Short Stories

Parts of the Story Almost all stories follow the same basic pattern.

Plot The plot is the events of the story. Everything that happens is part of the plot.

Exposition The exposition is usually near the beginning of a story, and it gives us basic information about: The setting (the time and place) The characters “Once upon a time, in a far away land…”

Rising Action The rising action is all of the things that increase suspense in the story. Suspense is a feeling of uncertainty that comes from tense situations or from not knowing what is going to happen next.

Climax The climax is the MOST suspenseful part of the story. When the reader is the most uncertain about what is going to happen, like whether a character will live or die, for example. In a short story, it usually happens near the end. (In a longer story, it’s usually about 2/3 of the way through, and there may be more than one situation that qualifies as a climax.)

Falling Action The falling action happens after the climax and helps tie up the loose ends of the story. Basically, it’s what happened after the climax.

Resolution Happens at the end of a story The part where a character realizes something or changes “And they all lived happily ever after.”

Motivation This is why a character does something. Ex: A character might do something out of fear, guilt, love, anger, etc.

Conflict A conflict is a struggle between two or more things. Internal Conflict takes place inside a character’s head. Like they are struggling with a difficult decision or feeling. External Conflict takes place outside of a character’s head and involves an opponent. An opponent can be another character Or it can be something like nature (surviving a violent storm, etc.).

Characterization Direct Characterization is what the author tells you about a character. (You don’t have to figure anything out.) Ex: Ostini is tall, handsome, and brilliant. See, the author just told you several (true) things about me; you didn’t have to figure anything out.

Characterization Indirect Characterization is when you figure out what kind of person a character is based on what they say, what they do, how they look, or how others react to them. Ex: Ostini is feared by men and adored by women. Even though the author didn’t tell you directly, you can figure out that I am handsome and physically intimidating.

Foreshadowing This is when an author gives the reader clues about things that will happen in the future. Like in the Final Destination movies. Whenever a character is going to die, the camera focuses on things that can kill them.

Flashback When an author goes back in time to help explain more about a character, conflict, or situation. Forrest Gump is almost all flashbacks.

Allusion When an author makes a reference to a well- known person or work of art but doesn’t need to explain it that much. “He jumped like Jordan and cleared the wall.” We all know who Michael Jordan is, so that doesn’t really need to be explained.

Symbol A symbol is something concrete that represents something abstract. Concrete: Something you could see, feel, or hold A wedding ring, for example. Abstract: Something you can’t see, feel, or hold A wedding ring represents love, loyalty, etc.

(Universal) Theme The main lesson of the story True for everyone at any time Expressed as a sentence “Be careful what you wish for because you might get it.” (Monkey’s Paw) “Know your place and respect it.” (Icarus) Themes are different than topics. Topics are one word: Love, loyalty, fate, etc. Themes say something specific about a topic.

Connotation and Denotation All words have a literal meaning. This is their denotation. It is neither positive nor negative. A connotation is the positive or negative suggestion behind the word. For example, there are a lot of ways to suggest that someone is smart.

Connotation and Denotation You could call them intelligent, or you could call them brilliant. They both have the same denotation, but one is even more positive than the other. You could also call them nerdy. Still means smart, but the connotation is more negative than the other options.

Connotation and Denotation Suppose you wanted to say that someone was thin. You could say slim, trim, or fit. The connotations of these are not negative. In fact, “fit” and “trim” would generally be considered positive. But, if you said scrawny, bony, or skinny… Those words have a negative connotation.