Short Story Elements & Terminology

ELA - Test is March 8th

Plot

series of events that make up the story (based on conflict)

Exposition

the beginning action and dialogue which tells the reader the setting, who the characters are, what events happened before, and what the situation is now.

Antecedent Action

Action that has occurred before the opening of the story

Atmosphere

is the overall emotional effect or mood of a literary work

Mood

is the feeling or emotional state created in the reader

Foreshadowing

An early hint or suggestion of a future event or circumstance.

Initiating Incident

Begins the central conflict.

Rising Action

a sequence of events following each other with logical development through cause and effect

Conflict

is a struggle between two opposing forces (People or Ideas)

External Conflict

conflict or struggle with forces outside oneself

Man vs. man

the main character is in conflict with some other person or groups of persons

Man vs. environment

the main character is in conflict with nature, animals or weather

Man vs. society

the main character is in conflict with law, government or discrimination

Internal Conflict

conflict or struggle within oneself

Man vs. self

the main character is in conflict with fear, conscience or morals

Suspense

the quality in a novel/story that makes the audience uncertain or tense about what is going to happen next.

Dilemma

a situation necessitating a choice between two equal, often equally undesirable, alternatives;

Crisis/turning point

a moment of intense conflict which forces the character to make a decision which directly affects the outcome.

Climax

point in the struggle where the problem must be resolved one way or the other. (highest point of interest and emotion)

Falling action

the action of a novel/story which works out the decision arrived at during the climax.

Resolution or Denouement

the section of the novel/short story which occurs after the climax.

Direct character

the author or someone in the story tells us directly by exposition or analysis, what a character is like.

Indirect character

the author shows us the character in action; we infer what he is like from what he thinks or says or does.

Protagonist

the central character in a novel/story who is most responsible for bringing the conflict to an end.

Antagonist

the force that opposes the central character, which can be another person(s), the character’s own weakness, desire, or belief, circumstances, nature, or environment.

Dynamic Character

one who undergoes significant change in some aspect of his character, personality or values.

Static Character

one who does not change in personality, outlook or values throughout the text.

Round Character

one who has a number of personality traits.

Flat Character

one who is characterized by one or two personality traits.

Stereotype Character

one who is familiar and predictable.

Stock Character

One who occurs repeatedly in a particular literary genre.

Character Foil

a character that contains the opposite traits to another and serves to highlight the good / evil

Consistent Character

One who does not change without motivation.

Motivated Character

One who has believable reasons for a change in values or behaviour.

P.O.V

The vantage point from which the author tells the story.

First Person Narrator

when he/she does not understand the implications of what he/she is telling. Often the reader sees more about the characters and situations that this narrator does.

Omniscient Narrator

The author is all knowing

Limited Point of View

The author tells as it is seen and understood by a single character, and restricts information to what that character sees, hears, feels and thinks.

Objective Point of View

The story by an external narrator. The narrator tells in an objective fashion what is said and done, and makes no attempt to explain or interpret.

Stream of Conscious Narration

the author attempts to duplicate the unbroken flow of thought and awareness in a character’s mind. The technique puts on paper what is going on in the mind of a particular character.

Theme

The central or dominating idea in a literary work, illustration of a basic truth of human life.

Symbol

something that means more that what it is or that stands for something else.

Allegory

A narrative or description which has a second meaning beneath the surface one

Tone

An author’s attitude toward his or her subject and audience

Satire

The ridicule of something

Irony

a term with a range of meanings

Verbal irony

is a statement in which the implied meaning differs sharply from the meaning that is expressed. (Saying one thing but meaning another)

Dramatic Irony

is a situation in which the reader or audience knows more about the circumstances or events of a story than a character within it

Situational irony

occurs when what takes place contrasts with what is expected or appropriate.

Form

Refers to the shape and structure of a story

Techniques

sections in short story are linked through combinations of the following devices: narrative episode, exposition, dialogue, description and flashback.

Style

the individual manner in which an author expresses his or her thoughts and feelings.

Deus Ex Machina

describes the entry of a coincidence or implausible event that comes just in time to solve a problem in a story.

In Medias Res/Verisimilitude

a story which contains no introduction. Instead, the reader is plunged directly into the action