 6

Protagonist

Question 7

What is an antagonist?

Answer 7

The major opponent of the protagonist.

Question 8

What is the major opponent of the protagonist known as?

Answer 8

Antagonist

Question 9

What are the four functions of an introduction in a short story?

Answer 9

Provide the setting, introduce the characters, set the mood and atmosphere and create interest/suspense.

Question 10

What are characters?

Answer 10

Those who act out the plot.

Question 11

What are those who act out the plot known as?

Answer 11

Characters

Question 12

What is the starting incident?

Answer 12

First act that comes after the introduction. The protagonist is opposed by someone or something definite.

Question 13

What is the first act that comes after the introduction in which the protagonist is opposed by someone or something definite known as?

Answer 13

Starting Incident

Question 14

What are the four major conflict types?

Answer 14

Person vs Person, Person vs Nature, Person vs Self, Person vs Supernatural

Question 15

Person vs Person, Person vs Nature, Person vs Self, and Person vs Supernatural are all types of what?

Answer 15

Conflict

Question 16

What is the rising action?

Answer 16

A series of incidents which cause the interest to rise. The suspense grows as we are forced to ask questions and discover the answers as we go along.

Question 17

What is the series of incidents which cause the interest in a story to rise known as?

Answer 17

Rising Action

Question 18

What are the complications of a story?

Answer 18

The incidents of the rising action.

Question 19

What are the incidents of the rising action known as?

Answer 19

Complications

Question 20

What is the crisis of a story?

Answer 20

A special complication that is a structural turning point shortly before the climax.

Question 21

What is the special complication that is a structural turning point shortly before the climax known as?

Answer 21

Crisis

Question 22

What is the climax?

Answer 22

The highest point of interest or suspense that involves the protagonist and antagonist. It comes shortly before the main conflict is resolved.

Question 23

What is the highest point of interest or suspense that involves the protagonist and antagonist known as?

Answer 23

Climax

Question 24

What is the falling action also known as?

Answer 24

Denouement

Question 25

What is denouement another word for?

Answer 25

Falling Action

Question 26

What is the falling action?

Answer 26

The portion of the plot after the climax which explains or reinterprets details of minor significance.

Question 27

What portion of the plot after the climax explains or reinterprets details of minor significance?

Answer 27

Falling Action

Question 28

What is the conclusion of a story?

Answer 28

The final summary that brings the story to an end.

Question 29

What is the final summary that brings the story to an end known as?

Answer 29

Conclusion

Question 30

What is foreshadowing?

Answer 30

Hinting or warning that something is going to happen.

Question 31

What is hinting or warning that something is going to happen known as?

Answer 31

Foreshadowing

Question 32

What is foreboding?

Answer 32

Hinting or warning that something bad is going to happen.

Question 33

What is hinting or warning that something bad is going to happen known as?

Answer 33

Foreboding

Question 34

What is the theme of a story?

Answer 34

The main message.

Question 35

What is the main message of a story known as?

Answer 35

Theme

Question 36

What is a flashback?

Answer 36

A jump back into the past to explain something.

Question 37

What is a jump back into the past to explain something known as?

Answer 37

Flashback

Question 38

What is irony?

Answer 38

A device that writers sometimes use to add a special twist to their work.

Question 39

What is a device that writers sometimes use to add a special twist to their work known as?

Answer 39

Irony

Question 40

What is verbal irony?

Answer 40

Saying the opposite of what you mean.

Question 41

What is saying the opposite of what you mean known as?

Answer 41

Verbal Irony

Question 42

What is dramatic irony?

Answer 42

Something that carries meaning significant to the reader but not the characters.

Question 43

What is something that carries meaning significant to the reader but not the characters known as?

Answer 43

Dramatic Irony

Question 44

What is irony of situation?

Answer 44

When things turn out in a way that is a reversal of what the character or reader expected.

Question 45

What is it called when things turn out in a way that is a reversal of what the character or reader expected?

Answer 45

Irony of Situation

Question 46

What is irony of fate?

Answer 46

When people do dangerous things all their laves and take many risks and then suffer from something very minor.

Question 47

What is it called when people do dangerous things all their laves and take many risks and then suffer from something very minor?

Answer 47

Irony of Fate

Question 48

What is a symbol?

Answer 48

Something that stands for something else. (ex. a cross)

Question 49

What is something that stands for something else known as?

Answer 49

Symbol

Question 50

What is point of view?

Answer 50

The type of narration being used by the author to tell the story.

Question 51

What is the type of narration in a story known as?

Answer 51

Point of View

Question 52

What is first person narration?

Answer 52

The narrator is a character in the story and uses pronouns like I, me and myself.

Question 53

What is it called when the narrator is a character in the story?

Answer 53

First Person Narration/View

Question 54

What is third person narration?

Answer 54

The narrator is not a character and tells the story from the outside.

Question 55

What is it called when the narrator is not a character and tells the story from the outside?

Answer 55

Third Person Narration/View

Question 56

What is omniscient third person narration?

Answer 56

When the narrator knows the thoughts of all the characters in the story.

Question 57

What is it called when the narrator knows the thoughts of all the characters in the story?

Answer 57

Omniscient Third Person Narration/View

Question 58

What is limited omniscient third person narration?

Answer 58

When the narrator knows the thoughts of only one or two characters in the story.

Question 59

What is it called when the narrator knows the thoughts of only one or two characters in the story?

Answer 59

Limited Omniscient Third Person Narration/View

Question 60

What is objective third person narration?

Answer 60

When the narrator describes the action but does not reveal what the characters think or feel.

Question 61

What is it called when the narrator describes the action but does not reveal what the characters think or feel?

Answer 61

Objective Third Person Narration/View

Question 62

What is the mood of a story?

Answer 62

The feeling evoked in the reader.

Question 63

What is the feeling evoked in the reader known as?

Answer 63

Mood

Question 64

What is the tone of a story?

Answer 64

The author's attitude or feeling that is reflected in the style of writing (how it's writing).

Question 65

What is the author's attitude or feeling that is reflected in the style of writing known as?

Answer 65

Tone

Question 66

What are the four ways author's portray their characters?

Answer 66

What they do, what they say or think, what the narrator says about them and how other characters react to them.