ENGLISH LITERATURE

AND ITS ELEMENTS

SAINT MATTHEW HIGH SCHOOL

STUDENT:
Margie Alexandra Martinez Fuentes
Mr:
Igor Giron
Subject:
Literature
Assignment:
Essay on English Literature and its elements
Grade:
11th
Date:
03-13th-2024
INDEX
Introduction.................................................................................3
Elements of literature..................................................................4
1. Character...............................................................................4
Types of characters..................................................................4
2. Setting....................................................................................5
Layers of setting.......................................................................5
3. Narrative.................................................................................6
Types of narrative.....................................................................6
4. Plot.........................................................................................6
Plot points.................................................................................7
5. Conflict...................................................................................7
Types of conflict........................................................................7
6. Theme....................................................................................8
Examples of theme...................................................................8
7. Voice......................................................................................8
Bibliography................................................................................8
Attachments................................................................................9
 ENGLISH LITERATURE
AND ITS ELEMENTS

Introduction
Literary elements in storytelling can cause a lot of confusion, and even a bit of fear,
among new writers. Once you’re able to recognize the literary elements of a story you’ll
realize that they’re present in absolutely everything.

All stories are made up of basic structural building blocks such as plot, character, and
theme, whether it’s a riveting Friday night TV series, a two-hundred-thousand-word
Dickensian novel of redemption, or a trashy paperback about fifty shades of highly
inappropriate workplace relations. Once you understand how these elements of story
take shape from our literary elements list, you’ll be able to use them to explore entire
worlds of your own.

What are literary elements?

Literary elements are the common structural elements that every story needs to be
successful. The seven elements of literature are character, setting, perspective, plot,
conflict, theme, and voice. These elements are the building blocks of good stories
because if any are missing, the story will feel incomplete and unsatisfying. Applying
these elements is critical to crafting an effective story.
Elements of literature
1. Character
The most fundamental of the literary elements, the root of all storytelling, is
this: character.

No matter what species your main character belongs to, what their socio-ethno-
economic background is, what planet they come from, or what time period they occupy,
your characters will have innate needs and desires that we as human beings can see
within ourselves. The longing for independence, the desire to be loved, the need to feel
safe are all things that most of us have experienced and can relate to when presented
through the filter of story.

The first step to using this literary element is easy, and what most new writers think of
when they start thinking about characters. it’s simply asking yourself, who is this
person? (And again, I’m using “person” in the broadest possible sense.) What makes
them interesting? Why is this protagonist someone I might enjoy reading about?

Types of characters
 Protagonist: Your protagonist is the main character of your story. Often they’ll
be the hero, but not always—antiheroes and complex morally grey leads make
for interesting plots, too.

 Antagonist: Your antagonist is the person standing in the way of your

protagonist’s goal. These two central characters have opposing desires.
2. Setting
Your setting is where, when, and to some degree how your story takes place. It’s also
your character’s relationship with the world around them. A story setting might be as
small as a cupboard under the stairs, or it might be as wide and vast as twenty
thousand leagues of endless grey sea. A short story might have only one setting, the
heart of where the story takes place; longer works such as novels will probably have
several. You can use all five senses to develop your setting.

Layers of setting
Temporal settings
Temporal setting refers to the time in which your story is set. This means the period of
history—whether that’s in contemporary times, at the turn of the century, or in a distant
future—as well as the season of the year, time of day or night, and point in your
protagonist’s life cycle.

Environmental settings
This is the wider world of your story—what fantasy and science-fiction writers call
“worldbuilding.” It refers to the natural landscape your characters find themselves in as
well as cultural, political, and socioeconomic values and the way your characters
interact with those values.

Individual settings
This is the fine details of setting, and what we most often tend to think about when we
consider setting in a story. These are the stages on which your story takes place: an
elementary school, a police station, a city park, a pirate ship. Your story needs the
support of temporal and environmental setting, but individual settings are what really
bring the world to life.
3. Narrative
The way you’re telling your story to the reader is as essential as the story that’s being
told. In literary terms, narrative is the perspective from which the events of the story are
unfolding and the way that you, as the author, have chosen to communicate them.

Every single character brings a different perspective to the story. They may have
prejudices, limitations, prior knowledge, or deep character flaws that colour the way they
see the world around them.

Types of narrative
First Person Subjective
First person narratives are written from the character’s point of view (or the PoV of
multiple characters) as if they were speaking directly to the reader.

Second Person
Second person PoV has a lot in common with first person, but instead of being told from
the main character’s perspective, it’s told from the reader’s—this allows the reader to
become the person telling the story

Third Person Limited Subjective

Third person points of view are the most classic in literature; they use “he,” “she,” or
“they” to follow the characters’ journeys

4. Plot
In a literary text, the plot is the sequence of events that takes the protagonist on a
journey—whether that’s a literal journey from one place to another, a journey in which
they learn how something came to be, or a journey in which they learn something about
themselves. Some stories may be all of these things.
Plot points
Inciting incident
The inciting incident is the event that changes the protagonist’s life and sends them on
a different path than the one they were on before. This will be the first major plot point of
every story, and is essential for grabbing the reader’s attention. A good example might
be if a mysterious new stranger enters the protagonist’s life.

Rising action
During the first half of your story, your characters will encounter several challenges on
their way to achieving their goal (the one set into motion by the inciting incident). These
“mini battles” form the rising action of a story.

Climax
The climax is the great showdown between the protagonist and their adversary, the
moment of greatest triumph and greatest loss. Everything your characters have learned
through the rising action has led to this moment.

5. Conflict
When looking at the events that make up your plot, all of the choices your character
needs to make will be in response to the literary element we call “conflict.” This makes it
one of the most essential literary elements in literature. This might be a conflict with
another person, a conflict inside themselves, or a conflict with their environment. It
might be all of these things. There’s a reason we close the book after “happily ever
after”; once there’s no more conflict, the story has run its course and there’s nothing
more to say.

Types of conflict
 Character vs. Character: This type of conflict sets a person against another
person, usually the classic bad guys of literature.
 Character vs. Self: Sometimes, a protagonist’s obstacle comes from within. This
might be something like addiction, alcoholism, fear, or other forms of self-
sabotage.
6. Theme
Theme as a literary element is something that makes both readers and writers a little
cautious. After all, doesn’t worrying about developing and understanding a theme take
some of the enjoyment out of stories? Well no, it shouldn’t, because themes are present
in all works of art whether they were put there intentionally or not. Theme is simply the
sum of what the creator was trying to communicate with their work.

Examples of theme
 Love
 Betrayal
 Rebirth
 Redemption
 Family
 Prejudice

7. Voice
A writer’s voice is something that no guidebook can give you; it’s simply what’s left
after everything that’s not your voice has been worn away.

Think of it this way: the work of new writers is usually a spark of an idea (sometimes
original, sometimes not) encrusted with everything they’ve ever read. They may be
trying to emulate writers who have written things that they’ve resonated with, or they
may have simply absorbed those things subconsciously and are now watching them
leak out of their fingers as they write.

Bibliography
Attachments