Ch 8: GACE English: Elements & Language of Literature
About This Chapter
GACE English: Elements & Language of Literature - Chapter Summary
The videos that you'll come across in this chapter will reinforce your knowledge on key literary elements like theme, dialogue, and more so that you're not caught off guard by associated GACE English items. You will get to refresh your memory on these topics that you could be asked about on the assessment:
- The parts to a plot
- Common themes
- Figures of speech, figurative language and inferences
- Different ways an author can create a flashback
- Major types of character roles
- Setting components
- Understanding and interpreting tone and mood
- The influence of form and structure in drama and poetry
- Interaction between different story elements
- Historical texts as a source of inspiration
- Organizing ideas with prewriting
- Influence of dialogue
Use the handy video tags if you want to check out any video segments a second time after your initial review. Verify your knowledge of the issues by completing each lesson's short practice quiz.
GACE English: Elements & Language of Literature Chapter Objectives
The GACE English assessment gauges your eligibility to become a certified secondary education teacher of English in Georgia. Content in the Elements & Language of Literature chapter matches up with the objectives of the assessment's reading for literature subarea, which you'll come across when taking Test I. The questions in this subarea are all multiple choice; however, there is an additional constructed-response section on this subtest.

1. Literature as a Form of Expression
In this lesson, you'll learn how to distinguish literary texts from other types of texts. You'll also explore how authors might use literature to express their culture, values and ideas.

2. How an Author's Life Influences Literary Works
Every day, your gender, race, and other lifestyle factors affect what you think and how you act. This lesson describes the same phenomenon of how an author's personal life and background can influence his writing. We will explore the works of several different authors to see this in action.

3. Literature as a Response to Culture
This lesson analyzes how literature responds to various aspects of culture, such as historical events, social conditions, scientific developments, and religious movements. This lesson offers examples from British and American literature.

4. Drawing Inspiration from Historical Texts
This lesson explores how modern works of literature and film draw on historical texts. We will learn about the genre of historical fiction. Then, we will discover how the structures of fairy tales and mythic archetypes inspire contemporary writers.

5. Interpreting Literary Meaning: How to Use Text to Guide Your Interpretation
In this lesson, we will discuss how to find and interpret literary meaning in writings. The lesson will focus on using the text to find key elements to guide your interpretation.

6. Analyzing How Story Elements Interact
Authors don't simply put their thoughts on paper to create a perfect story. Instead, they need to design strong story elements that influence each other and interact. This lesson details those interactions.

7. Methods of Characterization in Literature
In this lesson, we'll examine five methods of characterization, including physical description, action, inner thoughts, reactions, and speech. An excerpt from a brief narrative is provided to show how authors use the various methods of characterization to develop characters and create images for the audience.

8. Point of View in Fiction: First Person, Third Person & More
In this lesson, we will explore point of view in fiction. We will learn about several possible points of view (first person, second person, and third person) and practice identifying them.

9. Understanding Tone and Mood in a Reading Passage
In this lesson, we will define the literary terms tone and mood. We will then discuss how to identify each of them, as well as how to identify them in small reading passages.

10. Figurative Language: Definition & Examples
This lesson introduces you to a variety of ways that figurative language can impact the way you express yourself. You'll learn terms for several approaches and examples of each.

11. Plot Analysis: Example & Overview
In this lesson, we will learn what a plot diagram is and how it is used to analyze a story. A plot diagram helps the reader better understand the story by using an in-depth analysis.

12. What is the Setting of a Story?
You may have learned about setting in elementary school, but the definition is actually a little more nuanced than just where a story takes place. This lesson explores differing aspects of setting and why it matters.

13. How Dialogue Reveals Aspects of a Character
What we choose to say when we're secretive, angry, excited, or worried helps others understand our personalities. In this lesson, we're going to analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama reveal aspects of a character.

14. What is Structure in Writing and How Does it Affect Meaning?
In this lesson, we will define the role of structure in literature. From there, we will look at the different ways to structure fiction and how it affects the meaning.

15. The Effects of Form & Structure in Poetry & Drama
Form and structure can influence the meaning of poetry and drama. This lesson looks at the main forms and structures of poetry and drama and discusses how those elements can give you clues about what the piece means.
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Other Chapters
Other chapters within the GACE English (520): Practice & Study Guide course
- GACE English: Literary Genres
- Periods of American Literature
- British Literature
- World Literature Overview
- Young Adult Literature Overview
- Forms of Poetry
- GACE English: Reading Strategies
- Overview of Literary Devices
- Literary Themes & Main Ideas
- Technical Writing & Informational Texts
- Literary Theories & Research
- GACE English: Instructional Strategies
- Language Development & Acquisition
- Basic Semantics
- Methods for Writing Instruction
- GACE English: Writing Forms & Structure
- GACE English: Writing & Editing Skills
- Rhetorical Strategies & Methods of Argument
- GACE English: Researching & Citing Sources
- Sentence Types, Parts & Structure
- Overview of English Grammar & Usage
- Capitalization & Punctuation in English
- Organizing The Speech
- Speech Delivery
- Strategies for Classroom Discussion
- Differentiated Instruction Basics
- Language Arts Assessments
- Using Technology to Teach Reading & Writing
- GACE English Flashcards