The climax is the point of highest tension or greatest emotional intensity in a narrative. It is the moment toward which the rising action has been building and after which the story moves toward resolution.

In a mystery the climax may be the confrontation with the culprit; in a tragedy it may be the irreversible choice or revelation that seals the protagonist’s fate. The term can also refer to a rhetorical figure in which ideas are arranged in ascending order of importance. In plot structure, however, it designates the dramatic peak. Everything before it prepares the ground; everything after it deals with consequences.

A well-prepared climax feels both surprising and inevitable. If it arrives too early, the remainder of the story sags; if it is delayed too long, impatience sets in. The surrounding structure—rising action, falling action, denouement—exists largely to give the climax its full effect.

The scene in which the central conflict reaches its decisive intensity is the climax.