ELEMENTS of a SHORT STORY

Presented byJill Bamber

Jefferson Junior High School

SHORT STORY• It usually has a single idea and can

be read in one sitting• It focuses on one or two main

characters• The characters deal with a

problem or conflict

FICTION• When an author writes from the imagination• Realistic fiction: contains believable

happenings and characters• Historical fiction: contains historical elements

and information• Science Fiction: fantasy based on

technological and scientific developments

THEME• The “main message”

about life that the author is trying to reveal through telling the story

• Often called the “moral” of the story

CHARACTERS• The people or

animals participating in the story

CHARACTERS• Static characters:

characters who change little, if at all

• Dynamic characters: characters who change significantly

Protagonist• The character the

story is about• Usually the “good

guy” or “hero”

Antagonist• The character

creating problems for the protagonist

• Usually the “bad guy” or “villain”

SETTING• Time,• Place, and• Mood of the story

POINT of VIEW• The person telling

the story, the voice of the storyteller

POINT of VIEW• The person telling the story, the voice

of the storyteller• First Person: told by a character in the story (“I”)• Third Person Omniscient: told by the author, not

a character in the story, as if he had God-like power to know what the characters are thinking (dialog and thoughts)

• Third Person Limited: told by the author, not a character in the story, but only as an observer of what the characters do or say, not think or feel (dialog only)

CONFLICT• When two ideas,

people, or a struggle occurs in a story

• The problem which must be resolved

4 Types of Conflict• Man against self• Man against others (society)• Man against nature• Man against the supernatural

FORESHADOWING• “A shadow before”• Clues or hints as to

what will happen later in the story

• These are the things that make you think you know what’s going to happen

IRONY• When something

occurs in a story that is opposite of what the reader would expect

• (A policeman arrested for robbery would be ironic.)

SYMBOLISM• When something or

someone stands for or means something else

• (The color white symbolizes innocence and purity.)

PLOT• What happens in

the story• Events that make

up the structure of the story told in one or two sentences

Exposition• The starting point• Sets the stage of

a story• Characters and

setting are described

• The conflict begins to unfold

Rising Action• The events that

build up to the high point of the story

Climax• The turning point

or suspenseful moment in a story

• The high point of the story

Denouement• The events that

occur after the high point of the story

• A “cliffhanger” has no denouement

Plot Line• The line drawn to show the

elements of the plot of that story.• The roller coaster ride through the

story.

Rising action

ClimaxDenouement

Climax

Cliff hanger -- no denouementRising action

Resolution• Usually at the end of

the story when a conflict is resolved

…and they lived happily ever after.

THEEND