KickStarter – 9/16

Please pick up one of the “Short Story Vocab” packets in the front.

THEN

Write a (very) short fictional story about anything. 5-7 sentences.

7th Grade English Language Arts

Elements of a Short Story

Ms. Roussin

Definition of a Short Story

• Tells about a single event or experience

• Fictional (not true)

• 500 to 15,000 words in length OR usually short enough to read in one sitting

• It has a beginning, middle, and end

• Creates an impression on the reader

 

Some Elements of a Short Story

• Character• Setting• Plot• Conflict• Theme• Mood• Tone• Point of View• Foreshadowing• Style• Symbol• Irony

Short Story Vocabulary

Character: The person, animal, or thing that “acts as a person”

Can you think of a cartoon that has an unusual character?

How many characters do you see?

Short Story Vocabulary

PROTAGONIST:The main character in a story

ANTAGONIST:The character who opposes the protagonist

A groovy example

Short Story Vocabulary

STATIC: Acharacter who stays the sameduring the story

DYNAMIC:A characterwho changesduring the story2 Very different brothers

Short Story Vocabulary

SETTING: Tells the reader where and when the story takes place. Setting often creates mood.

“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country.”

“The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe

What kind of a mood does this setting create?

Short Story Vocabulary

Plot: A series of

events through which the writer reveals what is happening, to whom, and why

A familiar plot

Short Story Vocabulary

Exposition: the start of the story-- which includes character and setting

Sets up the story to be told

Short Story Vocabulary

Rising Action: the series of conflicts leading to the climax

Short Story Vocabulary

Climax: When the action

comes to the HIGHEST

POINT of conflict

Short Story Vocabulary

Falling Action: All of the action which follows the climax and

leads to the resolution

Short Story Vocabulary

Resolution: The end or “conclusion” of the story where the problems are

solved

also called dénouement

Short Story Vocabulary

Conflict: the struggle between two forces in a story. Without conflict, there is

no plot.

Short Story Vocabulary

TYPES of Conflict

Person vs. Person Person vs. Nature

Person vs. Self Person vs. Society

Person vs. Person Stop Early

Person vs. Self Be you...or not

Person vs. NatureJaws

Person vs. Society Rosa Parks

Short Story Vocabulary Theme: The central idea or “message” of the story.

What is the theme of this classic story?

Short Story Vocabulary

Mood: the feeling you get in a story or the emotion you get while reading

Short Story Vocabulary

Tone: The writer’s attitude as revealed through the writer’s words

These men are drinking pop.

Madam and the Rent Man The rent man knocked.

He said, Howdy-do?I said, WhatCan I do for you?He said, You knowYour rent is due.I said, ListenBefore I’d payI would rather Rot away!

The sink is broke,The water don’t run,And you ain’t done a thingYou promised to’ve done.

Back window’s cracked,Kitchen floor squeaks,There’s rats in the cellar,And the attic leaks.

He said, Madam,It’s not up to me.I’m just the agent,Don’t you see?

I said, Naturally,You pass the buck.If it’s money you wantYou’re out of luck.

He said, Madam,I ain’t pleased!I said, me neither

So we agrees.

Mood: nervous and afraid like something is about to happen

Tone: mad, angry, sarcastic

Short Story Vocabulary

Point of view:narrator who is telling the story

Short Story Vocabulary

1st Person Point of View:

The narrator tells the story using “I”

“I told Snoopy that there was nothing better than a day at the lake.”

Short Story Vocabulary

3rd Person Limited

Point of View:

The narrator tells the story like a reporter(he, she, they…)

They sat on the dock and looked out at the calm blue water.

Short Story Vocabulary

OmniscientPoint of View:

The narrator is all knowing and can enter the minds of the characters

“Charlie Brown was enchanted by the calm blue water while Snoopy dreamed of the fish that got away.”

Short Story Vocabulary

Foreshadowing: a hint or clue of what is to come

Short Story Vocabulary

Flashback: A scene in the story that goes back to a previous event or memory

Skip 32 seconds in

Short Story Vocabulary

Style: the way a writer writes

Short Story Vocabulary

SymbolA symbol has meaning in itself but also has another level of meaning. Think of a symbol as a word that has a dictionary meaning and also a second meaning that represents something deeper.

Short Story Vocabulary

A journey might be a symbol for life.

Water might be a symbol for a new beginning.

Black can represent evil or death.

A lion might be a symbol of courage.

Short Story Vocabulary

Irony:

when a twist or

the opposite of

what is expected

occurs

Great writers are able to use the literary elements with such precision that the reader is caught up in the action of the story. This is a mark of a great story!

SHORT STORIES