Story Elephants...oops! Story elements
setting
Setting includes the location, time, and environment in which a story takes place.
Location: (Where would the story be on a map of the world/universe?) Ex: in West Jordan, Utah; in a school; on a beach on a deserted island; on Mars
Time: (Where in history does it happen? What time of day/night?) Ex: set it the futuristic year of 2092; Medieval ages; in the middle of a hot summer day
Environment: (What key characteristics or props are included in the surrounding area? What sounds/smells/sights are included?) Ex: a crowded classroom filled with 30 desks and chairs and students loudly talking in between class periods vs a bare and dark classroom with no one else in the school building
Location: (Where would the story be on a map of the world/universe?) Ex: in West Jordan, Utah; in a school; on a beach on a deserted island; on Mars
Time: (Where in history does it happen? What time of day/night?) Ex: set it the futuristic year of 2092; Medieval ages; in the middle of a hot summer day
Environment: (What key characteristics or props are included in the surrounding area? What sounds/smells/sights are included?) Ex: a crowded classroom filled with 30 desks and chairs and students loudly talking in between class periods vs a bare and dark classroom with no one else in the school building
plot line
The plot is the meat and potatoes of the story. It is what sucks the reader in and tells the going-ons of the character's experiences. It maps out the pacing of the events.
- Exposition- This beginning part of the story introduces the characters and the setting to us. It might also reveal the conflict of the story.
- Rising Action- This usually takes up most of the story, as the conflict unfolds itself and the characters must try to solve their problem.
- Climax- The moments of highest intensity in the book. This is the moment when the conflict and the characters take a big turn and something drastic happens to change everything. Often it is when a character makes a realization that causes their actions to change.
- Falling Action- The climax ends and leads to seamlessly to the end of the story.
- Resolution/Denouement- The end of the story where all the loose ends are tied up. This might also include where a moral is taught or revealed
conflict
The conflicts of the story are the problems the character must face and overcome throughout the plot. Usually there is one main conflict, but there are often mini conflicts within the main storyline that cause the plot to rise and fall multiple times before reaching the true climax. There are two main categories of conflicts: internal and external.
Internal Conflict
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External Conflict
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Person vs Society- The character fights agains the rules of the society/government (one against many)
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character
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The characters are the individuals who propel the action. They can be people, animals, objects, etc.
Characters are created in a variety of ways, but these are the 5 main components of characterization:
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point of view
Point of view is essentially the eyes through which a story is told. It is the narrative voice through which readers follow the story's plot, meet its characters, discover its setting, and enter into its relationships, emotions, and conflicts. Point of view allows readers to experience the story as it unfolds.
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Third Person: The narrator is someone outside the story, who frequently uses pronouns, like 'he,' 'she,' and 'they,' to describe the characters. The third person point of view is divided into three subcategories:
- The objective third person, in which the narrator knows or reveals nothing about the characters' internal thoughts, feelings, and motivations but sticks to the external facts of the story (as in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter)
- The limited third person, in which the narrator describes the internal thoughts, feelings, and motivations of one character, usually the main character (as in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series)
- The omniscient third person, in which the narrator knows and at least partially reveals the internal thoughts, feelings, and motivations of all the characters (as in E.B. White's Charlotte's Web)
theme
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Here is a trick for remembering what theme is:
THEME is THE MESSAGE of a story. In order to find the theme, ask yourself, "What critical belief about life is the author trying to convey through this story/text?" This belief/idea will transcend cultural barriers and be applicable in the outside world. examples:
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mood and tone
Mood is the emotion or feeling evoked from a text. It is created through the carefully selected words the author chooses to use.
Tone is the author's attitude towards a subject. (usually positive or negative) Connotation and Denotation of the words have an impact on the tone as well.
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Irony
There are three different types of irony, each of which is listed below:
1. Situational Irony - When the outcome is opposite of what was expected
2. Verbal Irony - Sarcasm - When what is said is the opposite of what is meant
3. Dramatic Irony - When the audience knows more than the characters involved
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