If I Ran the Zoo

If I Ran the Zoo Literary Elements

Genre

Illustrated Children's Book

Setting and Context

The story is set in a dull zoo and in the protagonist's world-traversing imagination.

Narrator and Point of View

The narrator is Gerald McGrew; the point of view stays with him.

Tone and Mood

The tone is humorous and playful; the mood is imaginative.

Protagonist and Antagonist

The protagonist is Gerald McGrew; the only character close to an antagonist is the zookeeper.

Major Conflict

The major conflict is that Gerald is bored by the real zoo and so must dream up a fantastical zoo to keep himself entertained.

Climax

The story reaches its climax when Gerald returns to the dull reality of the lackluster real-life zoo.

Foreshadowing

Understatement

Allusions

Imagery

Paradox

Parallelism

Metonymy and Synecdoche

Personification

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