Elements of Literature

Point of View/POV

Point of View/POV

Is the author’s method of narration.

Ask yourself: who is telling the story?

There are different types of POV that serve different purposes and change the way the reader interacts with a text. Each type of POV has advantages and disadvantages in terms of what information the reader is receiving and how.

1st Person POV

The narrator is the person telling the story from their own point of view, using 1st person pronouns like “I” or “we”. This character could be right in the middle of the action or they could be more of a bystander watching, but either way they are the ones telling the story. Sometimes a writer chooses to use an unreliable narrator to tell their story, which creates a different effect on the reader.

Example: Night by Elie Wiesel, is a memoir and he uses 1st POV to recount his memories of the Holocaust.

2nd Person POV

This is a more unique point of view that isn’t seen often in literature but is more of a direct address to the reader using “you” as the main pronoun. The narrator describes what "you" do and lets you into the story using your own thoughts and background.

Jamaica Kincaid uses this to directly call out the tourists and European colonizers in A Small Place.

3rd Person POV

The narrator exists outside the events of the story, and relates the actions of the characters by referring to their names or by the third-person pronouns he, she, or they.

There are two types of 3rd Person POV that authors use- 3rd Person Limited and 3rd Person Omniscient.

3rd Person Limited

The narrator still exists outside the events of the story, but does not know the motivations or thoughts of all the characters. Rather, one character is the driver of the story, and the reader is given a closer peek into that character’s psyche than the others.

3rd Person Omniscient

Omniscient means "all-knowing.” An omniscient narrator knows every character’s thoughts, feelings, and motivations, even if that character doesn’t reveal any of those things to the other characters.

Setting

Setting consists of two key elements: time and space. Space refers to the where of the story; most often the geographical location where the action of the story takes place. Time refers to the when of the story. This could be a historical period, the present, or the future.

The setting has some other aspects for the reader or writer to consider too. For example, drilling down from the broader time and place, elements such as the weather, cultural context, and physical surroundings, etc. can be important.

The setting is a crucial part of a story’s exposition (beginning) and is often used to establish the mood of the story. A carefully crafted setting can be used to skillfully hint at the story’s theme and to reveal some aspects of the various characters as well.

It is important to keep in mind that where and when a story is set is not necessarily the same as the time in which the work is written. This is why CONTEXT is also important to understanding the author’s purpose for writing.

Character

The characters in a story are the ones whose actions and relationships work to move the story forward. It’s tough to have a story and a plot that progresses without some sort of characters being used. Characters can be human but don’t have to be. Some characters are dynamic and change over the course of a story, while others are static and do not grow or change throughout the story.

There are many different types of characters to be found in works of literature and each serves a different function.

The Protagonist* is the leading character of a story.

The Antagonist is the person actively working against the Protagonist, or the adversary to the protagonist.

*Try not to get caught up in “good guys” and “bad guys” with your definitions of protagonist and antagonist. Some authors play with this idea, especially with the use of 1st person unreliable narrators, and the leading character may also have some undesirable qualities that make them seem not as “good”.

Characterization

__________ is a technique used by the author to describe the personality of the character. Physical appearance, personality, how other characters feel about the character, how the character feels about themselves, etc. are all intentional choices made by the author to describe the character to the reader.

There are two types of __________ - Indirect and Direct __________.

Indirect Characterization

Implied through the character’s actions and words, etc. You have to read between the lines to determine this and it is not explicitly stated.

Example: Bob stomps on Greg’s foot and laughs as Greg cries in pain. What can you infer about Bob from his actions here? That Bob is a garbage human.

Direct Characterization

TELLS the reader directly what the character is like. There is no reading between the lines. Example: Bob is a garbage human.

Characters are a(n) __________, while characterization is a(n) __________ used to describe the character to the reader.

element of literature; technique

Plot

Refers to all related things that happen in sequence in a story. The shape of the __________ comes from the order of these events and consists of several distinct stages. The __________ is made up of a series of cause-and-effect events that lead the reader from the beginning of the story, through the middle, to the story’s ending (though sometimes the chronological order is played with for dramatic effect- called a disjointed timeframe).

Exposition

This is the introduction of the story. Usually, it will be where the reader acquires the necessary background information they’ll need to follow the various threads of the plot through to the end. This is also where the setting of the story is established, the main characters are introduced to the reader, and the central conflict begins to emerge.

Conflict

Serves as the focus and driving force of most of the story’s action. Essentially, __________ consists of a central (and sometimes secondary) problem. Without a problem or __________, there is no story. __________ usually takes the form of two opposing forces. These can be external forces or, sometimes, these opposing forces can take the form of an internal struggle within the protagonist or main character.

Rising Action

Begins at the end of the exposition. It usually forms most of the plot and begins with an inciting incident that kick-starts a series of cause-and-effect events. The __________ builds on tension and culminates in the climax.

Climax

After the introduction of the problem or central conflict of the story, the action rises as the drama of the story unfolds in a series of causes and effects. These events culminate in the story’s dramatic high point, known as the __________. This is when the tension finally reaches its breaking point.

Falling Action

This part of the narrative is made up of the events that happen after the climax. Things begin to slow down and work their way towards the story’s end, tying up loose ends on the way. We can think of the __________ as a de-escalation of the story’s drama.

Resolution

This is the final part of the plot arc and represents the closing of the conflict and the return of normality – or a new normal – in the wake of the story’s events. Often, this takes the form of a significant change within the main character. A __________ restores balance and order to the world or it brings about a new balance and order.

Conflict

An element of literature that describes the struggle between two opposing forces and contributes to the plot overall. There are different types of conflict that you can see in a story. These are mostly self-explanatory and include the following:

• Character V.S. Self

• Character V.S. Character

• Character V.S. Nature

• Character V.S. Supernatural

• Character V.S. Technology

• Character V.S. Society

Character V.S. Self

The character struggles with an internal issue that they must overcome, like depression, anxiety, self- esteem, etc.

Character V.S. Character

The character has another character or characters actively working against them; an adversary.

Character V.S. Nature

The character must overcome challenges from nature (hurricane, earthquake, tornado, being stranded on a deserted island, trapped in the cold, etc.) instead of a physical person.

Character V.S. Supernatural

The character struggles against something like ghosts, zombie apocalypse, an alien invasion, or other elements of the supernatural.

Character V.S. Technology

The character faces off with technology such as artificial intelligence, an obsession with technology, etc.

Character V.S. Society

The character faces issues from society such as racism, poverty, segregation, environmental issues, being wrongly accused of something, etc.

Theme

The author’s message in a work.

One of the most common mistakes when identifying theme is using one word to describe an author’s theme. One word CANNOT be a fully developed theme that conveys the author’s message because there simply is not enough there.

Example: “Vengeance” as a theme in Frankenstein doesn’t work as one word because it doesn’t fully convey Mary Shelley’s message about vengeance. Her message is that vengeance comes with a price. Saying “vengeance” by itself as your theme implies that she is arguing in favor of vengeance, which is inaccurate.

It is OK to think about one word concepts as a starting point for developing a theme, but ask yourself what the author’s message is specifically about that central concept and then you’ll have the development you need.

Ask yourself: What is the message the author is trying to get across to the reader from their story? Is there more than one message? How do I know this?

Writing a Thesis

The thesis is your argument that you are making for your paper. A formula that you can use on the LA side of things is WHAT + HOW/WHY + SO WHAT. As you practice this more, you can switch around the order and how you phrase things, but these are the core components you want to include in your essay.

What = Larger Technique, element of literature, or other choice being made by the author that you want to focus on specifically. You want to make sure you are choosing something that is big enough that you have a lot to write about. Diction, for example, is not a good technique to focus on for your thesis because it is too narrow. Characterization would be a much stronger technique because it gives you more to work with.

HOW/WHY: How and why your technique/element/choice being made by the author works to convey the deeper meaning.

SO WHAT= The bigger picture. A larger connection you can make to author’s purpose, theme, or effect on the reader.