● Is a minor character
● Possesses traits that emphasize (usually in contrast) the distinctive or special characteristics of the protagonist
● A character that has a connection with the protagonist to show the great qualities of the main character
○ Example:
■ Draco Malfoy is a foil character because his traits are different from Harry Potter’s, which allows readers to determine that Harry Potter is better and nicer, and that Draco Malfoy may be considered as evil.
● Flashbacks: when the writer interrupts a current situation in the form of though, with a memory or event of the past.
● Allows the writer to gain insight into a character’s motivation and explain the reason as to why a conflict exists
● Usually presented in dreams and memories
○ Convey to the readers information regarding a character’s background
○ Give idea on what motivates a character to act or behave as they do
■ Deepens inner conflict
○ Sometimes it allows the reader to sympathize and empathize with the antagonist because they are able to see and understand the reasons as to why they act maliciously
○ Increases tension
● Foreshadowing: when the writer gives a hint on what is to come later in the story (future).
● Often appears at the beginning
● Helps the reader develop expectations and be on edge and skeptical
● A writer may use character dialogues to hint on the future
● Foreshadowing in fiction creates a suspenseful atmosphere
○ Lures the readers in
○ Very important when building anticipation and suspense in the minds of readers
○ Adds drama and a dramatic tension to the story
○ May sometimes distract the reader when the hints given about the future are false
● Narration of a story may be biased.
○ A story is usually written where the speaker or narrator speaks in first person point of view.
○ This means that all experiences, feelings, and situations are determined by the narrator and they have the ability to choose what to tell the readers, and what to leave out.
○ This creates a form of bias in the story, which makes the narrator unreliable, as stated in the previous units.
■ It blinds the reader; they may be unaware of what caused certain things or events because the narrator chose to not state it.
● Reader only knows one perspective, making them oblivious to the rest.
○ The narrative tone is when the narrator uses certain language or diction to reveal their attitude about a topic.
○ Important to look for descriptive language that distinguishes between attitudes in the story.
■ Determine whether the word choice is dark or bright, positive or negative, loving or hateful.
■ This will allow the reader to comprehend the narrator’s tone, and determine their opinion on certain aspects.
○ Additionally, look closely for figurative language and point of view
■ Figurative language can lay out a choice of comparisons that can indicate the attitude of the speaker.
■ The point of view truly shows the emotions behind the speaker, and how their attitude is determined by their experiences; experiences may be from the past and present.