1. What does it take to create a story/movie/play?
3 Things:
Characters
Setting
Plot

2. Protagonist vs. Antagonist
Protagonist – the main character or hero in a play or other literary work.
Antagonist – The opponent of the hero or main character; one who opposes and actively competes with another character in the play/story.

3. With a partner or group of 3 next to you, do the following:
1.)List the Characters
2.) Explain the setting (where the story takes place…could be more than 1 place)
You have 2 minutes….

4. Literary Elements: Plot
What do you think of when you think of “plot”?
What about in relation to math or science?
What does the line made represent?

5. Plot
Each point graphed represents something happening…the line is made by connecting those points of importance…the line shows what happened
In drama, the points are events & the line made by connecting those events represents the story
Plot- the events of a play or arrangement of action
Plot answers the question: What happens in the story & who does what?

6. Plot
With your partner or group, make a list of the main events or main points of “The Wizard of Oz”
Hint: think about main characters, emotional events, turning points, conflicts…etc
You have 2 minutes…

9. Plot
Plot is best expressed chronologically (in order) & you have to have an understanding of character…why?
Important events of the plot work together to create an effective whole piece
How can we organize these events?

10. Plot Structures: The Big 5
Exposition
Rising action
Climax
Falling action
Resolution

11. Plot Model
Where would the plot structures fit on this graph?

12. Plot Structures
Exposition- part of story/play that introduces the theme, chief characters, & current circumstances
What events are part of the exposition in “The Wizard of Oz”?

13. Plot Structures
Rising action- series of events leading up to the climax (turning point)
What events are part of the rising action in “The Wizard of Oz”?

14. Oh my, you’re not a wizard! You’re a man! …and you’re old!
Plot Structures
Climax- turning point of the plot…point of greatest intensity that leads to some kind of resolution
What is the climax of “The Wizard of Oz”?
Oh my, you’re not a wizard! You’re a man! …and you’re old!

15. Plot Structures Falling action- series of events following the climax
What events are part of the falling action in “The Wizard of Oz”?

16. Plot Structures
Resolution- how the problem or conflict in a drama is solved or concluded
What is the resolution in “The Wizard of Oz”?
“There’s no place like home…there’s no place like home…”
“I just had the craziest dream…”

17. Plot Model Climax You need to draw & label this in your notes!!!
Rising Action
Falling Action
Exposition
Resolution

18. Plot Structures Review
What is plot?
What questions does plot answer?
What are the “Big 5” plot structures?
Compare the plot structures to a plot graph.

19. Plot vs. Theme Answers question what happened & who does what
Answers question what is the story about & what can we learn from it
Both are essential to understanding the story

20. Theme
Theme- the basic idea of a play; the idea, point of view, or perception that binds together a work of art
The moral, the message, the lesson
What was the “theme” in “The Wizard of Oz”?

21. Aesop’s Fables The Fox and the Grapes
One afternoon a fox was walking through the forest and spotted a bunch of grapes hanging from over a lofty branch. “Just the thing to quench my thirst,” said the fox. Taking a few steps back, the fox jumped and just missed the hanging grapes. Again the fox took a few paces back and tried to reach them but still failed. Finally, giving up, the fox turned up his nose and said, “They’re probably sour anyway”, the fox said, and proceeded to walk away.

22. The Fox and the grapes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W910WX69Ah8
                                                                          
What’s the theme here?

23. The Tortoise and the Hare
A hare one day ridiculed the short feet and the slow pace of the Tortoise, who replied, laughing: “Though you may be swift as the wind, I will beat you in a race.” The Hare, believing her assertion to be simply impossible, agreed to the proposal, and they decided that the Fox should choose the course and the goal. On the day appointed for the race the two started together. The Tortoise never for a moment stopped, but went on with a slow and steady pace straight to the end of the course. The Hare, lying bored and over-confident by the wayside, fell fast asleep. At last waking up, and moving as fast as he could, he saw the Tortoise had reached the finish, and was comfortably dozing after her fatigue.

24. The Tortoise and the Hare
What’s the theme here?

25. Aesop’s Fables Fables always end with a “moral” to each story…
An outright statement of the story’s theme, what the story is about or the lesson we can learn from it
Can you think of any other themes to stories you’ve heard?

26. Let’s Practice Stating Theme
Learning to analyze a story in order to state its theme in your own words is essential
“Life is a compromise between fate and free-will.”
“People need someone to believe in them- it can change everything.”
“People are known by the company they keep.”

27. Practice
“We seldom think of what we have, but always think of what we lack.”
“Actions speak louder than words.”
“First think, then speak.”
“Laughter is the best medicine.”
“Love is blind.”

28. Understanding Plot & Theme
Plot=story line, sequence of events
Answers question: what happens in the story or who does what
Character is essential
Best told in chronological order

29. Understanding Plot & Theme
Theme=the meaning, message, lesson story offers us
Answers question: what is the story about and why did the writer create this story
Stories are part of human interaction & culture for the value they present as learning tools
Story’s reason for being is to leave us with a unifying idea or message
Can be categorized in a word or phrase: “greed”, “kindness”, “overcoming odds”
Best comprehended in a sentence

30. More Literary Elements
Dialogue – spoken conversation used by two or more characters to express thoughts, feelings, and actions.
Foreshadowing – the indication beforehand of something that is about to happen
Monologue – a long speech made by one actor.