Elements of Fiction
Literary Terms & Techniques in
American Short Fiction
Elements of Fiction
PRETEST
CHOOSE THE CORRECT LITERARY
TERM FROM THE CHOICES
PROVIDED.
1. Which of the following is an
element of plot?
• A.
Symbolism
• B.
Setting
• C.
Conflict
• D.
Mood
2. The attitude of a writer toward
a subject or an audience, generally
conveyed through his or her choice
of words, is called
• A.
Symbolism
• B.
Mood
• C.
Denouement
• D.
Tone
3. The occasion of greatest
tension, the decisive moment or the
turning point in the plot of a story is
referred to as the story’s
• A.
Resolution
• B.
Climax
• C.
Conflict
• D.
Tone
4. The main idea or an underlying
meaning of a story that may be
stated directly or indirectly is the
_____________ of the story.
• A.
Symbol
• B.
Conflict
• C.
Setting
• D.
Theme
5. The central, main or leading
character or figure in a story is the
• A. Antagonist
• B.
Foil
• C. Protagonist
• D.
Denouement
6.
When words are used in such a way
that their intended meaning differs from
their actual meaning or when a situation
ends up in quite a different way than what
was anticipated, an author is using which of
the following literary techniques?
• A.
Symbolism
• B.
Irony
• C.
Mood
• D.
Tone
7.
Authors often use ______ to create
suspense by giving readers clues or hints
about what will happen later in a story.
• A.
Symbolism
• B.
Tone
• C.
Foreshadowing
• D.
Irony
8.
The atmosphere or distinctive
emotional quality of a story is referred to
as
• A.
Tone
• B.
Mood
• C.
Setting
• D.
Conflict
9.
______________ refers to the
perspective from which a story is told or
its mode of narration.
• A.
Point of View
• B.
Symbolism
• C.
Irony
• D.
Protagonist
10. The process by which an author
reveals or develops the personality of a
participant in a story is called
• A.
Point of View
• B.
Irony
• C.
Mood
• D.
Characterization
11. A literary device used to introduce
a reader to background information
integral or crucial to the plot of a story is
called
• A.
Denouement
• B.
Exposition
• C.
Climax
• D.
Falling Action
12. The final outcome of a complex
sequence of events or the resolution
of the conflict in a story is called
• A.
Falling Action
• B.
Climax
• C.
Rising Action
• D.
Denouement
13. Using an object, action or word to
stand for an abstract idea or concept is
called
• A.
Symbolism
• B.
Tone
• C.
Irony
• D.
Plot
14. A literary element that involves a
struggle, either internal or external,
between two opposing forces is called
• A.
Plot
• B.
Tone
• C.
Irony
• D.
Conflict
15. Which literary element includes the
historical moment in time and
geographic location in which a story
takes place and describes the main
backdrop and mood for a story?
• A.
Setting
• B.
Mood
• C.
Tone
• D.
Plot
Identifying the Elements of Plot, Setting, Conflict,
Character and Foreshadowing in “A Sound of Thunder”
Ray Bradbury’s groundbreaking science fiction short story
RAY BRADBURY (1920-2012)
-Celebrated American science fiction writer
-One of the most important writers of the 20th
century
-Author of The Martian Chronicles and Fahrenheit
451
-The film The Butterfly Effect was based on an idea
Bradbury first articulated in his short story “A Sound
of Thunder”
“We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing
how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out.”
- Ray Bradbury
ELEMENTS OF PLOT
A story’s plot is composed of the chain of events that lead to an
ultimate resolution of the central conflict in the story.
ELEMENTS OF PLOT
• Exposition—background information about characters and
setting at the beginning of a story
• Rising Action—a related series of incidents or events moving the
plot of a story toward the point of greatest interest or tension
• Climax—the moment of greatest tension or the turning point in a
story
• Falling Action—the actions following the climax of a story, which
lead to the resolution of the central conflict
• Denouement/Resolution—the final outcome of the story
CONFLICT
A conflict is a literary element involving a struggle
between two opposing forces, typically a protagonist
and antagonist; however, a conflict may be external or
internal.
TWO TYPES OF CONFLICT
1. An internal (or
psychological) conflict occurs
when a character experiences
opposing emotions or desires.
2. An external conflict occurs
when a character finds herself
or himself struggling against
outside forces that hamper
that character’s progress.
EXTERNAL CONFLICT
An external conflict occurs when a character finds herself or himself
struggling against outside forces that hamper that character’s progress. This
type of conflict typically occurs between a protagonist and antagonist.
SETTING
The setting is the environment in which a story or event
takes place. Setting can include specific information
about time and place [e.g. Boston, Massachusetts, in
1809] or can simply be descriptive [eg. a lonely
farmhouse on a dark night). From The Writer’s Craft, 2014.
FORESHADOWING
Foreshadowing is a way of indicating or hinting at what
will come later in a story. It is a literary technique that
writers often use to create suspense. From The Writer’s
Craft, 2014.
Identifying Elements of Plot, Setting, Conflict
and Character in “A Sound of Thunder”
First Step:
• Follow along with the text of
Bradbury’s “A Sound of Thunder.”
• While you are listening and reading,
use your highlighter to note key
elements of the plot and make
quick annotations (brief notes) in
the margins of your text about the
sequence of events in the story.
• Identify the protagonist and
antagonist in the story. Label each
one in the margins of your text.
Identifying Elements of Plot, Setting, Conflict
and Character in “A Sound of Thunder”
Second Step:
• Review the graphic organizer that
illustrates the elements of plot
(exposition, rising action, climax,
falling action, and
denouement/resolution).
• With a partner, discuss which
events/information fit into the
categories associated with the
elements of plot.
• After discussing each element with
your partner, record these events in
the appropriate spaces of your
graphic organizer and glue or staple
your completed graphic organizer
into your Writer’s Notebook.
Identifying Elements of Plot, Setting, Conflict
and Character in “A Sound of Thunder”
Third Step:
• In your Writer’s Notebook, answer
the following questions:
• 1. Who are the protagonist and
antagonist in the story? Describe
their conflict.
• 2. Describe the major settings for
the action of the story. List some of
the words that Bradbury uses to
describe those settings.
• 3. Describe an instance of
foreshadowing in the story. How
does it help to create suspense?
FORESHADOWING
Lesperance explains to Eckles the danger that small changes in the past could
have catastrophic effects on the future foreshadows the changes that occur at
the end of the story. The persistent warnings to Eckles and others to stay off the
path suggest that he or another character will eventually step off the path.
Thematic Reflection
The theme is the main
idea or message that an
author is attempting to
get across in a story. In
“A Sound of Thunder,”
the theme appears to
be the idea that small
actions can have major
consequences.
Write at least one full
page in your Writer’s
Notebook reflecting on
the relationship between
our actions and their
consequences or create
a piece of short fiction
with the same theme as
“A Sound of Thunder.”
Identifying Symbolism and Allegory in
Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” and
King’s “The Man in the Black Suit”
Understanding Short Stories on a Figurative and Literal Level
Symbolism
Using an
object, action
or word to
stand for an
abstract idea
or concept
Allegory
-a story in which
the characters
and events are
symbols that
stand for ideas
about human life
-most common
example is the
fable
-story not meant
to be taken
literally, but
figuratively
Meaning: Literal v. Figurative
LITERAL
FIGURATIVE
• actual and exact meaning of
a word or event
• When speech or writing is not
literal, it is figurative, like when
you say you have a ton of
homework. [From
Vocabulary.com.]
• The “dictionary definition” of
a word
• Taking words in their usual or
most basic sense without
metaphor or allegory
• Synonym: metaphorical
• “a meaning that is different
from the basic meaning”
Merriam-Webster
• Not literal
Allegory
• Look at this short clip from the
film Harry Potter and the
Deathly Hallows, in which
Hermione reads the
allegorical “Tale of the Three
Brothers.”
• Video Link
• What ideas can be
represented by characters or
events from this story?
NATHANIEL
HAWTHORNE
-1804-1864
-Shares distinction as
America’s original
‘goth’ with Edgar Allan
Poe (root, Gothic)
-author of The Scarlet
Letter
-Dark Romanticism:
pessimistic literature
which views human
nature as prone to
self-destruction (often
involves the
supernatural, the
sinister, and dark
imagery)
Symbolism and Hawthorne’s “Young
Goodman Brown”
First Step: Understanding the
Story
• As you read and listen to the story,
answer the Reading
Comprehension Questions. They
are written in the order of the story.
• This counts as one of your Reading
Comprehension/Critical Reading
Quizzes.
Potential Symbols in “Young
Goodman Brown”
The Path
The Wilderness
Faith’s Pink
Ribbons
The Old Man’s
Serpent-Headed
Staff
**What about the
Old Man himself,
or even
“Goodman”
Brown?
Symbolism and Hawthorne’s “Young
Goodman Brown”
Second Step: Identifying the
Symbols
• Re-read the story and use your
highlighter to mark where at least
two (out of three) symbols appear
in the text.
• On each of your 2 symbolism
handouts (Symbol Graphic), draw a
graphic representation of one of
the symbols you have identified.
• Write down a portion of the line in
which the symbol appeals in the
text.
Symbolism and Hawthorne’s “Young
Goodman Brown”
Second Step: Understanding the
Symbols
• After you have created a graphic
representation of each symbol and
identified its location in the text,
write down your opinion about
what you believe the symbol
represents.
• Tape, staple or glue your handouts
into your Writer’s Notebook.
Symbolism and Hawthorne’s “Young
Goodman Brown”
Third Step: Thematic Reflection
#2
• Create at least one fullpage entry in your Writer’s
Notebook that explores the
idea of a journey into
darkness in your own life.
OR
• Create your own allegory.
Be sure to pay attention to
how your symbols or
characters will represent
your ideas about human
life/morality.
Indirect and Direct Characterization in Stephen
King’s “The Man in the Black Suit”
Revealing personality through express statements and by
implication
CHARACTERIZATION
The process
by which an
author
reveals or
develops the
personality of
a participant
in a story
Direct v. Indirect Characterization
DIRECT CHARACTERIZATION
INDIRECT CHARACTERIZATION
• Direct Characterization occurs
when the author tells the audience
what the personality of a character
is.
• Indirect Characterization occurs
when the author gives clues or hints
about the personality of a character
through five basic methods (STEAL):
• Example: “The patient boy and
quiet girl were both well mannered
and did not disobey their mother.”
• Explanation: The author is directly
telling the audience the personality
of these two children. The boy is
“patient,” and the girl is “quiet.”
• Speech: What does the character
say? How does the character speak?
• Thoughts: What is revealed through
the character’s private thoughts and
feelings?
• Effect On Others: What is revealed
through the character’s effect on
other people? How do other
characters feel or behave in reaction
to the character?
• Actions: How does the character
behave?
• Looks: What does the character look
like? How does the character dress?
Characterization in “A Sound of
Thunder”
• Direct Characterization
• “Sh!” Travis jerked angrily. “He
hasn’t seen us yet.”
• What character trait is
expressly revealed?
• Indirect Characterization:
– “’ . . . Traveling you back in time
sixty million years to bag the biggest
game in all of Time. Your personal
check’s still there. Tear it up.’
– Mr. Eckels looked at the check. His
fingers twitched.”
– What character trait can we infer?
Characterization in “Young
Goodman Brown”
• Direct Characterization:
• “Goodman Brown recognized
a very pious and exemplary
dame.”
• What character trait is
expressly revealed?
• Indirect Characterization:
– “On the Sabbath day, when the
congregation were singing a holy
psalm, he could not listen because
an anthem of sin rushed loudly
upon his ear . . . “
– What character trait can we infer?
Stephen King
-Born 1947 (still alive, of
course)
-Author of 55 novels and
almost 200 short stories
-Considered a master of
horror and suspense, as
well as the modern-day
Edgar Allan Poe
-”The Man in the Black
Suit” is King’s homage
(tribute) to Hawthorne’s
“Young Goodman
Brown.”
Activities for your Writer’s Notebook
• In your Literature Circles, each group member should have a
different role for each section of the reading. There will be three
sections.
• There are four roles so you will not be performing all of the tasks;
however, no more than two group members can perform the
same task simultaneously.
• At least one group member must serve as a summarizer for each
section.
• Each group member must add at least one indirect and one
direct example of characterization per section to their
Characterization Charts.
Point of View and Irony in Shirley Jackson’s “The
Lottery”
Exploring Perspective and Plot Twists
Point of
View
the
perspective
from which
a story is
told or its
mode of
narration
Multiple Perspectives and Points of
View
• Objective Point of View
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.
• Third Person Point of View
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.
Multiple Perspectives and Points of
View
• First Person Point of View
The narrator participates in
the action of the story and
what the narrator is
recounting might not be the
objective truth. We should
question the trustworthiness of
the accounting.
• Narrator uses first-person
pronoun “I”
• Omniscient and Limited
Omniscient Points of View
A narrator who knows
everything about all the
characters is all knowing, or
omniscient.
• A narrator whose knowledge
is limited to one character,
either major or minor, has a
limited omniscient point of
view
IRONY
A meaningful
contradiction
between
appearance
and reality,
between
expectation
and outcome,
or between
meaning and
intention.
Three Types of Irony
• Verbal Irony
– Occurs when someone says something that deliberately
contradicts what that person actually means
• Situational Irony
– Occurs when something happens that contradicts our
expectations
• Dramatic Irony
– Occurs when the reader or audience is aware of a
contradiction that a character does not know
Identifying Point of View in “The
Lottery”
“There was a great deal of fussing to be
done before Mr. Summers declared the
lottery open. There were the lists to
make up--heads of families, heads of
households in each family, members of
each household in each family. There
was the proper swearing-in of Mr.
Summers by the postmaster, as the
official of the lottery; at one time, some
people remembered, there had been a
recital of some sort, performed by the
official of the lottery, a perfunctory,
tuneless chant that had been rattled off
duly each year; some people believed
that the official of the lottery used to
stand just so when he said or sang it,
others believed that he was supposed
to walk among the people, but years
and years ago this part of the ritual had
been allowed to lapse.”
Recognizing Irony in “The Lottery”
"They do say," Mr. Adams said to Old Man Warner,
who stood next to him, "that over in the north
village they're talking of giving up the lottery."
Old Man Warner snorted. "Pack of crazy fools," he
said. "Listening to the young folks, nothing's good
enough for them. Next thing you know, they'll be
wanting to go back to living in caves . . . Used to
be a saying about 'Lottery in June, corn be heavy
soon.' First thing you know, we'd all be eating
stewed chickweed and acorns. There's always
been a lottery," he added petulantly. "Bad enough
to see young Joe Summers up there joking with
everybody."
"Some places have already quit lotteries," Mrs.
Adams said.
"Nothing but trouble in that," Old Man Warner said
stoutly. "Pack of young fools."
WHAT OTHER EXAMPLES OF IRONY DID YOU
OBSERVE?
Discussion: Contemporary
Connection
• Reaping in Suzanne
Collins’ novel The Hunger
Games may have been
inspired by “The Lottery.”
• Watch the clip from the
reaping clip from the film.
• What similarities and
differences can you
recognize?
Thematic Reflection #16
• OPTION ONE: In what way might our life be a lottery?
• We don’t choose the culture or society into which we are born;
we don’t choose the parents or guardians who raise us, and we
may not choose important elements of our life like our religion or
political viewpoint.
• Do we shape our world or does the world shape us? Explain your
answer.
• OPTION TWO: Man Warner justifies the events of the story based
on superstition and tradition. What are some actions and beliefs
in contemporary American society that are justified primarily by
tradition and superstition?
Using Mood and Tone to Create Tension
Donald Barthelme’s “Game”
DONALD
BARTHELME
1931-1989
One of the original
founders of the
University of Houston
Creative Writing
Program
Newspaper reporter
for the Houston Post
Winner of National
Book Award
TONE
Tone is an
attitude of a
writer toward a
subject or an
audience. Tone is
generally
conveyed
through the
choice of words
or the viewpoint
of a writer on a
particular subject.
• Observe the tone of another short story by Donald Barthelme
“The School.”
– “And the trees all died. They were orange trees. I don’t know
why they died, they just died. Something wrong with the soil
possibly or maybe the stuff we got from the nursery wasn’t the
best. We complained about it. So we’ve got thirty kids there,
each kid had his or her own little tree to plant and we’ve got
these thirty dead trees. All these kids looking at these little
brown sticks, it was depressing.”
• The use of adjectives “dead” and “depressing” sets a gloomy
tone in the passage. As trees signify life here, their unexpected
“death” from an unknown cause gives the above passage an
unhappy and pessimistic tone.
– From LiteraryDevices.net
MOOD
The atmosphere
of a literary
piece, which
engages a
reader’s
emotions.
Mood can be
developed
through setting,
theme, tone
and diction
(choice of
words).
Journal Activity: Identifying Mood
and Tone in “Game”
• Select three quotations
from the story and write
them in your journal.
• Explain how Barthelme’s
choice of words (diction)
establishes the mood
and/or tone in each of
the quotations you
choose.