Prepare for the Praxis Core Skills for Educators: Reading (5713) exam. Engage with flashcards and multiple-choice questions, each accompanied by hints and explanations. Boost your readiness for exam day!

Multiple Choice

Which term refers to a character being described in detail and consistently referenced throughout the text?

Characterization is the way an author reveals a character’s traits and keeps those traits visible throughout the story. When a character is described in detail and the text continually references that description, readers come to see who the character is and how they behave across situations, which is exactly what characterization covers. This can come directly through author description or indirectly through actions, dialogue, thoughts, and how other characters respond to them—yet the traits remain consistent, helping the reader form a clear, evolving sense of the character. Plot refers to the sequence of events in the story, not to how a character is described. Setting is about where and when the story takes place. Literary devices are tools like imagery or metaphor that authors use to craft the writing, not about portraying a character’s traits.

Characterization is the way an author reveals a character’s traits and keeps those traits visible throughout the story. When a character is described in detail and the text continually references that description, readers come to see who the character is and how they behave across situations, which is exactly what characterization covers. This can come directly through author description or indirectly through actions, dialogue, thoughts, and how other characters respond to them—yet the traits remain consistent, helping the reader form a clear, evolving sense of the character.

Plot refers to the sequence of events in the story, not to how a character is described. Setting is about where and when the story takes place. Literary devices are tools like imagery or metaphor that authors use to craft the writing, not about portraying a character’s traits.