Welcome to our

Short Story Unit

Author

The writer of a literary work or document (novel, short story, poem, etc.)

Character

A person or animal in a story, play, or other literary work.

Characterization

 How an author reveals a character’s personality.  As readers we, whether we actually realize it or not, build our own perceptions of the characters.

Direct Characterization

 Direct characterization  the author directly tells you what the character is like:  “As we supported him up the steps, the door banged open and Cheryl came bursting out of the house. She was all smiles and was so obviously glad to see Grandpa that I was ashamed of how I felt” (Sneve 123).

Indirect Characterization

 The author reveals the character’s personality through:   #1: What the character says #2: What the character does

Bobby picks on his brother whenever his parents aren’t looking.

More Indirect Characterization

 #3: What the character feels or thinks Bob scowled as he thought to himself “I’d like to kick this machine across the room.”

Last but not least….

 #4: How other characters feel or what other characters say about the character  #5: What the character looks like (physical appearance and clothing)

Conflict

Conflict is the dramatic struggle between two forces in a story. Without conflict, there is no plot.

Internal Conflict

Internal Conflict Character vs. Self (guilt, apprehension, anxiety, self-doubt, fear of failure)

Types of External Conflict

Character vs. Character Character vs. Nature Character vs. Society Character vs. Fate/Destiny Character vs. Supernatural

Foreshadowing

The use of clues or hints to suggest events that will occur later in the plot

Mood/Atmosphere

   Overall feeling of a piece of literature. Can be described with one or two adjectives (scary, happy, sad) Authors often use word choice, style, and imagery to convey a certain feeling for the reader

Setting

    The time and place of a story.

Most often, the setting is described in the exposition (beginning) of a story.

Setting often plays an emotional role.

Contributes to the plot – especially in character vs. nature conflict.

Point of View

  The vantage point from which a story is told (who is telling the story) The three most common points of view are  Omniscient   Third-person limited First Person

Omniscient

    The all-knowing point-of view Narrator knows everything about all the characters and their thoughts, feelings, and motivations The omniscient narrator stands apart rather like a god This narrator is not actually part of the story or the action

Third-Person Limited

   Narrator focuses on thoughts and feelings of only one character We see the story through this character’s eyes only The narrator has very limited information about any other character other than the ONE they are focusing on

First Person

   One of the characters, using the pronoun “I” We only know what this person knows Information may not be reliable

Protagonist/Antagonist

Protagonist: The “good guy”/ usually the main character of the story and the person we are generally rooting for Antagonist: The “bad guy”/ the character or force working against the protagonist

Short Story

   A short fictional narrative Generally only have a few characters and usually only one setting Usually only one central conflict

Suspense

  The uncertainty or anxiety that a reader feels about what will happen next in a story.

Suspense is created by mood, as well as the following techniques:  Foreshadowing – hints of what’s to come    Mystery – withholding information from the reader; unusual or bizarre circumstances Reversal – good to bad or bad to good Dilemma – forced to choose between two dangerous situations

Symbol (ism)

A person, place, thing, or event that has a deeper meaning and represents something beyond its literal meaning

Theme

    The general idea or insight about life that a work of literature reveals.

An idea or message the author wishes to convey about the subject.

Most often themes are not stated directly.

The reader has to think about all the elements of the work.

Don’t mess with fate.

Tone

The attitude a writer takes toward his or her subject, characters, and/or audience Tone is conveyed through the author’s word choice Tone is often times dependent upon the author’s purpose and message Types of tone: sarcastic, friendly, supportive, pleading, bitter/angry, humorous, serious, solemn

Plot

Plot is the literary element that describes the structure (a chain of events/the skeleton) of a story. It shows the cause-effect relationship of events and actions within a story.

Plot Components

Climax: the turning point, the most intense moment—either mentally or in action; reveals how conflict will turn out Rising Action: the series of events (complications) about the conflict in the story that lead to the climax Falling Action: all of the action which follows the climax Exposition: the start of the story, the situation before the action starts; setting, characters, conflict introduced Resolution: the conclusion, the tying together of all of the threads