The Elements of Fiction

Elements of Fiction: The What?

•Setting
•Plot
•Character
•Methods of Characterization
•Conflict
•Point of View
•Theme
•Symbolism
•Other
Setting:
The locale and time of a story that creates mood and
atmosphere. Can be used to tell the reader about

Lord of the Flies: The Bean Trees:

deserted island, the Arizona/Oklahoma
The Catcher in the 1980s.
future.
Rye: New York,
1940s
Setting:
Can be used to show:

A time period During

WWII, 1865

A specific place,
Geographic building, city, etc.
location
Socioeconomic
characteristics of a
location – wealthy
suburbs, poverty--
stricken urban area.
Setting:
The place and time in which a story’s action takes place; also, in a broader sense, the
culture and the ways of life of the characters and the shared beliefs and assumptions
that guide their lives.
―…it was so quiet and lonesome out, even though
it was Saturday night. I didn’t see hardly anybody
on the street. Now and then you just saw a man
and a girl crossing the street with their arms
around each other’s waists and all, or a bunch of
hoodlumy-looking guys and their dates, all of
them laughing like hyenas at something you could
bet wasn’t funny. New York’s terrible when
somebody laughs on the street very late at night.
You can hear it for miles. It makes you feel so
lonesome and depressed.‖
The Catcher in the Rye (81)
 Setting:
in some works of fiction action is so closely related to setting that the
plot is directed by it.

―The new man stands, looking a minute, to get the set-up

of the day room. One side of the room younger patients,
known as Acutes because the doctors figure them still sick
enough to be fixed, practice arm wrestling and card
tricks…Across the room from the Acutes are the culls of
the Combine’s product, the Chronics. Not in the
hospital, these to get fixed, but just to keep them from
walking around the street giving the product a bad name.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (19)
Setting:
can establish the atmosphere of a work.

―During the whole of a dull, dark, and

soundless day in the autumn of the year, when
the clouds hung oppressively low in the
heavens, I had been passing alone, on
horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of
country.‖
―The Fall of the House of Usher‖ by
Edgar Allan Poe
Plot
The literary element that
describes the the structure
of the story. It shows the
arrangement of the events
within the story
 Plot Structure
Climax: The turning point. The most intense
moment (either mentally or in action.

Rising Action: the series Falling Action: all of the action

of conflicts and crisis in which follows the Climax.
the story that lead to the
climax.

Resolution: The conclusion, the

Exposition: The start of the
tying together of all of the
story. The way things are
threads.
before the action starts.
Elements of Plot

•Conflict : a character or problem with which the protagonist

must contend . Without conflict, there is no plot.
•Interpersonal Conflict:
•Man VS Man
•Man VS Nature
•Man VS Society

•Internal Conflict:
•Man VS Himself
 Character

A participant (people , animals, things, etc. presented as people) that

appear in a literary work.

Types of Characters:
•Protagonist: the central character of a story
Round are convincing and true to life. Have many different and
sometime contradictory personality traits.
Dynamic: convincing, undergo some type of change in story, often
because of something that happens to them.
• Antagonist: the character that stands in opposition to the protagonist
Flat Character: stereotyped, shallow, often symbolic.
Static Character :does not change in the course of the story.
Methods of Characterization
1. Direct Characterization: The author develops the
personality of the character by direct statement
• ―he was an old man..‖ (The Old Man and the Sea)
2. Indirect Characterization - Revealing the characters
thoughts though
• Words
• Actions
• Actions and Reaction of other Characters
• Physical appearance
• Own thoughts
 Point of View: Who is telling the
story?
Omniscient Point of View: The author is telling the
story.

―The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of
rock and began to pick his way toward the lagoon. Though he had
taken off his school sweater and trailed it now from one hand, his
grey shirt stuck to him and his hair was plastered to his forehead.
All around him the long scar smashed into the jungle was a bath of
heat.‖
The Lord of the Flies - William Golding
 Point of View
Limited Omniscient: Third person,
told from the viewpoint of a character
in the story.

―In his black suit he stood in the dark glass where the lilies leaned
so palely from their waisted cutglass vase. He looked down at the
guttered candlestub. He pressed his thumbprint in the warm wax
pooled on the oak veneer. Lastly he looked at the face so caved
and drawn among the folds of funeral cloth, the yellowed
moustache, the eyelids paper thin. That was not sleeping. That
was not sleeping.
All the Pretty Horses - Cormac McCarthy
 Point of View

First Person: Story is told from point of view of one of the characters who
uses the first person pronoun ―I.‖

―I have been afraid of putting air in a tire ever since I

saw a tractor tire blow up and throw Newt Hardbine’s
father over the top of the Standard Oil sign. I’m not
lying. He got stuck up there. About nineteen people
congregated during the time it took for Norman
Strick to walk up to the Courthouse and blow the
whistle for the volunteer fire department.‖
The Bean Trees - Barbara Kingsolver
Theme
The theme of a piece of fiction is its central idea. It usually
contains some insight into the human condition.
•In most short stories, the theme can be expressed in a single
sentence.
•In longer works of fiction, the central theme is often
accompanied by a number of lesser, related themes, or there may be
two or more central themes.
•Themes should be stated as a generalization.
 Symbolism
A person, event or thing that represents an idea, quality, or concept
larger than itself.

Water may
A Journey can represent a new
symbolize life. beginning.

Black can represent

evil or death. A lion could be a
symbol of courage.
 Figurative Language: Any expression that stretches the
meaning of words beyond their literal meaning.

Metaphor: a figure of speech in which a comparison is implies by analogy but is not stated; the
comparison of two unlike things without the use of ―like‖ or ―as‖ (e. g. ―the night would be my
eyelids‖ – a comparison between night and eyelids, page 2)

Simile: a comparison of two unlike things using ―like‖ or ―as‖ (e. g. ―…moonless Caribbean night…
It’s like moist black velvet‖ – comparison of two un like things, night and moist black velvet with
the use of ―like,‖ page 1)

Personification: a metaphorical figure of speech in which animals, ideas, things, etc. are
represented as having human qualities (e. g. ―…a sharp hunger was picking at him‖ – hunger as
something that could pick, page 3)
 Figurative Language: Any expression that stretches the
meaning of words beyond their literal meaning.

Allusion: an implicit reference to an historical, literary, or biblical character,

event, or element (e. g. ―I have played the fox, now I must play the cat of the
fable.‖ – a reference to two of Aesop’s fables, page 12)
Irony: a contradiction or incongruity between appearance or expectation and reality; a figure of
speech in which the literal meaning of the words is the opposite of their intended meaning; an
incongruity or discrepancy between an anticipated and realized outcome (e. g. ―We do our best to
preserve the amenities of civilization here.‖ Zaroff when he is hunting men for sport – is this
civilized? page 5)
 Literary Devices

Suspense: the sustained interest in a narrative created by delaying the resolution of the conflict (e.
g. the author begins building suspense with mysterious references to Ship-Trap Island that has the
crew very nervous. Page 1)

Foreshadowing: any clue or hint of future events in a narrative (e. g. ―the place [Ship-Trap Island]
has a reputation—a bad one.‖ This will be the place where Rainsford’s life will be threatened. page
1)
Other Fiction Elements
• Allegory - The representation of abstract ideas or principles by characters,
figures, or events in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form
• Atmosphere: the prevailing emotional and mental climate of a piece of
fiction.
• Cliché - stereotyped expression; a sentence or phrase, usually expressing a
popular or common thought or idea, that has lost originality, ingenuity,
and impact by long overuse, as sadder but wiser, or strong as an ox.
• Dialogue: the reproduction of a conversation between two of the
characters.
Other Elements Continued
•Euphemism the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one
thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt. The expression so substituted: ―To pass
away‖ is a euphemism for ―to die.‖
•Flashback: starts in the present and then goes back to the past.
•Hyperbole -intentional exaggeration used as a figure of speech for comedy or
emphasis.
•Idiom –an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the usual
meanings of its constituent elements, as kick the bucket or hang one's head,
•Mood - the feeling that a work of literature evokes
Other Elements Continued
•Oxymoron - a phrase comprised of seemingly contradictory terms:
"bittersweet," "jumbo shrimp," and "act naturally" are a few examples.

•Satire a form of literature which points out human vice or folly by way of
ridicule, sarcasm, irony and other devices. It is usually intended to bring about a
change in the behavior ridiculed.
Examples: George Orwell's fable,"Animal Farm," is an allegorical
satire of the Russian Revolution.
Other Elements Continued
•Pun - the humorous use of a word or phrase so as to emphasize or suggest its
different meanings or applications, or the use of words that are alike or nearly
alike in sound but different in meaning; a play on words.
•EXAMPLEs :
•He ate so much over the holidays that he decided to quit cold turkey.
•To write with a broken pencil is pointless.

•Paradigms:
Examples
•Coming-of-age or rite-of-passage story
•Heroic quest for love, truth, fame, fortune, etc.
•Character’s disillusionment or fall from innocence
•Selling one’s soul to the devil
•About storytelling or about becoming a writer or an artist
•Search for identity
Other Elements Continued
•Scene: a piece of the story showing the action of one event
•Structure: the way time moves through a novel.
•Style: The habitual manner of expression of an author. An author’s style is the
product of choices, made consciously or unconsciously, about elements such as
vocabulary, organization, diction, imagery, pace, and even certain recurring themes
or subjects.
•subplot: a plot that is part of or subordinate to another plot
•suspension of disbelief: the reader's temporary acceptance of story elements as
believable, usually necessary for enjoyment
•Tone: the tone of ―voice‖ that the author uses
 Other Elements Continued
ALLITERATION: the repetition of a consonant sound at the beginning of words.
•ALLITERATION IN PROSE
Alliteration is fun to say and enjoyable to hear. Without knowing it, you probably use alliteration to call attention to certain words.
Many familiar phrases and expressions use alliteration. These include "down in the dumps," "hale and hearty," and "turn the tables."
Tongue twisters rely on alliteration.: "rubber baby buggy bumpers. Many sayings such as these use alliteration:
•He who laughs last laughs first.
•Time and tide wait for no man.
When writers want to emphasize certain words, they may use alliteration. Notice the ideas that are emphasized by alliteration in
these examples.
•The deep churned. Something had happened down in the dim, foggy-green depths.
Paul Annixter,"Battle in the Depths"
•Touch each object you want to touch as if tomorrow your tactile sense would fail.
Helen Keller, "The Seeing See Little"
•There is always something left to love. And if you ain't learned that, you ain't learned nothing.
Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun
ALLITERATION IN POETRY
Alliteration is one of the poet's most important sound techniques. It makes particular words stand out. It also connects the words to
be emphasized. Look for the repeated consonant sounds in this poem:

Then up and spake an old sailor,

Had sailed to the Spanish Main,
"I pray thee, put into yonder port,
For I fear a hurricane."
--Henry W. Longfellow, "The Wreck of Hesperus"