How to Analyze a Short Story

Old Fence. A short story has a structure and a message. Can you analyze this picture in much the same way
as a short story?

What Is a Short Story?

A short story is a work of short, narrative prose that is usually centered around one
single event. It is limited in scope and has an introduction, body and conclusion.
Although a short story has much in common with a novel (See How to Analyze a Novel),
it is written with much greater precision. You will often be asked to write a literary
analysis. An analysis of a short story requires basic knowledge of literary elements. The
following guide and questions may help you:

Setting

Setting is a description of where and when the story takes place. In a short story there
are fewer settings compared to a novel. The time is more limited. Ask yourself the
following questions:

 How is the setting created? Consider geography, weather, time of day, social
conditions, etc.
  What role does setting play in the story? Is it an important part of the plot or
theme? Or is it just a backdrop against which the action takes place?

Study the time period, which is also part of the setting, and ask yourself the following:

 When was the story written?

 Does it take place in the present, the past, or the future?
 How does the time period affect the language, atmosphere or social
circumstances of the short story?

Characterization

Characterization deals with how the characters in the story are described. In short
stories there are usually fewer characters compared to a novel. They usually focus on
one central character or protagonist. Ask yourself the following:

 Who is the main character?

 Are the main character and other characters described through dialogue – by the
way they speak (dialect or slang for instance)?
 Has the author described the characters by physical appearance, thoughts and
feelings, and interaction (the way they act towards others)?
 Are they static/flat characters who do not change?
 Are they dynamic/round characters who DO change?
 What type of characters are they? What qualities stand out? Are they
stereotypes?
 Are the characters believable?

Plot and structure

The plot is the main sequence of events that make up the story. In short stories the plot
is usually centered around one experience or significant moment. Consider the following
questions:

 What is the most important event?

 How is the plot structured? Is it linear, chronological or does it move around?
 Is the plot believable?

Narrator and Point of view

The narrator is the person telling the story.  Consider this question: Are the narrator and
the main character the same?

By point of view we mean from whose eyes the story is being told. Short stories tend to
be told through one character’s point of view. The following are important questions to
consider:

 Who is the narrator or speaker in the story?

 Does the author speak through the main character?
 Is the story written in the first person “I” point of view?
 Is the story written in a detached third person “he/she” point of view?
 Is there an “all-knowing” third person who can reveal what all the characters are
thinking and doing at all times and in all places?

Conflict

Conflict or tension is usually the heart of the short story and is related to the main
character. In a short story there is usually one main struggle.

 How would you describe the main conflict?

 Is it an internal conflict within the character?
 Is it an external conflict caused by the surroundings or environment the main
character finds himself/herself in?

Climax

The climax is the point of greatest tension or intensity in the short story. It can also be
the point where events take a major turn as the story races towards its conclusion. Ask
yourself:

 Is there a turning point in the story?

 When does the climax take place?

Theme

The theme is the main idea, lesson, or message in the short story. It may be an abstract
idea about the human condition, society, or life. Ask yourself:

 How is the theme expressed?

 Are any elements repeated and therefore suggest a theme?
  Is there more than one theme?

Style

The author’s style has to do with the his or her vocabulary, use of imagery, tone, or the
feeling of the story. It has to do with the author’s attitude toward the subject. In some
short stories the tone can be ironic, humorous, cold, or dramatic.

 Is the author’s language full of figurative language?

 What images are used?
 Does the author use a lot of symbolism? Metaphors (comparisons that do not
use “as” or “like”) or similes (comparisons that use “as” or “like”)?

Your literary analysis of a short story will often be in the form of an essay where you
may be asked to give your opinions of the short story at the end. Choose the elements
that made the greatest impression on you. Point out which character/characters you
liked best or least and always support your arguments.

How to Analyze Poetry

Poetry is a form of expression. The poet uses his/her own personal and private
language which leaves poetry open to different interpretations. Although the poet may
have had one specific idea or purpose in mind, the reader’s response may be
completely different. Nevertheless, this does not mean that you may interpret poetry any
way you wish. All interpretations must be supported by direct reference to the text. As
with any type of literary analysis, you need a basic knowledge of  the elements of
poetry. The following guide and questions will help you.

 Read the poem in its entirety to get a  general impression.

 What is the poem about?
 What is the title of the poem?
 Who is speaker or narrative voice of the poem
 To whom is the speaker speaking?
 What is the purpose of the poem: to describe, amuse, entertain, narrate, inform,
express grief, celebrate or commemorate?
 What is the tone of the poem? Sad, happy, melancholy, bitter?
Reader-Response Criticism

Summary

We have examined many schools of literary criticism. Here you will find an in-depth look
at one of them: Reader-Response.

The Purpose of Reader-Response

Reader-response suggests that the role of the reader is essential to the meaning of a
text, for only in the reading experience does the literary work come alive. For example,
in Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s  Frankenstein (1818), the monster doesn’t exist, so
to speak, until the reader reads Frankenstein and reanimates it to life, becoming a co-
creator of the text.
Thus, the purpose of a reading response is examining, explaining, and defending your
personal reaction to a text.
Your critical reading of a text asks you to explore:
 why you like or dislike the text;
 explain whether you agree or disagree with the author;
 identify the text’s purpose; and
 critique the text.
There is no right or wrong answer to a reading response. Nonetheless, it is important
that you demonstrate an understanding of the reading and clearly explain and support
your reactions. Do not use the standard approach of just writing: “I liked this text
because it is so cool and the ending made me feel happy,” or “I hated it because it was
stupid, and had nothing at all to do with my life, and was too negative and boring.” In
writing a response you may assume the reader has already read the text. Thus, do not
summarize the contents of the text at length.  Instead, take a systematic, analytical
approach to the text.

Write as a Scholar

When writing a reader-response write as an educated adult addressing other adults or

fellow scholars.  As a beginning scholar, if you write that something has nothing to do
with you or does not pass your “Who cares?” test, but many other people think that it is
important and great, readers will probably not agree with you that the text is dull or
boring.  Instead, they may conclude that you are dull and boring, that you are too
immature or uneducated to understand what important things the author wrote.
Criticize with Examples

If you did not like a text, that is fine, but criticize it either from:
 principle, for example:
o Is the text racist?
o Does the text unreasonably puts down things, such as religion, or groups
of people, such as women or adolescents, conservatives or democrats, etc?
o Does the text include factual errors or outright lies? It is too dark and
despairing? Is it falsely positive?
 form, for example:
o Is the text poorly written?
o Does it contain too much verbal “fat”?
o Is it too emotional or too childish?
o Does it have too many facts and figures?
o Are there typos or other errors in the text?
o Do the ideas wander around without making a point?

In each of these cases, do not simply criticize, but give examples. As a beginning

scholar, be cautious of criticizing any text as “confusing” or “crazy,” since readers might
simply conclude that you are too ignorant or slow to understand and appreciate it.

The Structure of a Reader-Response Essay

Choosing a text to study is the first step in writing a reader-response essay. Once you
have chosen the text, your challenge is to connect with it and have a “conversation” with
the text.
In the beginning paragraph of your reader-response essay, be sure to mention the
following:
 title of the work to which you are responding;
 the author; and
 the main thesis of the text.
Then, do your best to answer the questions below. Remember, however, that you are
writing an essay, not filling out a short-answer worksheet. You do not need to work
through these questions in order, one by one, in your essay. Rather, your paper as a
whole should be sure to address these questions in some way.
 What does the text have to do with you, personally, and with your life (past,
present or future)? It is not acceptable to write that the text has NOTHING to do
with you, since just about everything humans can write has to do in some way with
every other human.
  How much does the text agree or clash with your view of the world, and what you
consider right and wrong? Use several quotes as examples of how it agrees with
and supports what you think about the world, about right and wrong, and about
what you think it is to be human.   Use quotes and examples to discuss how the
text disagrees with what you think about the world and about right and wrong.
 What did you learn, and how much were your views and opinions challenged or
changed by this text, if at all?  Did the text communicate with you? Why or why
not?  Give examples of how your views might have changed or been strengthened
(or perhaps, of why the text failed to convince you, the way it is). Please do not
write “I agree with everything the author wrote,” since everybody disagrees about
something, even if it is a tiny point. Use quotes to illustrate your points of
challenge, or where you were persuaded, or where it left you cold.
 How well does the text address things that you, personally, care about and
consider important to the world? How does it address things that are important to
your family, your community, your ethnic group, to people of your economic or
social class or background, or your faith tradition?  If not, who does or did the text
serve? Did it pass the “Who cares?” test?  Use quotes from the text to illustrate.
 What can you praise about the text? What problems did you have with
it? Reading and writing “critically” does not mean the same thing as “criticizing,” in
everyday language (complaining or griping, fault-finding, nit-picking). Your
“critique” can and should be positive and praise the text if possible, as well as
pointing out problems, disagreements and shortcomings.
 How well did you enjoy the text (or not) as entertainment or as a work of art? Use
quotes or examples to illustrate the quality of the text as art or entertainment. Of
course, be aware that some texts are not meant to be entertainment or art: a news
report or textbook, for instance, may be neither entertaining or artistic, but may still
be important and successful.
For the conclusion, you might want to discuss:
 your overall reaction to the text;
 whether you would read something else like this in the future;
 whether you would read something else by this author; and
 if would you recommend read this text to someone else and why.

Key Takeaways

 In reader-response, the reader is essential to the meaning of a text for they bring

the text to life.
 The purpose of a reading response is examining, explaining, and defending your
personal reaction to a text.
 When writing a reader-response, write as an educated adult addressing other
adults or fellow scholars.
  As a beginning scholar, be cautious of criticizing any text as “boring,” “crazy,” or
“dull.”  If you do criticize, base your criticism on the principles and form of the text
itself.
 The challenge of a reader-response is to show how you connected with the text.

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/introliterature/chapter/reader-response-criticism/