GOOD

AFTERNOON!
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 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
a. I can identify the elements of a short story;
b. I can analyze a short story following the
elements of a short story;
c. I can evaluate the ways of expressing
conflicts within the story; and
d. I can appreciate the value of resolving
interpersonal conflicts as shown in the
story.
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ELEMENTS OF
A SHORT
STORY
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 What is a short story?

GIVE YOUR IDEAS.

 What is a short story?
What are those stories that
left you a big impression
or impact in your life?
 What is a short story?
A short story is a work of prose fiction
that can be read in one sitting—usually
between 20 minutes to an hour. There is
no maximum length, but the average short
story is 1,000 to 7,500 words, with some
outliers reaching 10,000 or 15,000 words.
 What is a short story?
At around 10 to 25 pages, that makes
short stories much shorter than novels, with
only a few approaching novella length. A piece
of fiction shorter than 1,000 words is
considered a “short short story” or “flash
fiction,” and anything less than 300 words is
rightfully called “microfiction”.
 What is a short story?
The setting of a short story is
often simplified (one time and
place), and one or two main
characters may be introduced
without full backstories.
 What is a short story?
Short stories typically focus
on a single plot instead of
multiple subplots, as you might
see in novels.
 What is a short story?
Contemporary short fiction is
more likely to begin in the middle
of the action (in medias res),
drawing readers right into a
dramatic scene.
Some famous short stories
a. “The Tell-Tale Heart” (1843) – Edgar Allan Poe
b. “The Necklace” (1884) – Guy de Maupassant
c. “The Story of an Hour” (1894) – Kate Chopin
d. “Gift of the Magi” (1905) – O. Henry
e. “Hills Like White Elephants” (1927), “The Snows of
Kilimanjaro” (1936) – Ernest Hemingway
f. “The Lottery” (1948) – Shirley Jackson
g. “The Ransom of red Chief” (1907) – O. Henry
h. “A Dog’s Tale” (1903) – Mark Twain
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ELEMENTS OF A
SHORT STORY

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1 PLOT
The plot is how the author
arranges events to develop his basic
idea; It is the sequence of events in a
story or play. The plot is a planned,
logical series of events having a
beginning, middle, and end. The short
story usually has one plot so it can be
read in one sitting.
Elements of a short story
 1. Introduction/Exposition
- The beginning of the story where the
characters and the setting is revealed.
Example: R om eo and Juliet's
fam ilies are enem ies, but
R om eo and Juliet m eet at a
party and like each other.

Elements of a short story 14

 2. Rising Action
- This is where the events in the story become
complicated and the conflict in the story is revealed
(events between the introduction and climax).
Example: Romeo visits Juliet on a balcony one night, and then
she sends a message to him through her nurse. They meet
and secretly wed without their families' knowledge. Romeo
kills Juliet's cousin Tybalt, and he is exiled. Juliet's father
orders her to marry someone else. Juliet fakes her death,
sending a message to Romeo to let him know, but he hears of
her death and doesn't get the message.

Elements of a short story 15

 3. Climax
- This is the highest point of interest and the
turning point of the story. The reader
wonders what will happen next; will the
conflict be resolved or not?
Example: Romeo kills himself, and Juliet
wakes from her sleep, sees him, and
kills herself.

Elements of a short story 16

 4. Falling action
- The events and complications begin to resolve
themselves. The reader knows what has
happened next and if the conflict was resolved
or not (events between climax and
denouement).
Example: The two families mourn
Romeo and Juliet.
Elements of a short story 17
 5. Denouement
This is the final outcome or untangling of events in
the story. It is helpful to consider climax as a three-
fold phenomenon:
1) the main character receives new information;
2) accepts this information (realizes it but does not
necessarily agree with it);
3) acts on this information (makes a choice that will
determine whether or not he/she gains his objective).

Elements of a short story 18

2 Point of View
Point of view, or P.O.V., is
defined as the angle from
which the story is told.

Elements of a short story

 a. Innocent Eye
The story is told through the eyes of a
child (his/her judgment being different from
that of an adult).
b. Stream of Consciousness
The story is told so that the reader feels
as if they are inside the head of one character
and knows all their thoughts and reactions.

Elements of a short story 20

 c. First Person
The story is told by the protagonist or
one of the characters who interacts closely
with the protagonist or other characters
(using pronouns I, me, we, etc). The
reader sees the story through this person's
eyes as he/she experiences it and only
knows what he/she knows or feels.

Elements of a short story 21

 d. Omniscient
The author can narrate the story
using the omniscient point of view. He can
move from character to character, event to
event, having free access to the thoughts,
feelings and motivations of his characters
and he introduces information where and
when he chooses.

Elements of a short story 22

 d-1. Omniscient Limited
The author tells the story in third
person (using pronouns they, she, he, it,
etc). We know only what the character
knows and what the author allows him/her
to tell us. We can see the thoughts and
feelings of characters if the author chooses
to reveal them to us.

Elements of a short story 23

 d-2. Omniscient Objective
The author tells the story in the third person.
It appears as though a camera is following the
characters, going anywhere, and recording only what
is seen and heard. There is no comment on the
characters or their thoughts. No interpretations are
offered. The reader is placed in the position of
spectator without the author there to explain. The
reader has to interpret events on his own.

Elements of a short story 24

 3 Character
a. Persons in a work of fiction.
Short stories use few characters. One
character is clearly central to the story with all
major events having some importance to this
character - he/she is the protagonist. The enemy of
the main character is called the antagonist.

Elements of a short story

 3 Character
b. The Characteristics of a Person.
In order for a story to seem real to the reader, its
characters must seem real. Characterization is the information the
author gives the reader about the characters themselves. The
author may reveal a character in several ways:
a. • his/her physical appearance
b. • what he/she says, thinks, feels and dreams
c. • what he/she does or does not do
d. • what others say about him/her and how others react to him/her

Elements of a short story

 Characters are convincing if they are: consistent,
motivated, and life-like (resemble real people)
Characters are:
• Individual - round, many sided and complex
personalities.
• Developing - dynamic, many sided personalities that
change, for better or worse, by the end of the story.
• Static - Stereotype, have one or two characteristics that
never change and are emphasized e.g. brilliant detective,
drunk, scrooge, cruel stepmother, etc.

Elements of a short story 27

 4 Setting
The time and location in which a
story takes place is called the setting.
For some stories the setting is very
important, while for others it is not.

Elements of a short story

 There are several aspects of a story's setting
to consider when examining how setting
contributes to a story (some, or all, may be
present in a story):

a. Place - geographical location. Where is the

action of the story taking place?
b. Time - When is the story taking place?
(historical period, time of day, year, etc)

Elements of a short story 29

 c. Weather conditions - Is it rainy, sunny,
stormy, etc?
d. Social conditions - What is the daily life of the
character's like? Does the story contain local color
(writing that focuses on the speech, dress,
mannerisms, customs, etc. of a particular place)?
e. Mood or atmosphere - What feeling is
created at the beginning of the story? Is it bright
and cheerful or dark and frightening?

Elements of a short story 30

 5 Conflict
Conflict is essential to plot. Without
conflict there is no plot. It is the opposition of
forces which ties one incident to another and
makes the plot move. Conflict is not merely
limited to open arguments, rather it is any form
of opposition that faces the main character.

Elements of a short story

 There are two types of conflict:
1. External - A struggle with a force
outside one's self.
2. Internal - A struggle within one's self;
a person must make some decision,
overcome pain, quiet their temper, resist
an urge, etc.

Elements of a short story 32

 6 Theme
The theme in a piece of fiction is its
controlling idea or its central insight. It is the
author's underlying meaning or main idea that
he/she is trying to convey. The theme may be
the author's thoughts about a topic or view of
human nature.

Elements of a short story

 • Things are not always as
they appear to be.
• Love is blind.
• Believe in yourself.
• Don't judge a book by its
cover.
Elements of a short story 34
Thank you so
much for
listening!
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