Flashback
Literary term · say it FLASH-bak
A flashback is a part of a story that moves back in time to show an earlier event. It can reveal a character’s past, explain a present problem, or change how a reader understands what has already happened.
Two ways flashback appears
An earlier scene revisited
The story leaves its current action to show a scene from the past. Readers encounter the earlier event rather than just receiving a brief fact about it.
In A Christmas Carol, the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge back to his schooldays, where he sees his younger self alone during the holidays.
In A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
A character tells the past
A character pauses the present action to tell a story about earlier events. This account can reach back long before the point where the book begins.
In The Odyssey, Odysseus tells the Phaeacians about his earlier travels, including his escape from the Cyclops.
In The Odyssey by Homer
How to spot flashback
- Look for a shift from the current action to an earlier time.
- Notice whether the earlier event becomes a scene or a sustained account.
- Ask what this look backward explains about the story’s present.
What is the difference between flashback and foreshadowing?
Flashback looks backward to an earlier event, while foreshadowing points toward something still to come. A flashback supplies part of the story’s past; foreshadowing offers a hint that may only become clear later.
Is every mention of the past a flashback?
No, a brief reference to the past is usually background information rather than a flashback. A flashback shifts attention into an earlier event, giving it enough space to become a scene or an extended account.
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