1. Short Story Unit Chapter Two
Plot and Structure
Short Story Unit
Chapter Two

2. Definitions
Plot – the sequence of events or incidents to tell the story
A plot summary may include what characters say or think, as well as what they do, but it leaves out description and analysis and concentrates primarily on major events
Plot is not the action itself, but the way the author arranges the action

3. Definitions Structure – the arranging of the plot elements
Structure can be chronological or more experimental and unpredictable

4. Definitions
All fiction, commercial and literary, contain some kind of conflict.
Conflict - a clash of actions, ideas, desires or wills
Man vs. Man (person against person)
Man vs. An External Force (physical nature, society, “fate”, environment)
Man vs. Himself (physical, mental, emotional, moral)

5. Characters in the Conflict
Protagonist – the central character in the conflict that can be sympathetic and unsympathetic. Protagonist is often equated with “hero” but some protagonists are not heroic.
Antagonist – any force arranged against the protagonist – whether person, things, conventions of society, or the protagonist’s own character traits

6. Endings Surprise ending – sudden, unexpected turn or twist
Happy ending – “happily ever after”
Unhappy ending – situations in life sometimes have unpleasant outcomes; and they make us ponder the complexities of life. The unhappy ending, may cause readers to brood over the outcome, to relive the story in their minds, and by searching out its implications to get much more meaning and significance from it.

7. Throwing the “monkey wrench”
Indeterminate ending – no definite conclusion is reached happy or unhappy. As a reader of literary fiction, you will evaluate the ending not just with happy or unhappy, but whether it is logical within the story’s own terms – is it believable?
Remember, in life some are never solved and some battles never permanently won.
A story without a definite resolution leaves us to ponder the complex psychological dynamics that operate within human relationships.

8. Last Thoughts…
An author who includes a turn in the plot that is unjustified by the situation or the characters is indulging in plot manipulation.
Plot that relies too heavily on chance or coincidence (and makes the reader feel manipulated) is called a deus ex machina (Latin for “god from a machine’). This is from the Greek dramas of the gods descending to help the protagonist from some impossible situation.

9. One More…
Essential to a good plot is artistic unity. There must be nothing in the story that is irrelevant, that does not contribute to the meaning; there should be nothing there for its own sake or its own excitement. An author’s handling of the plot should have a quality of natural inevitability, given the set of characters and the initial situation.
When writing and discussing about plot, consider the function in trying to understand the relationship of each incident to the larger meaning of the story (theme). Plot is important for what it reveals.

10. Works Cited
Perrine Laurence, Thomas R. Arp, and Greg Johnson. Perrine's story and structure. 10th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt College, Print.