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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

Structure of a Narrative
Lecture Objectives:
 Students will become familiarized with narrative writing structure
 Students will be able to evaluate others' writing and their own and see if narratives have its
structure properly incorporated
 Students will be able to construct their own narratives and include the structure and elements
required in narrative writing

Quickwrite: What’s Missing?

Read the following short first-person narrative. Then, answer the questions
“After a long day of work and commuting in my sky-blue car. I finally got home. Traffic added an extra
thirty minutes to my commute due to a white Honda Civic rear-ending a small light green smart car.
Because I arrived home later than usual, I had to start dinner early for my son and me right away since
my wife was away on a business trip. I decided to cook spaghetti. I added ground beef, dried oregano
and basil, and green bell pepper to the red sauce, filling the house's atmosphere with a captivating and
inviting scent to the kitchen. It felt good to relax a little with my son during dinner. Later that night, I
stayed up past my bedtime to make sure that I was ready for my presentation tomorrow. I'm pretty sure
that I would do well. Sometimes, I'm just a perfectionist who wanted to make sure that everything was
in order the way I liked it. It could be a little time consuming. Now my presentation was ready for
tomorrow and I finally sleep.”

1. Who is speaking? Who are the characters?

2. Where is the story taking place? When is the story taking place?

3. Is there some sort of problem or conflict that the speaker faces? If so, did the speaker have a
solution for the problem?

4. How did you feel after reading the story? Did you learn something from it? Did it feel like a
waste of time?
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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

What is the importance of the lacking elements?

Recall the information. Fill in the blanks:
1. Importance of characters: They are the reason why story __________ and ____________.

2. Importance of setting: helps establish the ________, shows the ________________ character
lives in, may hint to character's ___________/____________, etc.

3. Importance of when story takes place: ________________ could be important to the

development of the story.

4. What purpose does the conflict/problem serve in a narrative? How would the story differ
without a problem or conflict the character faces? How does it affect the other elements of a
narrative?

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Narrative Structure Chart

Fill in the blanks:

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Short Poem Narrative:
Annabel Lee
By Edgar Allan Poe
Read the following narrative. You may use it as
reference for later questions.
It was many and many a year ago,
   In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may
know
   By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other
thought
   Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
   In this kingdom by the sea,
But we loved with a love that was more
than love—
   I and my Annabel Lee—
With a love that the wingèd seraphs of
Heaven
   Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
   In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
   My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsmen came
   And bore her away from me,
Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/annabel-lee-by-edgar-
allan-poe
Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________
To shut her up in a sepulchre
   In this kingdom by the sea.
The angels, not half so happy in Heaven,
   Went envying her and me—
Yes!—that was the reason (as all men
know,
   In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by
night,
   Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.
But our love it was stronger by far than
the love
   Of those who were older than we—
   Of many far wiser than we—
And neither the angels in Heaven above
   Nor the demons down under the sea
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
For the moon never beams, without
bringing me dreams
   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the
bright eyes
   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by
the side
   Of my darling—my darling—my life and
my bride,
   In her sepulchre there by the sea—
   In her tomb by the sounding sea.
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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

Narrative Structure Identification Practice: Application of Knowledge

 As you learn and understand each term that contributes to the structure of a narrative, fill in each
box using the short poem narrative above. Only fill in each section after going through each slide
that covers each term.

Exposition Problem Rising Action

Characters

Place

Time

Climax Falling Action Resolution

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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

Narrative Structure Chart: Exposition

Recall information:
Exposition:

1. Place:

2. Time:

3. Characters:

Chart Application Time: Exposition

1. Refer to the Narrative Structure Identification Chart on page 4. Think about Poe’s poem
Annabelle Lee and apply your knowledge by determining who the characters are, the place
setting, and the time setting.

2. Once you finish filling in the first section of the chart, draw this
picture next to the word ‘exposition’ in the Narrative Structure
Chart on page 2 of this handout.

Narrative Structure Chart: Problem

Fill in the blanks:

Problem:

1. The problem of a arises when there is an __________ that the character faces
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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

2. The ___________ to ___________ the obstacle is what ________ the problem/conflict of the
story

Chart Application Time: Problem

1. Refer to the Narrative Structure Identification Chart on page 4. Think about Poe’s poem
Annabelle Lee and apply your knowledge by determining what seems to be the central
problem/obstacle of the poem that character must overcome.

2. Once you finish filling in the first section of the chart, draw this picture
next to the word ‘problem’ in the
Narrative Structure Chart on page 2 of this
handout.

Narrative Structure Chart: Rising

Action
Fill in the blanks:

Rising Action:

1. Causes events and incidents to unfold which ________ the ___________ of the plot.

2. ____________ from the conflict grow

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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

*Note: There could be more than one rising action as it is a series of events that build up the tension and
lead to the climax

Chart Application Time: Rising Action

1. Refer to the Narrative Structure Identification Chart on page 4. Think about Poe’s poem
Annabelle Lee and apply your knowledge by determining what seems to be the rising action(s) of
the poem that pushes the plot forward.

2. Once you finish filling in the first section of the chart, draw this
picture next to the word ‘problem’ in the Narrative Structure Chart
on page 2 of this handout.

Narrative Structure Chart: Climax

Fill in the blanks:

Climax:
1. The _________ _______ of the whole story

2. ________ of the _________ of problems and tension from previous events

3. Character is finally ______ to ______ with the conflict

Chart Application Time: Climax

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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

1. Refer to the Narrative Structure Identification Chart on page 4. Think about Poe’s poem
Annabelle Lee and apply your knowledge by determining what you think is the climax of the
poem that seems to be the result of all the buildup from the rising action. Below, write why you
think your answer is the climax of the poem by referring to the text.

2. Once you finish filling in the first section of the chart, draw this picture next to the word ‘climax’ in
the Narrative Structure Chart on page 2 of this handout.

Narrative Structure Chart: Falling Action

Fill in the blanks:

Falling Action:

1. Conflict and tensions start to _________.

2. Characters of the stories start to ___________ the ______ of their __________.

*Note: There could be more than one falling action as it could be a series of events that decreases the
struggles and problems.

Chart Application Time: Falling Action

1. Refer to the Narrative Structure Identification Chart on page 4. Think about Poe’s poem
Annabelle Lee and apply your knowledge by determining what falling action(s) that seems to
decrease the tension and slowly transition to the resolution of the story.
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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

2. Once you finish filling in the first section of the chart, draw this picture next to the word ‘Falling
Action’ in the Narrative Structure Chart on page 2 of this handout.

Narrative Structure Chart: Resolution

Fill in the blanks:

Resolution:
1. It is the __________ of all the previous events.

2. All questions are answered with all _______ _____ being ________.

Chart Application Time: Resolution

1. Refer to the Narrative Structure Identification Chart on page 4. Think about Poe’s poem
Annabelle Lee and apply your knowledge by determining the resolution that seems to be the
outcome of the previous events that tie everything together.

2. Once you finish filling in the first section of the chart, draw this picture
next to the word ‘Resolution’ in the Narrative Structure Chart on page 2 of
this handout.
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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

Narrative Structure Practice: Application, Composition, and Evaluation of

Knowledge
1. Now that you learned about the structure of a narrative and its elements, compose a short first-
person narrative. Make sure that you consider everything you learned regarding the structure of
a narrative and incorporate that into your short story. You may write your short first-person
narrative with the space provided below. You do not necessarily have to fill the whole page but
have enough content to incorporate all the elements and structure of the narrative.
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Name: __________________
Per.: ___ Date: __________

2. Now that you finished writing your short first-person narrative, switch your narrative with
another peer and read each other’s narrative. Once you do so, fill in the Application Chart
below. Just like you did with Poe’s Annabelle Lee, evaluate and fill in the chart using your
partner’s narrative. As you fill it in, if they seem to be missing/lacking something or incorporate
one of the elements really well, you may also write in the box your thoughts and feedback.

Exposition Problem Rising Action

Characters

Setting

Time

Climax Falling Action Resolution

Peer Reviewer’s Name: __________________

Application of Knowledge Chart

Additional Comments: