2. In this lesson you will learn how to analyze how particular story elements interact by determining
how the setting shapes
the main character.

3. Setting = where a story takes place
Main character =
Rikki-tikki-tavi, a
mongoose
Setting = where a story takes place
Characters – interact with
setting and plot of a story
“Rikki Tikki Tavi”
From The Jungle Book
By Rudyard Kipling
This is the story of the great war that Rikki-tikki-tavi fought single-handed, through the bath-rooms of the big bungalow in Segowlee cantonment. Darzee, the tailorbird, helped him, and Chuchundra, the muskrat, who never comes out into the middle of the floor,
but always creeps round by the wall,
gave him advice; but Rikki-tikki did the real fighting.
Looking at the introduction of Rikki Tikki Tavi, we are immediately introduced to the main character Rikki, who is a young mongoose. To review, the setting of a story is where a story takes place. Characters respond to and interact with the setting of a story. Good readers pay close attention to the setting of a story and how characters are shaped by the setting.

4. Climax (high point)
characters struggle
Rising action
of plot –
characters
develop
Falling action -
characters change
Characters
introduced

5. Identify sections of the text that
describe the setting and the character and ask, “How does the character respond to the setting?”
Use these notes and ask, “How would
the main character change if the
setting changed?”
Add this together to determine how the
setting shapes a character.

6. Identify text that describes the setting and the character:
Then Rikki-tikki went out into the garden to
see what was to be seen. It was a large garden, only half cultivated, with bushes as big as summer-houses of Marshal Niel roses, lime and orange trees, clumps of bamboos, and thickets of high grass. Rikki-tikki licked his lips. “This is a splendid hunting-ground,” he said, and his tail grew bottle-brushy at the thought of it, and he scuttled up and down the garden, snuffing here and there till he heard very sorrowful voices in a thorn-bush.
First we should pay close attention to the words an author uses to describe the setting. Once we’ve identified those words, then we can read closely to discover how the character responds to the setting by thinking about how the character feels – what he or she might say or do in response to the setting words.

7. Rikki-tikki licked his lips
Rikki-tikki licked his lips. “This is a splendid hunting ground,” he said, and his tail grew bottle-brushy at the thought of it, and he scuttled up and down the garden, snuffing here and there till he heard very sorrowful voices in a thorn-bush.
While picturing the setting in our head, we can look for evidence in the text that shows us what the character is saying or doing in response to the setting. When Rikki looked at the large bushes, half cultivated garden, clumps of bamboo and thicket of high grass, he licked his lips, and said, this is a splendid hunting ground. You can tell by his dialogue that he is pleased and happy about it otherwise he wouldn’t have used the word splendid. He also has some physical changes in his body – his tail gets bushy and he scuttles which means he’s excited and ready to explore by starting to snuff the area.

8. Then he said, “This is a splendid hunting ground.”
Rikki licked his lips.
His tail grew bottle-brushy.
He scuttled up and down the garden.
He snuffed here and there.
Taking a closer look at his reaction to the hunting ground, we can break it down and see what he is doing and hear what he is saying. Actions like licking his lips, snuffing and scuttling indicate he is growing anxious and when he states that it’s a splendid hunting ground, you know for sure he has a positive, pleasant attitude toward his surroundings.

9. Say, “This is awful. How will I hunt here?”
Rikki might:
Roll his eyes
Say, “This is awful. How will I hunt here?”
Run and hide in a sewer pipe
So thinking about the reaction that Rikki had that helped us to infer and draw the conclusion that he was excited and positive about the setting he’s in, we can also think about what it might be like if the author had changed the setting. As a reader we have to visualize the setting the author chooses to use, but as a writer, we choose the setting we use in our writing. Writers must give thought to their setting because it helps to shape the characters thoughts, feelings, and actions.

10. “This is awful. How will I hunt here?”
“This is a splendid hunting ground.”

12. Identify sections of the text that
describe the setting and the character
and ask, “How does the character
respond to the setting?”
Use these notes and ask, “How would
the main character change if the
setting changed?”
Add this together to determine how the
setting shapes a character.

13. In this lesson you have learned how to analyze how particular story elements interact by determining
how the setting shapes
the main character.