Elements of a Fiction

Plot
Plot is the action that happens in novels, plays, movies, and narrative
poems. In a novel there may be one main plot with several sub-plots and
a short story will contain only one.
Introduction: gives the reader the time and place a story occurs. It

should get the readers attention and make him/her want to finish the
story!
Rising Action: this is the gradual building of the tension or action in a

plot.
Climax: the point at which the tension reaches its peak, it is the high

point of the story and the moment when the main character is going to
accomplish the goal or not.

Falling Action: the explanation given to tie up loose ends

Ending: tells the outcome of the story

Happy:
The protagonist resolves his/her conflict in a satisfactory

manner

Unhappy:
The protagonist fails to resolve the conflict, reader is left

feeling unhappy

Indeterminate:
The conflict is not resolved in favour of either the

protagonist or antagonist
Reader is left to wonder what happened

Surprise:
A sudden twist happens that is unexpected

Protagonist & Antagonist (Review)

Protagonist: a main character who generates

the action of a story and engages the readers

interest and empathy. Often the hero or
heroine, usually a well-developed character.
Antagonist: a character who opposes the

protagonist.
Together, the protagonist and antagonist

move the plot along, create the action, and

draw the readers interest.

Endings continued
Endings can only be plausible (believable) if:
Foreshadowing has done a great job of anticipation
Are the characters plausible and the preceding events are

believable?
Do events happen in a logical manner?
Ending should seem logical and natural as you take a look
back over the story
Ending should serve to reinforce the central meaning of the
story (theme)

What happens to a story if the characters and

ending are not believable?

Plot Outline

Fill in the plot outline with

descriptions from Plot in
the previous frames.

Setting
Physical Setting: this is the time and place in
which the story occurs. A short story has one
setting but the action in a novel can occur in
several places and over extended periods of time.

Emotional Setting: the spirit or the mood given in

a story. Stories can often start off in one mood
and change to another by the end.

Point of View
As you read a story, you will begin to realize that you seem
to be outside the story looking in or perhaps you seem to
be in the story itself! This is because the writer is using a
specific kind of narration to get you involved in the story
in particular way!
1st Person: the writer disappears into one of the
characters and tells the story using I or Me
3rd Person Limited: the story is told from the viewpoint
from outside the characters but we, the reader, only know
the thoughts and feelings of the main character
3rd Person Omniscient: the story is told from the
viewpoint outside the characters but now we know all the
feelings and thoughts of the (main) characters

Character Presentation
Direct:
The author tells you straight out exactly what
the character is like
He/she gives us the physical appearance and
perhaps a little of the personality

For example: For he was a quiet man, not given to

talking about himself.

Indirect:
The character is presented speaking, thinking
and acting (in other words dramatized)
You have to infer (guess) what the character is

like from:

His/her name

Indirect continued

His/her appearance
What he/she says
What he/she thinks
What other people think of him/her
In other dialogue do they speak highly of the character
How do other characters treat him/her

With respect?
With disdain (they sneer and mock him/her)

How do animals treat him/her

How does a character act
How does the character treat others?

Respectfully and politely

Rudely and never says please and thank you
Doesnt take others into consideration?

What does this clip say about the character.

Use the direct and indirect method of figuring
it out!

Types of Character
Flat Character:
This character can be summed up into one or two

sentences
Not a developed character (2D)
Character does not change
May be many of these characters in a story

Round Character:
Complex and many-sided
This character has depth and dimension (3D), just
like a real human
There will only be one or two of these in a story

Characters continued
Dynamic Character:
This character undergoes a major change
In personality
In outlook of the world
To be convincing this character he/she must be:
Believable
Motivation must come from the story
Change must be given time to happen (not over night)
Static Character:
this character stays the same throughout the story
Even if something horrible or great happens, this person
does not change

Characters continued
Stock Character:
this is a stereotyped character who we see
often in fiction
This character is immediately recognizable;
villain, bad step-mother, nerdy teacher
Character Foil:
this characters sole purpose is to highlight

another character in the story

Smart character and dumb best friend
(foil)

How to Analyse a Character

There are questions that you can ask to help
figure out the personality of the character.
Why does the character behave the way

he/she does?
What motivates the character to act the way
he/she does?
Is he/she believable, life-like, emotionally
convincing?
What kind of change does he/she go through?
Does the character go through a change at
all?

Elements of a Character
Mental
Quick-witted, brilliant, average, stupid, dull
Academically smart or street smart

Emotional

Always a steady mood or unpredictable?

Affectionate, confident, gloomy, happy?
Does the character have a sense of humour?
How does he/she respond to events that happen?

Does the character fly off the handle at every little thing?
Is the character indifferent (doesnt care) to what happens?
Is everything treated like a joke?

Elements continued
Spiritual Beliefs
What are his/her ideals or code of ethics?
What attitude towards life does the character have?

Does he/she treat all life with respect?

Does the character care about people or the world at all?

Does the character have a spiritual belief?

Physical Traits
Hair colour, eye colour, weight, skin colour, posture,
height?
Is the character clumsy, slow, alert or fast moving?
What is the characters general appearance; sloppy,
neatly dressed, well-groomed, messy hair etc.

What factors make up the character?

Family:
Brothers, sisters, only child, childhood
experiences, home atmosphere
Community:
Social standing (high or lower class), financial
standing
What kind of work does the character do?
What kind of friends does/he/she have?
Education:
Schooling, hobbies, traveling, volunteer work

Theme
The theme is the BIG IDEA or MESSAGE of a

text.
It can be difficult to identify; it is the idea that

the author is working to bring his or her

reader around to.
It may be a moral (a suggestion of how to

live, behave, or act), or a Universal Truth

(something that is true for most if not every
human being)

Conflict
Conflict is the basis of the plot
Can be clash of ideas, desires or wills
Can be a physical clash or emotional

Conflict involves
a protagonist (main character)
the antagonist; this may be a person, society, an
animal, fate, God, the characters conscience
Antagonist is anything that stands in the way of the
protagonist

3 main types of conflicts:

Person vs. person
Person vs. self
Person vs. environment (society or nature)