ELEMENTS OF FICTION

World LiteratureLSAngeles

What is a plot?• It is the selection of events based on

relevance and suggestiveness• It is the basic pattern of events that

constitutes the essential action of the play

• It is the fundamental development through which the rise, progress, and resolution of the conflict are revealed to the audience.

Story vs. Plot• The King died and then the

Queen died of grief.

• The King died and then the Queen died.

Story vs. Plot• Story is the sequence of events

told in chronological order.• Plot is the arrangement of these

events into a pattern that shows their relationships and causation.

CONFLICT• “complications”• “development”

TYPES OF CONFLICT• Man vs. man• Man vs. himself• Man vs. nature• Man vs. society • Man vs. technology• Man vs. circumstance

Other styles in the plot• Flashback• Foreshadowing (scenes,

objects, persons, etc that function as clues to what could possibly happen in the succeeding scene/s

CHARACTER• Round (well-described)• Flat (minimally described)• Dynamic (changes)• Static (does not change)• Protagonist (faces the conflict)• Antagonist (representation of the conflict)• Foil (opposite of the main character,

magnifies main character’s personality)• Stereotype (character defined by the

society)

SETTING• It is the scene or atmosphere of the story.

It is the fixed locale in the story.

• Functions of the setting:• Setting as a symbol• Setting as an idea• Setting as an atmosphere• Setting as a motive force

HOMEWORK• Read “The Cask of Amontillado”.• You may find it on the class’ website:

worldli2012.wordpress.com• Click on the link “Complete Tales of E. A.

Poe”

• Additional homework in preparation for the Midterm Exam: Watch Romeo and Juliet (Leonardo Di Caprio). The play will be discussed on the final week of the midterms.

IRONY• Shows contrast between what seems and

what could be.

• Types:• Dramatic discrepancy (character vs the

reader/audience)• Situational discrepancy (illusion vs reality,

expectation vs result, intention vs outcome)

• Verbal discrepancy (what is said vs what is meant)

POINT OF VIEW• Point of View means that the

story is told through the eyes and mouth of a certain person;

• the story can change considerably, depending on who is telling it.

Seven Kinds of POV• First person• First person observer• Third person• Objective• Omniscient• Limited Omniscient• Second person

First Person POV• Story is told from the inside; narrator is a

participant in the action• Narrator is often the protagonist or minor

character; we see only what he/she sees, in the way that he/she sees it.

• Advantage:  first person narrator has immediacy and a sense of life.

• Disadvantage:  the author may be frustrated in that he/she can only include things that the narrator would be expected to know; also, we are locked within the mind of the narrator.

First Person POV Sample•  As I walked up the hill, I realized that the

atmosphere was just too quiet. There was no sound from the cardinal who was nearly always singing from the top of the maple tree. I thought I saw a shadow move high up on the slope, but when I looked again it was gone. Still, I shuddered as I felt a silent threat pass over me like a cloud over the sun.

First Person Observer POV• Story is told from the inside; BUT

narrator is NOT a participant in the action.

• The narrator is telling the story first hand but is not related nor connected to the story.

First Person Observer Sample

Third Person POV• Usually, a nameless narrator who

can be identified with the author.• The narrator does not participate in

the action of the story as one of the characters, but lets us know exactly how the characters feel. We learn about the characters through this outside voice.

Third Person POV Sample• The girl walked up the quiet hillside.• In the top of the maple tree, the cardinal

tipped his head back and drew breath to sing. A dead branch cracked on the ground below the bird's perch.

• The man stepped on the branch and rattled the blades of grass as he moved behind the tree. He watched the girl come up the hillside toward him.

• Her gaze shifted quickly and warily from one shadowy area high on the slope to another, and she shuddered.

Objective POV• The writer tells what happens without stating

more than can be inferred from the story's action and dialogue.

• The narrator never discloses anything about what the characters think or feel, remaining a detached observer.

• It has limited narrative, like a drama; narrator can only describe words and actions that can be seen objectively and cannot get into character's thoughts

Objective POV Sample• The ant tugged over the snow a piece of corn he had

stored up last summer, perspiring in spite of the cold.• A grasshopper, its feelers twitching and with a tic in its left

hind leg, looked on for some time. Finally, he asked, “Please, friend ant, may I have a bite of your corn?”

• The ant looked the grasshopper up and down. "What were you doing all last summer?” he snapped.

• “I sang from dawn to dark,” replied the grasshopper, not changing his tone.

•  ”Well,” said the ant, and a faint smile crept into his face, “since you sang all summer, you can dance all winter.”

Omniscient POV• A narrator who knows everything about all

the characters is all knowing, or omniscient.

• the story is told by the author, not one of the characters, acting as an outside observer and using the 3rd person (e.g. "she/he")

• The author's knowledge of the characters' actions and thoughts is unlimited. can look inside minds & hearts of characters.

Omniscient POV sample•  Weary in every limb, the ant tugged over the snow a piece of corn he

had stored up last summer. It would taste might good at dinner tonight.•  A grasshopper, cold and hungry, looked on. Finally, he could bear it

no longer. “Please, friend ant, may I have a bite of corn?”•  ”What were you doing all last summer?” asked the ant. He looked the

grasshopper up and down. He knew its kind.• “I sang from dawn till dark,” replied the grasshopper, happily unaware

of what was coming next.•  ”Well, said the ant, hardly bothering to conceal his contempt, “since

you sang all summer, you can dance all winter.”• HE WHO IDLES WHEN HE'S YOUNG• WILL HAVE NOTHING WHEN HE'S OLD.

Limited Omniscient POV• the author narrates the story in 3rd

person, but restricts the viewpoint to that of one character.

• This point of view is usually seen through the eyes of a main character.

Limited Omniscient POV Sample

• Weary in every limb, the ant tugged over the snow a piece of corn he had stored up last summer. It would taste mighty good at dinner tonight. It was then that he noticed the grasshopper, looking cold and pinched.

• “Please, friend ant, may I have a bite of your corn?” asked the grasshopper.

• He looked the grasshopper up and down. “What were you doing all last summer?” he asked. He knew its kind.

•  ”I sang from dawn till dark,” replied the grasshopper.• “Well,” said the ant, hardly bothering to conceal his

contempt, “since you sang all summer, you can dance all winter.”

Second Person POV• turns the reader into the character

Second Person POV Sample

• As you walk up the hill, you realize that the atmosphere's just too quiet. There's no sound from the cardinal you know is almost always singing from the top of the maple tree. You think you see a shadow move high up on the slope, but when you look again it's gone. You shudder as you feel a silent threat pass over you. You feel cold, like a cloud just passed over the sun.

SYMBOLISM• Designation of something

concrete in the story and something intangible and valuable.

ACTIVITY• On a piece of paper, draw a

table with two columns. On the first column, write 10 objects in the story The Cask of Amontillado

• You have 3 minutes to complete your list.

• On the right column give the idea that the objects stand for.

• You have 5 minutes to complete your list.

THEME• It is the meaning that surfaces and is

communicated with clarity and intensity• It shouldn’t be obvious or simply a moral• The theme of a piece of fiction is its view

about life and how people behave.• In fiction, the theme is not intended to

teach or preach. In fact, it is not presented directly at all. You extract it from the characters, action, and setting that make up the story. In other words, you must figure out the theme yourself.

How does one find the theme?1. Check out the title. Sometimes it

tells you a lot about the theme.2. Notice repeating patterns and

symbols. Sometimes these lead you to the theme.

3. What allusions are made throughout the story?

4. What are the details and particulars in the story? What greater meaning may they have?

Common Themes• Love will conquer all.

• Marriage is a natural and desirable institution.• Man is alienated from society.

• The family is often dysfunctional.• Men and women cannot get along.

• Life is not always as it seems.• Believe in yourself.

• People are risk adverse.• First impressions are often wrong.

• War is hell.• Society socializes humankind to behave in a just

and righteous manner.

ACTIVITY• Watch the short films silently.• Afterwards, think of the theme

of each movie. • You are given 2 minutes (after

each film) to write down the theme.

• Be ready to share the themes to the class later.

STYLEImplies control of material through different

devices

ELEMENTS OF DRAMA• Plot• Character• Conflict• Irony• Language• Spectacle

LANGUAGE• Emphasizes the theme and idea of the

play• Dialogue• The words of the actors affect the essence

of the play.

SPECTACLE• The visual elements of

theater/drama that shows the relationships of script, actor, audience, author, producer, society, genre, stage and theater to each other.

SPECTACLE• Lights (mood and time)• Sounds (mood)• Background (setting)• Costume and Make up

(characterization)• Stage Directions (footwork)