Short Story Elements

Question 1

Setting

Answer 1

The time and location that a story takes place in

Question 2

What other factors are included in setting?

Answer 2

Weather conditions, social conditions, mood

Question 3

Plot

Answer 3

The sequence of events in a story or play

Question 4

What are the five elements of plot?

Answer 4

Introduction
Rising action
Climax
Falling action
Conclusion

Question 5

What is the introduction?

Answer 5

The beginning of the story

- characters and setting are revealed

Question 6

What is another word for introduction?

Answer 6

Exposition

Question 7

What is the rising action?

Answer 7

Where the events in the story become complicated and the conflict in the story is revealed

Question 8

What is another word for rising action?

Answer 8

Inciting force

Question 9

What is the climax

Answer 9

The highest point of interest and the turning point of the story

Question 10

What is the falling action?

Answer 10

The events and complications resolve themselves

Question 11

What is the conclusion?

Answer 11

The final outcome of untangling events in the story

Question 12

What is another word for conclusion?

Answer 12

Denouement

Question 13

What is conflict?

Answer 13

The opposition of forces which ties one incident to another makes the plot move

Question 14

What are examples of conflict?

Answer 14

Person vs person
Person vs self
Person vs nature
Person vs society
Person vs supernatural 
Person vs technology

Question 15

What are the two types of conflict?

Answer 15

External and internal

Question 16

What is internal conflict?

Answer 16

A struggle within one’s self, a person must make a decision, overcome pain, quiet their tongue, resist an urge, etc

Question 17

What is an external conflict?

Answer 17

A struggle with a force outside one’s self.

Question 18

What is theme?

Answer 18

Main idea or insight, underlying meaning that the author is trying to convey.
The theme can be the author’s thoughts on a topic of view of human nature

Question 19

What is mood?

Answer 19

The feeling the reader takes away from the story

Question 20

What is tone?

Answer 20

The feeling the author wants you to feel

Question 21

Protagonist

Answer 21

The main character

The character who is clearly central to the story will all major events having some importance

Question 22

Antagonist

Answer 22

The character who opposes or rivals the main character

Question 23

What is direct characterization?

Answer 23

Direct statements made about a character’s personality

Question 24

What is indirect characterization?

Answer 24

A character’s personality is revealed by other character’s responses (what they think or say)

Question 25

What are the three types of characters?

Answer 25

Individual/round Developing/dynamic Static/flat

Question 26

What is an individual character?

Answer 26

Round, many sided, complex personalities

Question 27

What is a developing character?

Answer 27

Dynamic, many sided personalities that change for better or worse, by the end of the story

Question 28

What is a static character?

Answer 28

Stereotype, have one or two characteristics that never change and are emphasized

Question 29

What is POV

Answer 29

The perspective of which the story is told

Question 30

What is first person?

Answer 30

The story told by the protagonist or one of the characters who interacts closely with the protagonist or other characters (uses we, I, me)

Question 31

What is second person?

Answer 31

The narrator tells the story to another character using you, story is told by the addressee’s POV

Question 32

What is third person?

Answer 32

A narrator relates all action in third person, using third person pronouns such as he or she

Question 33

What is omniscient POV?

Answer 33

The author can narrate the story using omniscient POV, moving from character to character and event to event

Question 34

What is limited POV?

Answer 34

The author tells the story in third person. We know only what the char eye knows, and what the author chooses to reveal

Question 35

What are the two types of third person POV.

Answer 35

Omniscient and limited