Transcript Elements of Short Stories PowerPoint adapted from:

Elements of
Short Stories
PowerPoint adapted from:
Setting
The setting is the place where the story
takes place. Setting includes the
following:
– The geographical location
• For example: London, Chicago, Mars, Montana
– The time period
• For example: 1865, during WWII, today
– The socio-economic characteristics of the
location
• For example: wealthy suburbs, on a farm
– The specific building, room etc.
• For example: a prep school, a log cabin, a bus, a
military base
Setting
Can be used to tell readers about the
characters:
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Larry's apartment was less of a living space than a glorified closet. The
bathroom was just big enough to sit on the toilet without having his knees
touch the sink, and the window was more like a ship's porthole. The bed was
so small his feet hung over the edge, and there was really not much to do but
watch static on the television.
The place did not have a kitchen, so he bought a camping hotplate to make
his single-serving meals. He ate the same thing every night, but like a house
cat, he did not seem to mind the monotony of his repeated dinner of rice,
wilted spinach, and baked beans.
Nothing hung on the walls of Larry’s place, but old framed photos of
family members he no longer spoke to cluttered his small desk. An old dusty
typewriter and a stack of blank paper took up the rest of the space there.
He hadn’t written a word in years.
Setting
Can be used to set the atmosphere for the story:
“During the whole of a dull,
dark, and soundless day in
the autumn of the year,
when the clouds hung
oppressively low in the
heavens, I had been passing
alone, on horseback, though
a singularly dreary tract of
country.”
“The Fall of the House of Usher”
by Edgar Allan Poe
Characters
The people (or animals, things, etc. presented as people)
appearing in a literary work.
• Dynamic Characters undergo some type of
change or development in story, often because
of something that happens to them
• Round Characters are convincing, true to life.
Have many different traits, but do not go
through major changes in the story.
• Flat Characters are stereotyped, shallow, and
often symbolic. Have only one or two personality
traits
• Static Characters do not change in the course of
the story
Examples of Characters
• Dynamic:
– Han Solo, Ebenezer Scrooge, Prof. Snape
• Round
– Dumbledore, How I Met Your Mother cast
• Flat
– Barney from “The Simpsons”, Shredder
• Static
– Alfred the Butler, Bella’s Dad
Characters
• Protagonist: The
main character in a
literary work for
instance: Cinderella,
Snow White, Harry
Potter and SpiderMan
•Antagonist: The character who opposes the protagonist.
For instance: Evil Step Mother, Evil Queen, Voldemort, The
Green Goblin
Methods of Characterization
Direct Characterization: The author develops the
personality of a character by direct statements.
“Jack had been in basic
training in Florida and Dottie
was there on vacation with
her parents. They’d met on
the beach and struck up a
conversation. Dottie was the
talker, the outgoing one – the
extrovert. Jack was too shy
around girls to say much at
all.”
“Furlough – 1944” by Harry Mazer
Methods of Characterization
Indirect Characterization: Revealing a
character’s personality through:
• The character’s thoughts, words,
and actions
• The comments of other characters
• The character’s physical appearance
Indirect Characterization
through Actions
“The boy held his breath;
he wondered whether his
father would hear his heart
beating… Through a crack
in the counter he could see
his father where he stood,
one hand held to his high
stiff collar…”
“I Spy” by Graham Greene
Indirect Characterization
through Appearance
“Miss Kinney was young and blonde and bouncy
and had a boyfriend who picked her up after
school in a blue Camaro.”
“Here There Be Tygers” by Stephen King
Plot
Plot is how the author arranges events to develop his/her
basic idea. It is the sequence of events in a story or play.
The plot is a planned, logical series of events having a
beginning, middle and end.
Plot Components
Introduction: The start of the story, the situation
before the action starts
Rising Action: The series of conflicts and crisis in
the story that lead to the climax
Climax / Turning Point: The most intense moment
– either mentally or in action – the reader
wonders what will happen next; will the conflict
be resolved or not?
Falling Action: The events and complications begin
to resolve themselves. (The events between the
climax and the resolution)
Resolution: The conclusion, the untangling of
events in the story
Plot: Conflict
Conflict is the
dramatic struggle
between two forces in
a story. Without
conflict there is no
plot.
Plot: Types of Conflict
External Conflict
• Human vs. Human
• Human vs. Nature
• Human vs. Society
Internal Conflict
• Human vs. Self
Point of View
The angle or perspective from which
the story is told
• Who is telling the story?
– For instance, is it a player on the home
team or someone watching the game?
• How do we know what is happening?
– For instance, does a character tell us?
First Person Point of View
Told from the viewpoint of one of the
characters, using the first person
pronoun “I”.
“The thousands of injuries of Fortunato I
had borne as I best could, but when he
ventured upon insult I vowed revenge.
You, who so well know the nature of my
soul, will not suppose, however, that I
give utterance to a threat.”
“The Cask of Amontillado”
by Edgar Allan Poe
• Innocent Eye: The story is told
through the eyes of a child (his/her
judgment being different from that
of an adult).
• Stream of Consciousness: The story
is told so that the reader feels as if
they are inside the head of one
character and knows all their
thoughts and reactions.
Second Person Point of
View
The main character in the story is referred
to using the second person pronoun
“you”.
“Rubbing your aching head, you take in the scene around
you. Nearby you see a narrow dirt road, and beyond it a
fast-running brook. The road disappears into dense woods
on either side of the field.
You hear the sound of hooves, and a strange clanking
noise. Someone is coming! You duck behind a tree as two
men on horseback ride toward you. They are wearing
shining metal armor. One of them carries a white banner
with a golden lion on it. They must be knights! You watch
as they rein in their horses and dismount just a few yards
away.”
Choose Your Own Adventure : The Forbidden Castle by Edward Packard
Third Person Point of View
The story is told using a narrator who is located
outside of the action of the story and uses third
person pronouns such as “he”, “she”, “his”, “her”,
“they” etc.
Third Person Point of View can be broken up into
three different types:
• Omniscient
• Limited Omniscient
• Objective
Omniscient Point of View
The narrator has the power to show the
reader what is happening though a
number of characters’ eyes.
“Myop carried a short knobby stick. She struck
out at random at chickens she liked, and worked
out the beat of a song on the fence around the
pigpen. She felt light and good in the warm sun.
She was ten, and nothing existed for her but her
son, the stick she clutched in her dark brown
hand, and the tat-de-ta-ta-ta of
accompaniment.”
“The Flowers” by Alice Walker
Limited Omniscient Point of
View
Third person, told from the viewpoint of a
character in the story.
“They all laughed, and while they were
laughing, the quiet boy moved his bare foot
on the sidewalk and merely touched, brushed
against a number of red ants that were
scurrying about on the sidewalk. Secretly his
eyes shining, while his parents chatted with
the old man, he saw the ants hesitate, quiver,
and lie still on the cement. He sensed they
were cold now.”
“Fever Dream” by Ray Bradbury
Objective Point of View
Third person, told as if from a camera
that follows the characters. Only what is
said and done is recorded.
“Jennifer stirred in bed. The cotton sheet clung
to her body as she rolled to face the nightstand.
With eyes half open, she reached over to switch
the alarm clock off when the man in the
shadows reached out and grabbed her arm. Her
scream pierced the quiet night and died
abruptly as she was forced violently back into
the dark oblivion.”
“Objective Point of View” writesville.com
Theme
• Theme is the central idea or central message of
the story. It usually contains some insight into
the human condition – telling something about
humans and life.
• The theme can be stated directly or implied by
the events and actions in the story.
• Examples of Themes/Lessons
– Don’t judge a book by its cover, Believe in yourself,
People often fear what they do not understand.
Types of Irony
• Verbal Irony: This is the contrast between what is said and
what is meant. In other words: sarcasm.
• Dramatic Irony: This is the contrast between what the
character thinks to be true and what we (the reader) know to be
true. Sometimes as we read we are placed in the position of
knowing more than what one character knows. An example of
this is watching a horror movie where we as the viewer know
where the killer is hiding but the characters do not.
• Situational Irony: This is the most common in literature. It is
the contrast between what happens and what was expected (or
what would seem appropriate). Examples include Prof. Snape
secretly protecting Harry all along, or you spend an entire year
working hard and saving up for an iPhone – and then someone
gets it for you for Christmas.
Symbolism
A symbol represents an idea, quality, or
concept larger than itself.
• A journey can
• A lion can be
symbolize life
a symbol of
courage.
• Water may
represent
cleanliness
and renewal
• A red rose
can
represent
love.
Flashback
This is a writers’ technique in which the author
interrupts the plot of the story to recreate an
incident of an earlier time (goes back in time; like
giving the reader a memory). This device is often
used to provide additional information to the reader.
Foreshadowing
This is a writers’ technique in
which the author provides
clues or hints as to what is
going to happen later in the
story. It’s like the music in a
scary movie when we know
that something bad is about
to happen.