Name______Date______
Elements of Fiction Notes
1. ______- the people / characters in a story
(Ex: Cinderella…Big Bad wolf…Batman…)
* Protagonist - the main ______of the story
* Antagonist - the character that ______or is against the ______
a) Round characters - complex and multidimensional, like real people
b) ______characters - one dimensional and superficial; can be described in a single sentence; minor characters
c) Dynamic characters - make an important change during the course of the story
d) ______characters - do not change much or at all during a story
e) Stock characters are predictable stereotypes of people.
*______is the underlying force(s) that causes a character to act a certain way.
2. PLOT - the series of related ______that make up a story
3. ______- ______and ______where the story happens
(Ex: 1945…England…winter…Middle Ages...haunted mansion…)
4. ______- the real meaning of the story that can usually be stated in one sentence and
makes a statement about life or human nature; can be traced throughout
the story
5. ______of ______- ______is telling the story/ whose ______
a) 3rd Person Omniscient - the narrator knows ______that’s going on in the story
b) 1st Person - the narrator is a person in the story/ the narrator reveals his/her own experiences
and thoughts, but can’t tell any other character’s private thoughts
c) 3rd Person Limited - the narrator is ______the story, but tells the story from only ______
character’s vantage point
6. CONFLICT - the ______that is present in the story
* ______Conflict - conflict that happens ______the character
* ______Conflict - conflict that happens between one or more character or between a
character and some other element in the story
Types of Conflict
* Person vs. ______- A struggle between _____ or more people (verbal OR physical)
(Ex: Hitting, Yelling, etc…)
* Person vs. ______- A struggle between man and some part of ______
(Ex: Hurricane, Tornado, Rain, etc…)
* Person vs. ______- A struggle between man and some sort of ______or ______
(Ex: car, hairdryer, computer etc…)
* Person vs. ______- A struggle between man and his ______or setting
(Ex: being cold in a classroom, being locked out of your house, etc…)
* Person vs. ______- A struggle between man and society’s ______of an issue
(Ex: people expressing their views against abortion, racism, war, etc…)
* Person vs. ______- A struggle between man and some supernatural ______
(Ex: God, a ghost, the devil/demons, etc…)
* Person vs. ______- A struggle within one’s ______
(Ex: deciding what to do in a certain situation, dealing with guilt, etc…)
7. ______- the ______a writer takes toward the reader, a subject, or a character
(shown through a writer’s choice of words or details)
(Ex: sarcastic, angry, sad, lonely)
8. FORESHADOWING - the use of clues to ______at what is going to happen ______later in
the plot
(Ex: a storm comes on the night before the character is to die, [in a movie] the
suspenseful music starts to play)
9. FLASHBACK - when the present action of a story is interrupted to ______to an
earlier time to tell what happened
10. ALLUSION - a ______to another work of art, person, place, or thing (outside
of the text); usually refer to history, the Bible, mythology, or pop culture
(Ex: She is the Mother Theresa of our family because of her kindness and
caring attitude.)
11. IRONY - the difference between what you ______to happen and what
______occurs
* ______Irony - When one expects one thing to happens, but the opposite occurs
[a situation]
(Ex: if a fireman’s house caught on fire)
* ______Irony - When someone ______something, but they mean the opposite (Sarcasm)
(Ex: the teacher tells her wildest class that they are her little “angels”)
* ______Irony - When the ______what is going to happen, but the
______does not
(Ex: when the audience knows that there the killer is behind the
door that the woman is about to open, but the woman does not.)
Elements of Fiction
1. CHARACTER - the people / characters in a story
(Ex: Cinderella…Big Bad wolf…Batman…)
* Protagonist - the main character of the story
* Antagonist - the character that opposes or blocks the protagonist
a) Round characters - complex and multidimensional, like real people
b) Flat characters - one dimensional and superficial; can be described in a single sentence; minor characters
c) Dynamic characters - make an important change during the course of the story
d) Static characters - do not change much or at all during a story
e) Stock characters are predictable stereotypes of people.
*Motivation is the underlying force(s) that causes a character to act a certain way.
2. PLOT - series of related incidents that make up a story
3. SETTING - Time and Place where the story happens
(Ex: 1945…England….Middle Ages...haunted mansion…)
4. THEME - the real meaning of the story/ the story beneath the
surface
5. POINT of VIEW - who is telling the story/ whose perspective
a) 3rd Person Omniscient - the narrator knows everything that’s going on in the
story
b) 1st Person - the narrator is a person in the story/ the narrator reveals
his/her own experiences and thoughts, but can’t tell any
other character’s private thoughts
c) 3rd Person Limited - the narrator is outside the story, but tells the story from
only one character’s vantage point
6. CONFLICT - the problem that is present in the story
* Internal Conflict - conflict that happens within the character
* External Conflict - conflict that happens between one or more
characters…or between a character and some other
element in the story
Types of Conflict
* Person vs. Person - A struggle between two or more people (verbal OR
physical) (Ex: Hitting, Any type of Competition, Yelling, etc…)
* Person vs. Nature - A struggle between man and some part of nature
( Ex: Hurricane, Tornado, Rain, etc…)
* Person vs. Machine - A struggle between man and some sort of machine or
device (Ex: car, pencil sharpener, hairdryer, computer etc…)
* Personn vs. Environment - A struggle between man and his
surroundings/setting
(Ex: being cold in a classroom, being locked out of your house, etc…)
* Person vs. Society - A struggle between man and society’s view of an
issue
(Ex: people expressing their views against abortion, racism, war, etc…)
* Person vs. Supernatural - A struggle between man and some supernatural force
(Ex: God, a ghost, the devil/demons, etc…)
* Person vs. Himself - A struggle within one’s own self
(Ex: deciding what to do in a certain situation, dealing with guilt, etc…)
7. TONE - the attitude a writer takes toward the reader, subject, or a character (shown
through a writer’s choice of words or details)
(Ex: sarcastic…angry…sad…lonely…)
8. FORESHADOWING - the use of clues to hint at what is going to happen
later in the plot
(Ex: a storm comes on the night before the character is to die,
[in a movie] the suspenseful music starts to play)
9. FLASHBACK - when the present action of a story is interrupted to
look back to an earlier time to tell what happened
10. ALLUSION - a reference to another work of art, person, place, or
thing (outside the text)
(Ex: She is the Mother Theresa of our family because of her
kindness and caring attitude.)
11. IRONY - the difference between what you expect to happen
and what actually occurs
* Situational Irony - When one expects one thing to happens, but the
opposite occurs (Ex: if a fireman’s house caught on fire)
* Verbal Irony - When someone says something, but they mean the
opposite (Sarcasm)
(Ex: the teacher tells her wildest class that they are her little “angels”)
* Dramatic Irony - When the reader knows what is going to happen, but the
character does not
(Ex: when the audience knows that there the killer is behind the door that
the woman is about to open, but the woman does not.)