Short Story Elements and Literary Devices

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Short Story ElementsandLiterary Devices
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Elements of a Short Story

• A short story is a work of fiction that can be
  read in one sitting.

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Plot

• The chain of related events that take place in a
  story.
• Built around conflict, which is a struggle
  between opposing forces.

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Plot at a Glance
climax falling action rising
action resolution exposition
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Exposition- gives the background of the
story Rising Action- introduces complications
builds suspense Climax- the turning point of
the story suspense reaches its peak Falling
Action and Resolution resolves the conflict
usually ties up loose ends
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The plot of a short story centers around
conflict. Conflict is a struggle between
opposing forces. Complications build the readers
excitement.
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• Types of Conflict
• External
• -Man v Man
• -Man v Nature
• -Man v Obstacle or Society
• Internal
• -Man v Himself

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Methods of CharacterizationCreating Believable
Characters

• Indirect
• physical appearance
• speech, thoughts, feelings, or actions of the
  character
• speech, thoughts, feelings, or actions of other
  characters

• Direct
• the narrators direct comments about a character

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• Types of Characters
• Main or Minor
• Protagonist or Antagonist
• Round or Flat
• Dynamic or Static
• StereotypesStock Characters

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Setting time and place -puts the reader in the
story by giving the reader the feeling of
being in the situation. -creates atmosphere by
the positive or negative feelings associated
with the place.
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Point of View or . . . (Whos telling this story
anyway?) -the vantage point from which the story
is told. -determines how much we, the readers,
know about the characters.
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• 1st Person
• Narrator is a character in the story.
• Narrator uses first-person pronouns, I, me, my,
  we, us, our to refer to himself or herself.
• Narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of one
  character and speaks directly to reader.

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• 3rd Person Limited
• Narrator does not participate in action of story.
• Narrator does not refer to himself or herself.
• Narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of one
  character, but readers are able to maintain some
  emotional distance from the character.

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• 3rd Person Omniscient
• Narrator does not participate in action of story.
• Narrator does not refer to himself or herself.
• Narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all
  characters readers get insight into several
  characters.

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What is a symbol?
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A symbol is a person, a place, an activity, or an
object that stands for something beyond itself.
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Theme In literature, theme is a perception about
life or human nature that the writer wants to
share with the reader. In most cases, the theme
is not stated directly but must be
inferred. Themes can be revealed by - a storys
title - key phrases and statements about big
ideas - the ways the characters change and the
lessons they learn about life.
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The End