Transcript Plot Components - San Juan Unified School District

Plot
Conflict
Character
Theme
Setting
Plot
The plot is what happens in a story. The main
events of a play, novel, movie, or similar work,
devised and presented by the writer as an
interrelated sequence
 You’ll explore how characters can go through
conflicts or problems in a story. The events in a
story usually lead up to a really exciting event,
called the climax. By the conclusion, or end of
the story, characters might find solutions to their
problems or answers to their questions.
Exercise: Think of a recent movie or book you read
and briefly explain the plot on a plot triangle.

Plot Components
Climax: the turning point,
the most intense moment;
this is the most exciting or
stressful part of the story
Rising Action: the series of
conflicts and crises in the
story that lead to the
climax
Exposition: the start of the
story, the situation before
the action starts – we meet
the characters and find out
the setting
Falling Action: all of
the action which
follows the climax
Resolution: the
conclusion, the tying
together of all of the
threads
Plot Components
Climax:
Rising Action:
Falling Action:
Exposition:
Resolution:
Conflict
Conflict
Conflict is the dramatic struggle between two
forces in a story. Without conflict, there is no plot.
 Every story has a conflict - a struggle between
two opposing forces. The conflict may be
between two people or it may be between a
person and some other force, regardless, every
story revolves around conflict and it's important
for you to understand the various kinds of conflict.
Internal Conflict is a struggle that occurs within
the main character. This struggle happens within
the character's own mind.
 External Conflict is a struggle that the main
character has with another character, with
society, or with a natural force.

Types of Conflict
External Conflict
Character vs. Character
Character vs.. Nature
Character vs. Society
Internal Conflict
Character vs. Self
Plot: Character vs. Character Conflict
This type of conflict finds the main character in conflict with
another character, human or not human.
“The new one is the most beautiful of
all; he is so young and pretty.” And the
old swans bowed their heads before
him.
Then he felt quite ashamed, and hid his
head under his wing; for he did not
know what to do, he was so happy, and
yet not at all proud. He had been
persecuted and despised for his
ugliness, and now he heard them say
he was the most beautiful of all the
birds.
The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian
Anderson
Plot: Character vs. Nature Conflict
This type of conflict finds the main character in conflict with the
forces of nature, which serve as the antagonist.
It´s a Truffula Seed.
It´s the last one of all!
You´re in charge of the last of the Truffula
Seeds.
And Truffula Trees are what everyone
needs.
Plant a new Truffula. Treat it with care.
Give it clean water. And feed it fresh air.
Grow a forest. Protect it from axes that
hack.
Then the Lorax
and all of his friends
may come back.
The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Plot: Character vs. Society Conflict
This type of conflict has the main character in conflict with a
larger group: a community, society, culture, etc.
“I’m tired of living in a hole,”
said Jenny.
“Let’s fight for freedom!” cried
Bouncer. “We’ll be soldiers!
Rough-riding Rowdies! I’ll be
the general and commanderin-chief!”
The Island of the Skog by
Steven Kellogg
Plot: Character vs. Self Conflict
In this type of conflict, the main character experiences
some kind of inner conflict.
Finally, Sam’s father said, “Go to
bed now. But before you go to
sleep, Sam, tell yourself the
difference between REAL and
MOONSHINE.”
Sam, Bangs & Moonshine by
Evaline Ness
Character Analysis
Character Analysis
Students will:
Empathize, for the purpose of understanding,
the character.
 Understand the difference between direct
characterization and indirect characterization.
 Understand the difference between a static and
dynamic character.
 Understand the various complications with
which a character must deal.
 Understand the difference between internal
conflict and external conflict.
 Understand the role of motivation within a
character.
 Understand how poetry elements are an
important aspect of character analysis


Character Analysis
1.
2.
3.
A strong character analysis will: identify the
type of character it is dealing with. (A single
character could be two or three types. See
“There are different types of characters”
below.)
Describe the character.
Discuss the conflict in the story, particularly
in regards to the character’s place in it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L00IGji0Dw4
Character Analysis
Protagonists (heroes), The main character around whom
most of the work revolves.
Let’s think of a few heroes from our favorite books and
movies
Protagonists can follow literary
patterns or types:

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The anti-hero (Holden Caufield), This is the guy your mother
would not want you or your sister to date. They are often
graceless, inept, and actually dishonest.
The tragic hero (Oedipus, Macbeth), This is the guy whose
bad end is a result of flaws within himself.
The romantic hero (Don Juan, James Bond), This is the guy
the girls all swoon over. He gets the girls, even when he
doesn’t want to keep them.
The modern hero (Chuck Bartowski), This is the average guy
who is put in extraordinary circumstances and rises to the
challenge.
The Hemingway hero, This is the guy who has been in a war,
drinks too much, gets his girlfriend pregnant, and she dies.
Or guys like him
Character Analysis
Antagonists, The person who the protagonist is
against. This is often the villain, but could be a force
of nature, set of circumstances, an animal, etc.
Let’s think of a few villains from our favorite books
and movies
Character Analysis
Major, These are the main characters.
They dominate the story. Often there are
only one or two major characters.
 Minor, These are the characters who help
tell the major character’s tale by letting
major characters interact and reveal their
personalities, situations, stories. They are
usually static (unchanging

Theme
The theme of a story is what the author is
trying to convey — in other words, the central
idea of the story.
Short stories often have just one theme,
whereas novels usually have multiple themes.
The theme of a story is woven all the way
through the story, and the characters' actions,
interactions, and motivations all reflect the
story's theme.
Theme
But don't confuse theme with the story's plot or
moral. The plot is simply what happens in the
story and the order of the story's events, and
the moral is the lesson that the writer wants the
main character (and by extension, you) to learn
from the story. Each of these serves the overall
theme of the story. That is, the events of the
story illustrate the theme, and the lesson that
you learn relates directly to the theme.
https://learnzillion.com/lessons/924-determine-the-theme-of-a-story
Setting
Setting
The setting of a story is composed of three
distinct pieces:
 The TIME of the setting refers to an era or time
period. This can be very specific, such as the
Great Depression, the mid-1880's, or the Disco
Era; or it can be very vague, such as "The
Future" or "The Past".

Setting
The setting of a short story is the time and place
in which it happens. Authors often use
descriptions of landscape, scenery, buildings,
seasons or weather to provide a strong sense of
setting.
 The PLACE of the setting refers to the actual
location(s) where the story takes place. When
discussing the location, we usually discuss the
smallest possible area that encompasses all of
the locations where action takes place in the
story.

Setting
The DURATION of the story is the amount of
time that passes within the story from the
beginning to the end. This has nothing to do
with how many pages long the story is, or how
long it takes you to read the story.
 The setting of a story can have a huge effect on
how the story turns out.

Setting

Setting is often conveyed through the use
of imagery or sensory language, and it can
greatly affect the atmosphere or mood of the
story.
Writing: Create a specific setting for a short
story. Reveal the setting to your readers
through your use of vivid details.