Unit 1 Vocabulary Notes Assignment
AP Literature & Composition
Setup Your Composition Book
Title Page: Write "Unit 1: Short Fiction I - Key Terms" and today's date
Save Space: Leave the first 4 pages (front and back) for a table of contents
Start Writing: Begin vocabulary on page 5
Number Pages: Write page numbers at the bottom
Format for Each Term
CATEGORY HEADING - Write in ALL CAPS and underline
Term - Write in bold or underline, aligned to the left margin
Definition - Copy the full definition exactly as given
My Words - Write the definition in your own words
Space - Leave 1-2 lines for examples to be added later
What to Copy by CATEGORY (40 Terms Total)
Character Analysis (8 terms)
Setting (3 terms)
Plot and Structure (8 terms)
Narration and Point of View (7 terms)
Literary Argumentation (6 terms)
Essential Literary Terms (8 terms)
Requirements
✅ All 40 terms included ✅ Neat handwriting in pen ✅ Complete definitions (no abbreviations) ✅ Personal paraphrase for each term ✅ Space left for future examples
🎯Due Date: 2 September 2025🎯
Why This Matters
You'll use these notes for class discussions, assignments, and the AP exam. Take time to make them clear and complete.
AP Literature Unit 1: Short Fiction I
Key Concepts and Vocabulary for Composition Book Notes
CHARACTER ANALYSIS
Character - A person, animal, or entity in a literary work who drives the action and experiences the events of the narrative.
Characterization - The process by which an author reveals a character's personality, traits, and motivations through description, dialogue, actions, and thoughts.
Direct Characterization - When the author explicitly tells the reader about a character's traits (e.g., "Sarah was stubborn and impatient").
Indirect Characterization - When the author reveals character traits through what the character says, does, thinks, or how others react to them.
Character Perspective - How a character understands their circumstances, shaped by their background, personality, biases, and relationships.
Character Motives - The reasons behind a character's actions, decisions, or behaviors; what drives them to act.
Protagonist - The main character in a narrative, often the central figure around whom the plot revolves.
Antagonist - The character, force, or entity that opposes the protagonist and creates conflict.
SETTING
Setting - The time and place in which the events of a narrative occur, including physical location, historical period, social/cultural environment, and atmosphere.
Physical Setting - The actual location where events take place (house, city, country, etc.).
Temporal Setting - The time period when events occur (historical era, season, time of day, etc.).
Social Setting - The cultural, economic, and social environment that influences characters and events.
PLOT AND STRUCTURE
Plot - The sequence of events in a narrative, typically involving conflict and resolution.
Exposition - The background information provided to readers about characters, setting, and prior events.
Rising Action - The series of events that build tension and develop the conflict.
Climax - The turning point or moment of highest tension in a narrative.
Falling Action - Events that happen after the climax and lead toward resolution.
Resolution/Denouement - The conclusion where conflicts are resolved and loose ends are tied up.
Dramatic Situation - The circumstances and conflicts that place characters in tension with each other or their environment.
Cause and Effect - The relationship between events where one event (cause) leads to another event (effect).
NARRATION AND POINT OF VIEW
Narrator - The voice that tells the story; may or may not be a character in the story.
Speaker - In poetry, the voice that expresses the thoughts and feelings in the poem.
Point of View - The position from which a narrator tells the story.
First Person - Narration where the narrator is a character in the story, using "I" or "we."
Third Person Limited - Narration from outside the story, focusing on one character's thoughts and experiences.
Third Person Omniscient - Narration from outside the story with access to multiple characters' thoughts and knowledge of all events.
Narrative Distance - How close or removed the narrator is from the events, characters, or time period of the story.
Reliability - The degree to which a narrator can be trusted to provide accurate information about events and characters.
LITERARY ARGUMENTATION
Claim - A statement that requires defense with evidence from the text; an interpretive assertion about literature.
Textual Evidence - Specific words, phrases, details, or passages from a literary work that support an analytical claim.
Commentary - The explanation of how textual evidence supports a claim and contributes to the overall argument.
Line of Reasoning - The logical sequence of claims that work together to defend an overarching thesis.
Thesis Statement - The central argument of an essay that presents a defensible interpretation of a literary work.
Analysis - The process of examining how literary elements work together to create meaning in a text.
ESSENTIAL LITERARY TERMS
Theme - The central idea, message, or meaning of a literary work.
Conflict - The struggle between opposing forces in a narrative (internal vs. external).
Tone - The author's attitude toward the subject matter, characters, or audience.
Mood - The emotional atmosphere created for the reader.
Symbol - An object, character, or action that represents something beyond its literal meaning.
Irony - A contrast between expectation and reality, or between appearance and truth.
Foreshadowing - Hints or clues about events that will occur later in the narrative.
Flashback - An interruption in the chronological sequence to show events from the past.