Elements of a short story Flashcards
Plot 1
The arrangement (sequence) of events in a story that develop the author’s ideas
Plot 2
Planned logical series of events having a beginning, middle, and end
Introduction/Exposition
The beginning of the story where the characters and SETTING are introduced
Rising action
- Events in the story become complicated
- Conflict in the story is revealed
- The events that occur between the introduction and climax
Climax
- Highest point of interest
- The turning point
- The reader wonders what will happen next; will the conflict be resolved or not?
CLIMAX 2
Consider the climax as three parts:
- The main character receives new information
- The character accepts this information – realizes this information, but does not necessarily agree with it.
- The character acts on this information - makes a choice that will determine whether or not they gain their objective
Falling action
- The events and complications begin to resolve themselves
- Events between the climax and resolution
Resolution
- Also known as the denouement
- The final outcome
- Untangling of events in the story
The time and location in which a story takes place
Setting
Round character
many sided, and complex personalities. They are not stereotypical and often surprise with unexpected behaviour and values.
Dynamic character
a character that undergoes a change over the courses of the story. The conflict and plot of the story affects a dynamic character and causes a change within him or her.
Flat
stereotypical character. Usually one dimensional, static and shallow.
Static
character that does not change throughout the story. This character is the same at the end of the story as they were in the beginning.
The technique the author uses to express him/herself and convey ideas and central purpose.
Style
In order to determine an author’s style, one must consider the following:
Diction
Sentence Structure
Point of view
Irony
Symbolism
Imagery
usually found in academic text, academic papers, and formal discourse
FORMAL
relaxed conversation and is found in writing that has a lighter tone and is somewhat humorous
informal
everyday usage of a particular group.
Colloquial
a newly coined word not accepted for formal usage yet, and is usually not found in the dictionary
Slang
Sentance structure
Simple
Compound
Complex
Short
Long
The narrator was a participant or observer in the story and is now relaying what he/she actually saw, heard or felt.
First person POV
Personal pronouns are used. For example, I, me, we, us, etc. The reader is limited to what the person relaying the story knows.
First person POV
a detached narrator tells the story in an objective view
Third person POV
No personal pronouns are used
3rd person POV
3 different variations of this POV
3rd
the narrator has the freedom to move in space and time, but he can only relay action dialogue, forgoing the ability to delve into character’ thoughts and feelings.
3rd person objective
A contradiction between what the reader expects and what actually happens in the story.
irony
when an author speaker says exactly the opposite of what he/she means
verbal irony
when the reality of a situation differs or seems opposite from what is expected
situational irony
when the reader or audience knows more about the situation than the actual characters in the work
dramatic irony
Generally an object, person, situation, or idea that deepens the meaning of the work by evoking content that is not literally expressed in the work itself
symbol
Often an author will use images when they want to convey important ideas
symbol
The goal is to make the reader actually see, feel, taste, touch, or smell the subject or idea at work
imagery
images that appeal to the five sense: sight, sound, taste, touch, or smell
sensious imagery
similes, metaphors, personification, assonance, etc.
figurative imagery
Theme 1
Central idea or meaning of a work – the core message
Theme 2
Often an idea that the author hopes to expresses or better understand
