The Climax is the point in the story where the main character's point of view changes, or the most exciting/action filled part of the story. It also known has the main turning point in the story. The climax (from the Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

 word “κλῖμαξ” (klimax) meaning “staircase” and “ladder”) or turning point of a narrative

Narrative

A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...

work is its point of highest tension or drama or when the action starts in which the solution is given.

Other uses

While the novel

Novel

A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....

, short story

Short story

A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...

, poetry

Poetry

Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...

 and drama

Drama

Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...

 are the focus of much literary analysis, late 20th century literary criticism

Literary criticism

Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...

 also recognizes the important similarities,the climax, of new genres like the feature film

Feature film

In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...

.

Arguably, the punch line

Punch line

A punch line is the final part of a joke, comedy sketch, or profound statement, usually the word, sentence or exchange of sentences which is intended to be funny or to provoke laughter or thought from listeners...

 of a joke

Joke

A joke is a phrase or a paragraph with a humorous twist. It can be in many different forms, such as a question or short story. To achieve this end, jokes may employ irony, sarcasm, word play and other devices...

 is a good analogue of the climax of other forms of fictional narrative, though the absence of any falling action is an essential variation probably reflecting the nature of humor.

In many non-fictional narrative genre

Genre

Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...

s, even though the author lacks the same freedom to control the action and "plot", selection of subject matter, degree of detail, and emphasis permit an author to create similar structures.

The climax of the Greek plot line is when everything comes out. All the conflicts are at their worst and usually the battle is near or happening. There is a climax in almost every story.The point of greatest intensity or force in an ascending series or progression; a culmination. See synonyms at summit.
A series of statements or ideas in an ascending order of rhetorical force or intensity.
The final statement in such a series.
A moment of great or culminating intensity in a narrative or drama, especially the conclusion of a crisis.
The turning point in a plot or dramatic action.
See orgasm (sense 1).
A stage in ecological development in which a community of organisms, especially plants, is stable and capable of perpetuating itself. Also called climax community.

Although it is not necessarily true, a climax is known in most modern culture for being the final fight between the hero and villain. While this is true in most cases, the climax may be more of an epiphany the conflicted main character experiences, especially if the story does not have a villain in the first place (e.g. A Beautiful Mind

A Beautiful Mind (book)

A Beautiful Mind is an unauthorized biography of Nobel Prize-winning economist and mathematician John Forbes Nash, Jr. by Sylvia Nasar, professor of journalism at Columbia University...

). Also in most modern culture, especially films and video games, the final battle between a hero and villain will take place in a hazardous environment which already has a likely fatal occurrence without them trying to kill each other in the first place. A good example of this is Casino Royale

Casino Royale (2006 film)

Casino Royale is the twenty-first film in the James Bond film series and the first to star Daniel Craig as fictional MI6 agent James Bond...

, where the protagonist James Bond

James Bond

James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...

 is fighting several thugs in an all-out brawl which is hazardous enough with each other but to add dramatic effect the building is structurally collapsing and sinking into the Grand Canal

Grand Canal

Grand Canal can refer to multiple waterways:* Grand Canal in eastern China* Grand Canal in Venice, Italy* Grand Canal , between the river Shannon and Dublin in Ireland* Grand Canal d'Alsace in eastern France...

. Another example is Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is a 2005 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. It is the sixth and final film released in the Star Wars saga and the third in terms of the series' internal chronology....

which takes place on a disabled pylon over a river of molten lava

Lava

Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...

.

Anti-climax

An anti-climax is where something which would appear to be difficult to solve in a plot is solved through something trivial. For example, destroying a heavily guarded facility would require advanced technology, teamwork and weaponry for a climax, but in an anti-climax, it may just consist of pushing a red button which says "Emergency Self-Destruct", or even more so, simply filling out an eviction notice and destroying the building. A good example being the ending of The War of the Worlds

The War of the Worlds

The War of the Worlds is an 1898 science fiction novel written by H. G. Wells.The War of the Worlds may also refer to:- Radio broadcasts :* The War of the Worlds , the 1938 radio broadcast by Orson Welles...

, where, amidst the chaos of the extra-terrestrial takeover of planet Earth, the aliens are defeated by the most unexpected organism: the common cold. Another example could involve the protagonist faced with insurmountable odds and ultimately being killed, without accomplishing their goal, despite what appears to be a turning point for the character.