6 Elements of Story

Can you think of all 6?

1. THEME - can be considered in 4 ways

a) Lesson - the learning that comes from a story that is generated by a particular reader for that reader.

• (eg. Cinderella - what happens at midnight could be seen as teaching about the anxiety that is in the back of everyone's mind as they struggle to feel and be authentic)

b) Thesis - the central learning that an author wants the reader to obtain from the story.

• Eg. All The King's Men by Robert Penn Warren - tries to teach in various ways that all men are weak and even if they become powerful they will become corrupt)

c) Big Ideas - these are the universal ideas that the story addresses throughout the narrative and explores in varied ways

• Eg. All of Jane Austen's novels explore what it means to be an adult, sacrifice, love among other big ideas.)

d) Moral - the teaching from the story is stated explicitly in the story

• eg. The fable The Tortoise and the Hare states that "slow and steady wins the race")

2. CONFLICT – can be considered in two ways

a) problem and its resolution

2. CONFLICT – can be considered in two ways

a) problem and its resolution

b)kinds of conflict - person v.- person v. - person v. - person v. - person v.

CONFLICT cont.

b) kinds of conflict - person v.person - person v. self- person v. nature- person v.technology

(machine, computers)- person v. society

(community, civilization, war, religion, government)

2. CHARACTERS - can be looked at in 2 ways

• a) Main types

CHARACTER cont.

a) Main types

Protagonist: the central character that is changed by events or people in the story

CHARACTER cont.a) Main types

Protagonist: the central character that is changed by events or people in the story

- Antagonist: the characters that have an effect on the protagonist – work against the protagonist

CHARACTER cont.

b) Pairs of sub-types:

- round/flat - fully developed and described through description or their actions v. undeveloped

b) Pairs of sub-types:- round/flat - fully developed and described

through description or their actions v. undeveloped

- realistic/stock or stereotype - everyday characters that are natural v. standard types that are in many stories

b) Pairs of sub-types:- round/flat - fully developed and described

through description or their actions v. undeveloped

- realistic/stock or stereotype - everyday characters that are natural v. standard types that are in many stories

- dynamic/static - changed by events v. unchanged by the course of the story

4. PLOT – has 5 parts

A) INTRODUCTION -

4. PLOT – has 5 parts

A) INTRODUCTIONB) RISING ACTION

PLOT cont.

A) INTRODUCTIONB) RISING ACTIONC) CLIMAX

PLOT cont.

A) INTRODUCTIONB) RISING ACTIONC) CLIMAXD) FALLING ACTION

PLOT cont.

A) INTRODUCTIONB) RISING ACTIONC) CLIMAXD) FALLING ACTIONE) CONCLUSION

5. SETTING – involves 2 parts

A) Place: Where the events are taking place (building, town, province, country, planet)

SETTING – involves 2 parts

A) Place: Where the events are taking place (building, town, province, country, planet)

B) Time: Era, season, time of day

6. GENRE / STYLE – considered in 3 ways

A) Type of Story: romance, sci-fi, etc

GENRE/ STYLE cont.

A) Type of Story: romance, sci-fi, etc

B) Kind of Writing: novel, novella, short story, play, screenplay

GENRE/ STYLE cont.

A) Type of Story: romance, sci-fi, etcB) Kind of Writing: novel, novella, short

story, play, screenplayC) Language used – slang, etc. that is

mostly demonstrated in dialogue of the characters. Can be used to set tone of writing