Short Story Devices

(Look for the following devices at work in the story. When found, write the page number, the abbreviated passage, and a brief explanation.)

Short Story Analysis

Conflict
What is the conflict?
Is it internal or external? Explain.
Events in the Plot (List the major events of the story on the lines below.)
______
______
______
______
Inciting Incident, Climax, and Resolution
Inciting Incident: What event introduces the action (and often the conflict) in the story?
Climax: What event is the high point of interest or suspense in the story?
Resolution: What event ends, or resolves, the conflict?
Setting
In what place does the story occur?
At what time does the story occur?
What mood is created by the descriptions of the setting?
Character
Who is the protagonist in the story?
What do we know about the character through direct or indirect characterization?
What conflict, or problem, does this character face?
What motivates this character? In other words, what causes the character to act as he or she does?
Does the character change in the course of the story? If so, in what way? What causes the character to change?
Are there any other important characters? If so, are they flat, round, static, and/or dynamic characters?
Point of View and Theme
Is this story told from the first person subjective, first person detached, first person observer, third person limited, third person omniscient, or third person objective point of view?
What important idea about life or human nature is shown by this story?
Framework story
SF / Flashback/ Flash-forward
SF / Foreshadow
SF
Irony
V/MM/I / Ambiguity
V/MM/I / Allusion
MM
Tone
V/MM / Diction
V/MM
(plain, ornate, slang, or technical) / Connotation
V/MM
Repetition
MM/SD / Metaphors & Similes
FL / Personification
FL
Imagery
FL / Symbolism
I / Additional
(oxymoron, pun, hyperbole, alliteration etc.)

KEY: SF (story form), V (voice), MM (mood, meaning), FL (figurative language), I (interpretation), SD (sound devices)