Plot, Setting, Characterization: Each helps create a world of meaning we can analyze

What is Plot?

·       Plot: ordering of events of the story à what is told, when it is told

o   Central conflict

o   Point of attack: “the first forward-moving scene” you show reader

§  In media res: “in the middle of” – starting with an event or place that isn’t where the story actually begins…

o   Flashback – use of past tense to shift to memories/the past

o   Flash-forwards – jumping forward through time

o   Section/scene breaks, indicate with spacing or  *** type symbols, can help reader comprehend “time passed” between sections/scenes.

·       Five Main Structural Elements of Plot:

1.    Exposition – background information, including setting and introduction of characters and central conflict

2.   Rising Action – conflict introduced in action; includes use of suspenseful detail/action

3.   Climax – the event, at least 2/3 of the way through story, in which the conflict is addressed

4.   Falling Action – what happens as a result of the climax? 

5.   Resolution* – not necessarily “resolved” end to story, but there is often a result that changes how to look at central conflict…

·       Setting: the time and place your story takes place; the story’s world and its rules; its “environment.”

o   As stated above, often the setting is given context within exposition.

o   However, you can also use dialogue & other elements to uncover the place & its rules…

What is characterization? How the author intends the character to be portrayed; they use these things to give you the type of person their character is:

•       Appearance – how you physically describe them; what you emphasize about their looks

•       Language/dialogue – how they talk and what they talk about; accent, dialect, references they make, length of sentences …

•       Behavior – define by actions, how they interact with other characters; how they treat themselves  

•       Internal & External Thoughts – providing a character’s rationale for actions help shape the reader’s view