Transcript Introduction to the Elements of Fiction

CHARACTERS
 The actors in a story’s plot
 People, animals, robots, or whatever the writer chooses
 May be more than one main character, particularly in a
book.
 Protagonist – main character(s)
 Antagonist – person(s) or force(s) in conflict with the
main character
 Little Red Riding Hood – Who is the protagonist? Who
is the antagonist?
SETTING
 Time and place in which a story happens
 Physical surroundings
 Ideas
 Customs, Values, and Beliefs that are associated with
the broad setting
 Little Red Riding Hood – What is the setting of this
fairy tale?
 Think about the setting broadly, then identify
more specific locations.
PLOT
 Sequence of events in a story – action that moves the
story along
 Exposition – introduces the story’s characters, setting,
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and conflict
Rising action – develops the conflict with
complications and suspense
Climax – the emotional high point of the story
Falling action – shows what happens to the characters
after the climax
Resolution – shows how the conflict is resolved or how
the problem is solved
Little Red Riding Hood – What is the sequence of events
in Little Red Riding Hood’s story?
CONFLICT
 The element of the story which shows the concerns of
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the central characters.
Conflict is a struggle between opposing forces
External conflict: struggle between a character and an
outside force (another character, society, nature, or fate)
Internal conflict: struggle within a character against
opposing feelings or indecision
Little Red Riding Hood - What conflict does Little Red
Riding Hood face?
What was the solution, or resolution?
POINT OF VIEW
 Who is telling the story?
 Narrator’s standpoint or perspective
 First-person point of view: narrator is a character in the
story, uses I, me, we, us
 Third-person point of view: narrator describes the story
from outside
 Objective – like a camera is recording the action
 Omniscient – narrator knows thoughts and feelings of every
character
 Limited – narrator knows thoughts and feelings of only one
character
 Little Red Riding Hood – What is the P.O.V.?
THEME
 Central message of the story
 Universal – applies to everyone, everywhere, at every
time
 Sometimes the theme is stated directly
 Sometimes the theme is implied (not “right there”,
more of an “on your own”)
 Little Red Riding Hood – What is the theme?