PLOT DIAGRAM:
This is a picture of a plot diagram. It’s a way that we can use math
to understand the stories we read better. It shows how conflict rises
and falls over time in a story.
CLIMAX:
The climax is where the conflict is faced during the main, most
dramatic event of the story. Often, climax is also when the main
problem of the story is faced and solved by the main character or
protagonist. Here’s an example of the difference between conflict and
climax:
More conflict
Conflict: A boy is playing with his rambunctious dog Sadie when she
pulls loose from her collar and runs away. Now, the boy must find Sadie
before she runs too far away to be found.
Conflict
Less conflict
Time
Earlier in the story
Later in the story
RISING ACTION:
The rising action is where the reader is introduced to the
conflict or conflicts facing the characters in the story. You
may notice that this segment is the longest line in the diagram!
The rising action is usually the longest and most interesting
part of the story, because it shows the characters in some
sort of conflict.
Climax: After looking for Sadie for a while, the boy hears barking from
around the house. There, he finds his lost dog and the two happily meet
again.
FALLING ACTION:
Falling action is when the story begins to slow down, showing
results of the climax. After the biggest and most dramatic event,
the falling action shows us how the characters react to and
recover from the big event that happened in the climax.
The characters can have conflicts with other characters,
themselves, society, nature, technology, or even the
supernatural.
RESOLUTION:
the resolution is when conflicts are resolved and the story
concludes, coming to an end. Depending the story you read,
there may be a happy or unhappy resolution to the conflict.
EXPOSITION:
The exposition of a story is the beginning in which the characters, setting
(time and place), and basic information is introduced.
A lot of movies show the exposition by panning over a city or countryside
and showing the main character doing something such as walking, working,
or waking up. These scenes allow the readers to understand where the
story is taking place and who’s in it.
For example, in a story with a conflict about robots attacking
Earth, the conflict could be resolved two different ways:
The robots destroy humanity, leaving no one behind
The human resistance successfully defeated the robot
army, saving everyone!