LC: Literary Terms Semester 1, Quiz 1

Sally was smart girl.

The sentence above is an example of:

• Direct characterization

• Indirect characterization

• Internal conflict

• External conflict

Answer explanation

The writer directly tells us that Sally is smart- no inference needs to be made and there is not yet sufficient information to determine conflict.

George glanced at the test questions and bubbled in the answers quickly. He didn't need to check twice to know that his answers were correct.

The above sentences demonstrate:

• Direct characterization

• Indirect characterization

• internal conflict

• external conflict

Answer explanation

In this instance, we INFER that George is quite intelligent regarding the material he is being tested on because he knows the answers quickly and without doubt. This is indirect characterization.

In The Most Dangerous Game, the protagonist, Sanger Rainsford, is hunted by the antagonist, General Zaroff. General Zaroff has tired of hunting big animals and decides to challenge himself by hunting a human. The conflict here is:

• man vs. himself

• man vs. environment

• man vs. man

• man vs. fate

Fill in the blank: TV shows Breaking Bad upend our expectations by having a leading character, a ________, who commits both criminal and heinous acts.

• protagonist

• antagonist

• static character

• dynamic character

Answer explanation

Walter White is the PROTAGONIST in Breaking Bad. Typically, a protagonist represents heroic or other positive qualities, as we want the audience to "root for" the protagonist. However, some stories successfully pull the audience around a protagonist who is either despicable or questionable from the start or becomes that way over time. Although the audience may not support the character's actions, they become invested in the compelling story around the protagonist. Protagonist= the leading character or one of the major characters in a drama, movie, novel, or other fictional text. (note the neutrality of the definition)

Some of the best stories are noted for their well-written ________, such as Darth Vader, Lex Luther, the Joker, and the Wicked Witch of the West. These characters provide strong conflict for the heroes of their stories.

• protagonists

• antagonists

• static characters

• dynamic characters

Answer explanation

An antagonist is a person who actively opposes or is hostile to someone or something; an adversary. While these characters are not always "evil" or "bad," and can even be heroes depending on the story, they are most frequently written as the character getting in the way of story's hero.

The mark of a well-written character is that they change throughout the story. For example, in Star Wars, Han Solo begins as a rebellious scoundrel who essentially lives solo. However, by the end of the film he realizes that some values are important enough to join with others to fight for, even though he would never have said he believed that in the beginning. He is a ________ character.

• Direct

• Indirect

• Static

• Dynamic

Answer explanation

A dynamic character is one who CHANGES or EVOLVES throughout a story. Fun fact: Harrison Ford was born in Chicago and went to Maine East High School in Park Ridge, IL.

Crabbe and Goyle are sidekicks to Draco Malfoy, an antagonist of Harry Potter's. Throughout the books, we do not learn much about Crabbe and Goyle, only that they are mean bullies. They could be described as:

• Flat characters

• Round characters

• protagonists

• dynamic characters

Answer explanation

These are flat characters who could also be described as static, since they do not change or grow throughout the novels.

In The Martian, a man is stranded on Mars after a mission. Throughout the story, he struggles to survive with limited food, oxygen and other resources.

• Man vs. himself

• Man vs. fate

• Man vs. nature

• Man vs. man

Pride and Prejudice's Elizabeth Bennet is a _______ character. She is smart and witty, but also full of pride and quick to make hasty judgements. She is believable in her complexities.

• flat

• round

• static

• antagonistic

Answer explanation

Elizabeth Bennet is a ROUND character- multi-dimensional and therefore more authentic and "real"-feeling, even if she is fictional.

Sabine Wren is confronted with an opportunity to destroy a map. Her mentor, Ahsoka, tells her that if the map falls into the wrong hands, it would be disastrous for society, as it would allow the Empire (the bad guys) to rise again. However, if Sabine destroys the map, she also loses the opportunity to find a long-lost family member. In a climatic moment, she has the chance to destroy the map and wrestles with making the "right" choice. Ultimately, she cannot bring herself to destroy it. This conflict could be described as:

• man vs. man

• man vs. society

• man vs. nature

• man vs. him/her/theirself

Answer explanation

This is an example of human vs. herself. The character wrestles with a personal choice about how to act. There may be other people or environmental challenges, but the ultimate conflict is internal.