Elements of Plot Structure and Fiction: Part I Plot Structure, Conflict, and Characters

What is a short story?

  A fictional work of prose that is shorter in length than a novel.

Ranges from 1,000 to 20,000 words

Can be read in one sitting

  Focuses on one main plot and one main theme

  Few characters involved

Plot is the literary element that describes the structure of a story. It shows the arrangement of events and actions within a story.

Teaching Plot Structure Through Short Stories

Types of Linear Plots Plots can be told in:

Chronological order : Events occur in the order they happen

Flashback : Events go back and forth between past and present

In media res (in the middle of things) when the story starts in the middle of the action without exposition

Pyramid Plot Structure The most basic and traditional form of

plot is pyramid-shaped.

This structure has been described in more detail by Aristotle and Gustav Freytag.

Aristotle’s Unified Plot

• Described by Aristotle in 350 BCE.

• He used the beginning, middle, and end structure to describe a story that moved along a linear path.

• A story was a chain of cause and effect working towards the solution of the conflict.

• Domino effect

Freytag’s Plot Structure

• Freytag modified Aristotle�s system by adding a rising action (or complication) and a falling action to the structure.

• Freytag used the five-part design shown above to describe a story�s plot.

Modified Plot Structure

• Freytag�s Pyramid is often modified so that it extends slightly before and after the primary rising and falling action.

• You might think of this part of the chart as similar to the ascent and descent on a roller coaster.

Plot Components

Exposition: the start of the story, where characters, conflict and setting are established

Rising Action: the series of conflicts and crisis in the story that lead to the climax

Climax: the turning point, the most intense moment—either mentally or in action

Falling Action: all of the action which follows the climax, the story�s aftermath

Resolution (Dénouement): the conclusion, the tying together of all of the threads

Conflict Conflict is the dramatic struggle between

two forces in a story. Without conflict, there is no plot.

Types of Conflict External Conflict: a conflict between the main character and another outside force

Categories of External Conflict

• Character vs. Character

• Character vs. Nature

• Character vs. Society

What examples can you give of each category of external conflict?

Types of Conflict

  Internal Conflict: a conflict within a character, usually where part of the character�s personality is struggling for dominance

What are some examples of internal conflict?

Types of Characters ADD THIS INTO YOUR NOTES ON PG. 6

  The protagonist is the main character in a literary work.   He or she is usually seen as good, respectable, and always trying

to make the right choice.

  The antagonist in a literary work stands in opposition to the protagonist.   He or she will be viewed as bad, wicked, or malicious.

  Hint: Anti=against

  Protagonists and antagonists will be clearly distinct and remain consistent.

Theme •  The total meaning of the story.

–  IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE TIED UP IN A SIMPLE MORAL.

–  In many cases, stories are packages that allow readers to see the outcomes of certain behaviors or actions.

–  Without a theme, the story lacks meaning or purpose.

•  Sometimes the theme is stated, sometimes it is only implied.

•  What are some examples of theme in Disney movies?

Setting •  The time and location in which a story takes place.

–  For some stories the setting is very important, while for others it is not.

•  Place – Where is the action of the story taking place? (Geographical location)

•  Time - When is the story taking place? (Historical period, time of day, year, etc.)

•  Weather conditions – Rain, Wind, Sun, Fog, etc.

•  Mood - What feeling is created at the beginning of the story? (Bright and cheerful or dark and frightening)

•  How do parts of setting impact the story and/or one another? Example: A story set in the mountains during a blizzard. –  What can this tell us, the readers, about the mood of the story?

Types of POV

  First Person Point of View: The narrator does participate in the action of the story and usually are the protagonist of the story.   When reading stories in the first person, we need to

realize that what the narrator is recounting might not be the objective truth.

  We should question the trustworthiness of the accounting.

Types of Point of View (POV)

  Third Person Point of View   Here the narrator does not participate in the action

of the story as one of the characters, but lets us know exactly how the characters feel.

  We learn about the characters through this outside voice.

Types of POV

  Third Person Omniscient   A narrator who knows everything about all the

characters is all knowing, or omniscient.

  Third Person Limited   A narrator whose knowledge is limited to one

character, either major or minor, has a limited omniscient point of view.

What does POV do for a story?

  As you read a piece of fiction think about these things:

  How does the point of view affect your responses to the characters?

  How is your response influenced by how much the narrator knows and how objective he or she is?

REMEMBER

  First person narrators are not always trustworthy. It is up to you to determine what is the objective truth in the story.

  There are always two sides to every story and always consider how POV contributes to our understanding.