Setting

1
Setting

• Basically where and when a story takes place
• however, it is the whole environment in which the
  character(s) live(s).
• One should consider the five senses and what the
  character sees, hears, tastes, smells, and
  touches.
• The setting is more than background frequently
  its critical to
• the development of the plot,
• to the understanding of the protagonist,
• or as a means of establishing the mood within the
  story.

2
Time

• When the story happens
• What is the date of the story?
• What time of day is your scene taking place?
• What time of year is it?
• Whats going on in history that might affect the
  character (s)?

3
Location

• Where, in general, the story happens
• What is the weather or like?
• What is the physical environment like?
• Whats the characters relationship/ comfort with
  the physical surrounding?
• What are the man-made features like?

4
Atmosphere

• Where, specifically, the story happens
• What does the character see? hear? smell? touch?
  taste?
• Whats the vibe of the place?
• Are there layers- things you dont notice right
  away?

5
Social Milieu

• What are the people are like in the story.
• How do they react to stimuli?
• What is the characters relationship to the
  people here?

6
Establishing Setting

• Details of setting, like details of character,
  need to be relevant to story
• Too much detail will quickly get boring
• Avoid verbs-of-being
• Jack was standing on the corner. It was 1030. It
  was raining. Vs
• Jacks watch read 1030 as he dashed to the
  corner. Rats, he thought, missed my bus again-
  and its raining.
• Remember your characters filter
• One character might feel very differently about a
  place than another, and this will affect
  description greatly.

7
Utopia

• an imaginary, ideal civilization, which may range
  from a city to a world, and may be regarded as
  possible in the future or the past, although not
  currently existent.

• Types
• Religious
• Political
• Technological
• Economic
• Social
• Etc./ Other

8
Dystopia

• a fictional society that is the opposite of
  utopia.
• A dystopia is usually characterized by an
  authoritarian or totalitarian form of government,
  or some other kind of oppressive social control.

9
Why Theyre the Same
Ideal
Freak

• Utopias and Dystopias are essentially the same
  concept
• Why? Well, whenever you create an ideal, you
  create a freak.
• Your utopia is my dystopia, in short.

10
Literature and Film Well Study

• Harrison Bergeron (Kurt Vonnegut)
• Everyone made equal- but by dumbing everyone down
• Brave New World
• Everyone happy and healthy but at cost of well
  get to that.
• Gattaca
• Mastery over human genetics is complete (thus no
  inherited disease, defects, etc)- but what about
  those who are naturally born?