rising action

noun

: the events in a novel, play, film, etc. that build to the climax (see climax entry 1 sense 2b)

Beginning, middle, end; introduction, body, conclusion; rising action, climax, falling action—these classic Western patterns seldom inform the designs of tribal stories, nor do many of the visual images of Western literature …

—Theresa S. Smith

compare falling action

Word History

First Known Use

1895, in the meaning defined above