ENGLISH: LIT TERMS:
protagonist - the main character and sometimes hero of story
antagonist - the character opposed to the main character, sometimes the
villian
conflict - a struggle between two opposing forces or characters
external conflict - a character struggles against an outside force
character vs. character, character vs.
society,
character vs. nature.
internal conflict - a character struggles within him/herself
(mind, heart)
dialect - a regional form of a language
exaggeration - overstating something for the purpose of creating a comic
effect
hyperbole: an extreme exaggeration
irony - a contrast between expectation and reality
dramatic irony - when the audience or the reader knows something a character
does not
verbal irony - a contrast between what is said and what is actually meant
situational irony - when what occurs in a situation is different for what
you expect.
character - a person or a creature in a story
dialogue - a conversation between two or more characters
satire - writing that ridicules something, often to bring about change.
idiom - an expressiom peculiar to a particular lanuage that means something
different from the literal meaning of the words
simile - a comparison between two unlike things using words such as like, as
or resembles
metaphor - an imaginative comparison between two unlike things in which one
thing is said to be another.
personification - a figure of speech in which an object or an animal is
spoken of as if it had human feelings, thoughts, or
attitudes.
figure of speech: a word or phrase that describes one thing in terms of
another ex.: similie, metaphor, personification
alliteration - the repetition of consonant sounds in words that are close
together
mood (atmosphere) - the overall feeling of a work of literature
tone - manner of expression in speech or writing
symbolism - the practice of representing things by mean of symbols or of
attributing symbolic meanings or significance to objects, events,
or relationships.
imagery- language that appeals to the five senses
onomatopoeia - the formation or use of words such as buzz or murmur that
imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions
they refer to.
climax - the point in the story that creates the greatest suspense or
interest
theme - an ingredient of a litery work which gives the work unity. The theme
provides an answer to the question WHAT IS THE WORK ABOUT? Unlike
plot which deals with the action of a work, theme concerns itself
with the work's message or contains the general idea of a work.
flashback - the interruption in present action to show events that happened
at an earlier time
setting - the time, place, and circumstances in which a story takes place
foreshadowing - the use of hints or clues to suggest events that will occur
later in the plot
oxymoron - when contradictory terms are combined such as jumbo shrimp
plot- the pattern of events or main story in a narrative or drama
point of view - the vantage point from which a story is told
First Person - The "first person" or "personal" point of view relates events
as they are perceived by a single character. The main
character. The main character "tells" the story and may offer
opinions about the action and characters which differ from
those of the author.
Second Person - Much less common then omniscient, third person, and first
person is the "second person" point of view, wherein the
author tells the story as if it is happening to the reader.
Third Person - The "third person" point of view presents the events of the
story from outside of any single character's perception much
like the omniscient point of view, but the reader must
understand the action as it takes place and without any
special insight into characters' minds or motivations.
antagonist alliteration aside characterization
climax conflict crisis dialogue
exposition flashback foreshadowing genre
hyperbole imagery irony metaphor
monologue mood narrator onomatopoeia
oxymoron personification plot point of view
protagonist rising action setting simile
suspense symbol theme interior monologue
idiom
POETRY TERMS
alliteration assonance consonance internal
rhyme
end rhyme onomatopoeia extended metaphor
figurative lanuage: types
personfication metaphor simile
THE FOLLOWING IS A LIST OF PREPOSITIONS:
about behind from on toward
above below in on top of under
across beneath in front of onto underneath
after beside inside out of until
against between instead of outside up
along by into over upon
among down like past with
around during near since within
at except of through without
before for off to because of
Outline:
I. Intro
A. The Red Pony, John Steinbeck
B. The Red Pony is the story of a boy, named Jody. It starts out with
his father buying him a pony and then progresses and follows him as he grows
up. When Jody witnesses the death of the pony that he had named Gabilan it
triggers the slow loss of childhood innocence that helps him to mature into a
man.
C. The dramatic events that occur on the farm force Jody to mature
rapidly.
II. Innocence/Gabilan’s death
A. At the beginning of the story Jody is very childlike in the sense
that he has not lost his innocence yet, but the death of his pony Gabilan
triggers the beginning of his growth to adulthood.
1. “Taken in chronology, these stories cover approximately three years
in the life of Jody Tiflin—each representing a new stage in his
maturation.”(Eckley 2)
2. “At the beginning of the first story Jody is a child not only in the
sense of being innocent of knowledge of the world but also in the sense of
being under others control.”(French 63)
a. “He was only a little boy, ten years old, with hair like dusty yellow
grass and with shy polite gray eyes, and with a mouth that worked when he
thought.”(Steinbeck 2)
b. “Below in one of the clearings in the brush lay the red pony. In
the distance Jody could see the legs move slowly and convulsively. And in a
circle around him stood the buzzards, waiting for the moment of death they
know so well.”(Steinbeck 36)
c. “The red fearless eyes still looked at him, impersonal and unafraid
and detached. He struck again and again until the buzzard lay
dead.”(Steinbeck 36)
III. Maturation after Gabilan’s death
A. After the occurrence of Gabilan’s death Jody seems to become mean and
almost cruel while maturing.
1. “As the second story, ‘The Great Mountains’, begins, we find that
once-trusting Jody has become cruel and callous.”(French 65)
2. “He is no longer respectful of adults, but he still fears them. He
has graduated to that intermediate state between childhood and manhood in
which the principal guide to conduct is fear of public opinion…”(French 65)
a. “When mutt yelped, Jody’s mother called from inside the house, ‘Jody
stop torturing that dog and find something to do.’ Jody felt mean then, so
he threw a rock at Mutt.”(Steinbeck 39)
b. “He didn’t care about the bird or its life, but he knew what older
people would say if they’d seen him kill it; he was ashamed because of their
potential opinion.”(Steinbeck 39)
IV. Nelly and the Foal’s effect on Jody
A. When Jody witnesses Billy killing Nelly to save her foal he is jolted
into the adult world of reality which brings him to the last state of his
maturation in the story.
1. “Jody has now irretrievably entered the troublesome realm of adult
emotions and defeats.”(French 66)
a. “And then he heard the hollow crunch of bone. Nellie chuckled
shrilly. Jody looked back in time to see the hammer rise and fall again on
the flat forehead. Then Nellie fell heavily to her side and quivered for a
minute.”(Steinbeck 78)
b. “’Well, I hope it doesn’t rain until after I kill those damn mice,’
He looked over his shoulder to see if Billy had noticed the mature
profanity.”(Steinbeck 82)
c. “’Can I have a lemon to make a lemonade for grandfather?’ His mother
mimicked-‘And another lemon to make a lemonade for you?’ No ma’am. I don’t
want one.’”(Steinbeck 100)