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Narrative
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Narrative
A story is a
story.
It has a
beginning,
middle and
ending.
That’s all there is to it
– isn’t it?
This presentation will look at different ways to tell a story.
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What does narrative mean?
A narrative is a piece of writing which tells a story. It may
be fictional, or may include information. It may be in prose
or written as a poem.
What so you expect a narrative to contain?
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Narrative elements
You will often find these elements in a narrative:
plot
images
setting
dialogue
description
characters
problems
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This presentation will look at some
of the narrative devices you can
use to make your story more
interesting and enjoyable.
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The narrator
The narrator is the person that tells the story.
Sometimes the story is told in the third person as though
someone else (perhaps the writer) is just observing and
retelling events:
Cinderella was fed up of being told what to do by
her big sisters. She wanted a life of her own.
Or it may be told in the first person, by the main
character or someone else in the story.
I’d had enough of sleeping in the cinders and being bossed
about. It was time to do something about my sisters.
Sometimes the story is told by more than one person –
from different viewpoints.
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The narrator
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Format
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Timing
Another narrative device you might choose to use, is to
change the timing of a story.
Often a story is told chronologically – the events are
described in the order in which they take place. But this
needn’t be the case.
Flashback is a technique often used in films. You can use it
in stories too, perhaps starting at the end or even in the
middle of a story as a character remembers or refers to a
past event. For example:
Cinderella lay on the cold hearth with tears in her eyes.
How could her stepmother be so cruel? Her mind slipped
back to her own mother, with her smiling eyes and warm
voice. She sat on her mother’s knee and listened to her
beautiful stories.
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Timing
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Tone
You should be aware of the tone of your writing.
The tone of a piece of a writing is roughly equivalent
to the tone of voice in which it might be spoken. So
the tone of a passage might be angry, indignant or
ironic, for example.
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Tone
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Parody
This is when you subvert or change around the original
version of a story or piece of writing.
It can be very powerful and very humorous. (You might
be able to think of Roald Dahl verses where he parodies
traditional fairy stories, for example.)
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Parody
Have a go at creating your own parody of a traditional
story. You can use this starter, or choose your own idea.
There’s been a lot of
misinformation bandied around
about the three pigs. Truth is, they
were not very nice pigs at all.
When they set up their homes they
annoyed all the neighbours
including Police Officer Wolf …
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Other techniques
Writers use many other techniques to engage and interest
their readers. Discuss what techniques are used in the
examples below.
A As you read this, you should know that I am a liar.
Perhaps you do not believe me, but I assure you I
am telling the truth!
B My grandmother told me a story. It went something like
this: ‘Back in the olden days, people were poor but
generous …’
C The old man shook his head. ‘Do not ask about the
castle. You do not need to know. But Jess wanted to
know – she wanted to know everything.
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To sum up
Successful narrative is all about your ability to ‘hook’ and
interest your reader.
There’s lots of techniques to use. Experiment with:
the narrator
the timing
format
flashback
parody
tone.
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