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Short Story Elements

Total questions: 30

Worksheet time: 53mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
What is the exposition of a story?
a)
Where the action is winding down after the climax.
b)
The end of the story where everything is resolved.
c)
The most exciting part of a story; the turning point.
d)
The beginning of a story where we learn about setting and some of the characters.
2.
What is rising action?
a)
After the climax, when the action starts to wind down.
b)
Where the conflict of the story grows and where the events increasingly build up in excitement.
c)
The most exciting part of a story; the turning point.
d)
The beginning of the story where we learn about setting and some characters.
3.
What is climax?
a)
Where the conflict of the story grows and where the events increasingly build up in excitement.
b)
The end of a story where everything is resolved.
c)
The beginning of a story where we learn about setting and some characters.
d)
The most exciting part of a story; the turning point.
4.
What is falling action?
a)
The end of a story where everything is resolved.
b)
Where the conflict of the story grows and where the events increasingly build up in excitement.
c)
The most exciting part of a story; the turning point.
d)
The part after the climax where events are winding down.
5.
What is the resolution?
a)
Where the conflict of the story grows and where the events increasingly build up in excitement.
b)
The end of a story where everything is resolved.
c)
The most exciting part of a story; the turning point.
d)
The beginning of the story where we learn about setting and some characters.
6.
What is the theme of a story?
a)
The series of events in a story.
b)
The author's point of view.
c)
The major life lesson or message.
d)
The character's personality traits.
7.
What is the plot of a story?
a)
The series of events in a story.
b)
The main message or life lesson of a story.
c)
The most exciting part of a story; the turning point.
d)
The time and place that a story takes place.
8.
_____ gives the readers clues about what will come later in the story.
a)
Theme
b)
Plot
c)
Flashback
d)
Foreshadowing
9.
Which of these might be an example of a story's theme
a)
staying true to yourself is important
b)
your best friend
c)
two parents get a divorce
d)
a boy finds out he has superpowers
10.
What is defined as "when the author tells of something in the past to reveal information to the readers"?
a)
foreshadowing
b)
flashback
c)
irony
d)
symbolism
11.
Example of Character vs Self 
a)
Batman vs Superman
b)
Shrek vs the kingdom 
c)
People from Japan vs a Tsunami 
d)
A person trying not to cry in public 
12.

The elements of the plot structure are in which order?

a)

conflict, setting, rising action, falling action, climax, resolution

b)

exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution

c)

exposition, setting, point of view, rising action, falling action

13.
True or False: An external conflict is the type of conflict in which there is a struggle within one's self; a person must make some decision, overcome pain, quiet their temper, resist an urge, etc.
a)
True
b)
False
14.

CONNOR WAS FEELING DEPRESSED.

a)

indirect characterization

b)

direct characterization

15.
Direct Characterization is...
a)
the author telling you a character's traits
b)
the author showing you a character's traits
16.
Indirect Characterization is...
a)
the author showing you a character's traits
b)
the author telling you a character's traits
17.
"His wife walked briskly in front of him in a faded sundress that hadn't fit her correctly since the birth of their second son."
a)
Direct Characterization
b)
Indirect Characterization
c)
Both
18.

Complex, three-dimensional characters are called--

a)

round characters

b)

flat characters

c)

external characters

d)

internal characters

19.

This type of character usually represents a stereotype and is two-dimensional.

a)

flat

b)

round

c)

internal

d)

external

20.

John's neighbor Bill is angry because John plays loud music every day. John is frustrated with Bill because his neighbor complains too much. They talked about it and came to a compromise--Bill agreed that John can still play his loud music every day, but will only play for 1 hour instead of 2. Bill and John are both happy with this arrangement.

a)

3rd person omniscient

b)

3rd person limited

c)

1st person

21.
Tone can best described as
a)
attitude of the reader
b)
the overall mood or feeling in a story
c)
the author's attitude toward his writing
d)
reader's point of view
22.
The definition of mood is 
a)
the overall feelings or emotions in the writer.
b)
revising your writing so that it is free of errors.
c)
overall feelings or emotions that are created in the reader. 
d)
working with a partner to check your writing. 
23.

Sage gathered a handful of herbs and tore them from the ground. He hated killing things, even plants, but he knew that it was part of the equation of life. Sage ground the herbs with a mortar and pestle. He then mixed it with the tincture. The concoction began to glow. Sage brought the glowing goo to Shanna, who was lying in bed. "Drink it slow," he said. Shanna nodded. Sage hated seeing Shanna like this. She was his closest companion, and she was dying.

a)

3rd Person Limited

b)

3rd Person Objective

c)

1st person

24.

In which POV do you see" I, me, and my" used to convey the story?

a)

1st person

b)

2nd person

c)

3rd person objective

d)

3rd person omniscient

25.

In which POV is this written?

Sally and I went to the grocery store. We bought salad and bread. I thought that was a boring dinner, but Sally liked it.

a)

1st person POV

b)

2nd person POV

c)

3rd person limited

d)

3rd person omniscient

26.

What can a black cat symbolize?

a)

Passion

b)

Power

c)

Superstition

d)

Animals

27.

Which of the following passages best illustrates the literary concept of an archetype of a damsel in distress?

a)

“Doubtless she would have wished less severity in the rigorous sky of love, more expansive and less cautious tenderness, but her husband’s impassive manner always restrained her.” Alicia waits at home for Jordan to return from work.

b)

“He gave notes, made ruinous agreements, dealt with usurers, with every type of money-lender. He compromised the rest of his life, risked signing notes without knowing if he could ever honor them, and, terrified by the anguish still to come, by the black misery about to fall on him, by the prospect of every physical privation and every moral torture he was about to suffer, he went to get the new necklace, and laid down on the jeweler's counter thirty-six thousand francs.” Mathilde lost the necklace and her husband has to work harder than before to pay off the debt.

c)

“Goaded, by the interference, into a rage more than demoniacal, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the axe in her brain. She fell dead upon the spot, without a groan.” The narrator kills his wife in an attempt to kill the cat.

28.

Who is the protagonist in the following passage?

 

“On a rooftop near O'Connell Bridge, a Republican sniper lay watching. Beside him lay his rifle and over his shoulders was slung a pair of field glasses. His face was the face of a student, thin and ascetic, but his eyes had the cold gleam of the fanatic.”

a)

The Free State sniper

b)

The bridge

c)

The narrator

d)

The Republican sniper

29.

Which literary term is best illustrated in the following paragraph?

 

“Alicia’s entire honeymoon gave her hot and cold shivers. A blonde, angelic, and timid young girl, the childish fancies she had dreamed about being a bride had been chilled by her husband’s rough character. She loved him very much, nonetheless, although sometimes she gave a light shudder when, as they returned home through the streets together at night, she cast a furtive glance at the impressive stature of her Jordan, who had been silent for an hour.”

a)

internal conflict - character v. self

b)

external conflict - character v. society

c)

external conflict - character v. nature

30.

Which literary term is best illustrated in the following paragraph?

 

The room was warm and clean, the curtains drawn, the two table lamps alight - hers and the one by the empty chair opposite. On the sideboard behind her, two tall glasses, soda water, whiskey. Fresh ice cubes in the Thermos bucket. Mary Maloney was waiting for her husband to come home from work.

a)

protagonist

b)

plot

c)

setting

d)

antagonist