What parts make up a story? Literary Elements

Story Grammar  Plot  Exposition  Rising Action  Climax  Falling Action  Resolution  Characters  Setting  Theme

Plot is what happens and how it happens in a narrative. A narrative is any work that tells a story, such as a short story, a novel, a drama, or a narrative poem. Plot

Parts of a Plot  Exposition– event that gives rise to conflict (opening situation) and setting up of the story  Rising Action (development)- events that occur as result of central conflict and lead to the climax  Climax- highest point of interest or suspense of story; turning point of the story  Falling Action – The situation begins to be resolved  Resolution (denoument)- when conflict ends and characters go back to their life before the conflict

Diagram of Plot Inciting incident/ Opening situation Exposition Development/ Rising Action Climax Falling Action Resolution/ Denouement

Special Techniques of Plot  Suspense- excitement or tension  Foreshadowing- hint or clue about what will happen in story  Flashback- interrupts the normal sequence of events to tell about something that happened in the past  Surprise Ending- conclusion that reader does not expect

Types of Characters  Antagonist  Protagonist  Archetype

Characterization  A  A writer reveals what a character is like and how the character changes throughout the story.  Two  Two primary methods of characterization: Direct- Direct- writer tells what the character is like Indirect- Indirect- writer shows what a character is like by describing what the character looks like, by telling what the character says and does, and by what other characters say about and do in response to the character.

Direct Characterization … And I don’t play the dozens or believe in standing around with somebody in my face doing a lot of talking. I much rather just knock you down and take my chances even if I’m a little girl with skinny arms and a squeaky voice, which is how I got the name Squeaky. From “Raymond’s Run” by T. Bambara

Indirect Characterization The old man bowed to all of us in the room. Then he removed his hat and gloves, slowly and carefully. Chaplin once did that in a picture, in a bank--he was the janitor. From “Gentleman of Rio en Medio” by J. Sedillo

SettingSetting Details that describe: Location Location Scenery Scenery Customs Customs Transportation Transportation Clothing Clothing Dialects Dialects Weather Weather Time Time of day of year Time and place are where the action occurs

The Functions of a Setting  To create a mood or atmosphere  To show a reader a different way of life  To make action seem more real  To be the source of conflict or struggle Taken from “The Day the Sun Came Out” by D. Johnson

Conflict  Conflict  Conflict is a struggle between opposing forces  Every  Every plot must contain some kind of conflict  Stories  Stories can have more than one conflict  Conflicts  Conflicts can be external or internal External External conflict- conflict- outside force may be person, group, animal, nature, or a nonhuman obstacle Internal Internal conflict- conflict- takes place in a character’s mind

Main Types of Conflict Person vs. Person Person vs. Self Person vs. Nature Person vs. Society

Theme  A central message, concern, or insight into life expressed through a literary work  Can be expressed by one or two sentence statement about human beings or about life  May be stated directly or implied  Interpretation uncovers the theme

Example of Theme “Every man needs to feel allegiance to his native country, whether he always appreciates that country or not.” From “A Man Without a Country” by Edward Hale pg. 185 in Prentice Hall Literature book