The Elements of

Literature

Setting

The setting is the time and location where the story takes place. Setting includes the following:

•The geographical location (ex. Texas, London, Cairo, Vancouver)

•The time period (ex. 1865, during WWII, today)

•The socio-economic characteristics of the location (ex. Wealthy suburbs, depression dustbowl)

•The specific building, room, and so forth (ex. A prep school, a log cabin, a bus, a military base, room 204)

Setting

Can be used to tell readers about the characters:

That evening T.J. smelled the air, his nostrils dilating with the odor of the earth under his feet. “It’s spring,” he said, and there was a gladness rising in his voice that filled us all with the same feeling.

“It’s mighty late for it, but it’s spring”… We were all sniffing at the air, too, trying to smell it the way T.J. did, and I can still remember the sweet odor of the earth under our feet. It was the first time in my life that spring and spring earth had meant anything to me.

“Antaeus” by Borden Deal

Setting

Can be used to set the atmosphere for the story:

“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country.”

“The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe

Characters

The people (or animals, things, etc. presented as people) appearing in a literary work.

•Round Characters are convincing, true to life. Have many different and sometimes even contradictory personality traits.

•Dynamic Characters undergo some type of change or development in story, often because of something that happens to them.

•Flat Characters are stereotyped, shallow, and often symbolic. Have only one or two personality traits.

•Static Characters do not change in the course of the story.

Characters

•Protagonist (hero)The main character in a literary work (for instance, Cinderella or Snow White in the fairy tales named for their characters)

•Antagonist (villain) The character who opposes the protagonist (for instance, the wicked stepmothers in the fairy tales.)

Methods of Characterization

Direct Characterization

The author develops the personality of a character by direct statements.

“Jack had been in basic trainingin Florida and Dottie was there on vacation with her parents. They’d met on the beach andstruck up a conversation. Dottiewas the talker, the outgoingone – the extrovert. Jack was too shy around girls to say much at all.”

“Fulough – 1944” by Harry Mazer

Methods of Characterization

Indirect Characterization

Revealing a character’s personality through…

•The character’s thoughts, words, and actions

•The comments of other characters

•The character’s physical appearance

Indirect Characterization Through Thoughts

“Moonbeam closed his eyes and pretended to sleep the rest of the way to Bamfield. He couldn’t believe what he had gotten himself into. How had this happened? He’d never

held a gun in his life, much less gone hunting for animals.”

“Moonbeam Dawson and The Killer Bear” by Jean Okimoto

Indirect Characterization Through Words

“It was Kenny Griffen, smiling complacently. ‘Miss Bird sent me after you ‘cause you been gone six years. You’re in trouble… yer constipated!’ Kenny chortled gleefully. ‘Wait’ll I tell Caaathy!”

“Here There Be Tygers” by Stephen King

Indirect Characterization Through Actions

“The boy held his breath; he wondered whether his father would hear his heart beating… Through a crack in the counter he could see his father where he stood, one

hand held to his high stiff collar…”

“I Spy” by Graham Greene

Indirect Characterization Through Appearance

“Miss Kinney was young and blonde and bouncy and had a boyfriend who picked her up after school in a blue Camero.”

“Here There Be Tygers” by Stephen King

Plot

Plot is the literary element that describes the structure of a story. It shows arrangement of events and actions within a story.

This Plot Line is also known as

Freytag’s Pyramid

Plot Components

Exposition: the start of the story, the situation before the action starts.

Rising Action: the series of conflicts and crisis in the story that lead to the climax.

Climax: the turning point, the most intense moment-either mentally or in the action.

Falling Action: all of the action which follows the climax.

Resolution: the conclusion, the tying together of all the threads.

Plot: Conflict

Conflict is the dramatic struggle between two forces in a story. Without conflict, there is no plot.

Plot:

Types of Conflict

Interpersonal Conflict (External):Man vs Man

Man vs Nature

Man vs Society

Intrapersonal Conflict (Internal):Man vs Self

Point of View

The perspective from which the story is told.

•Who is telling the story?(ex. Is it a player on the home team or someone watching the game?)

•How do we know what is happening?(ex. Does a character tell us?)

Omniscient Point of View

The author is telling the story directly.

“Myop carried a short, knobby stick. She struck out at random at chickens she liked, and worked out the beat of a song on the fence around the pigpen. She felt light and good in the warm sun. She was ten, and nothing existed for her but her song, the stick clutched in her dark brown hand, and the tat-de-ta-ta-ta of accompaniment.”

“The Flowers” by Alice Walker

Limited Omniscient Point of View

Third person, told from the viewpoint of a character in the story.

“They all laughed, and while they were laughing, the quiet boy moved his bare foot on the sidewalk and merely touched, brushed against a number of red ants scurrying about on the sidewalk. Secretly, his eyes shining, while his parents chatted with the old man, he saw the ants hesitate, quiver, and lie still on the cement. He sensed they were cold now.”

“Fever Dream” by Ray Bardbury

First Person Point of View

Told from the viewpoint of one of the characters, using the first person pronoun “I”.

“The thousands of injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge. You, who so well know the nature of my soul, will not supposed, however, that I give utterance to a threat”

“The Cask of Amontillado”by Edgar Allan Poe

Symbolism

A symbol represents an idea, quality, or concept larger than itself.

A journey can symbolize life.

Water may represent cleanliness and renewal.

A lion can be a symbol of courage.

A red rose can represent love.

Irony

When the opposite of the expected outcome results.

“Mr. Play-It-Safe was afraid to fly, He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids good-bye, He waited his whole life to take that flight, And as the plane crashed down he thought, 'Well isn't this nice...‘ ”

“Ironic” by Alanis Morisette

Irony

� Verbal IronyThe contrast between what is said and what is actually meant.

� Situational Irony This refers to a happening that is the opposite of what is expected or intended.

� Dramatic IronyThis occurs when the audience or reader knows more than the characters know.

Mood

Tone

The climate of feeling in a literary work. The choice of setting, objects, details, images, and words all contribute towards creating a specific mood. For example, an author may create a mood of mystery around a character or setting but may treat that character or setting in an ironic, serious, or humorous tone

The author’s attitude, stated or implied, toward a subject. Some possible attitudes are pessimism, optimism, earnestness, seriousness, bitterness, humorous, and joyful. An author’s tone can be revealed through choice of words and details.

Foreshadow

The use of hints or clues to suggest what will happen later in the story. Writers use foreshadowing to build their reader’s expectations and to create suspense.

Example: A weapon found in a drawer early in a story might foreshadow a future crime in the story

Similie

A figure of speech which involves an implied comparison between two relatively unlike things (using a form of be). The comparison is not announced by like or as.

Ex. The classroom was a freezer

Metaphor

A figure of speech which involves a direct comparison between two unlike things, usually with the words like or as.

Ex. The classroom was as cold as a freezer

Personification

When humanlike characteristics are given to inanimate objects.

The breeze was whistling.

The sun kissed my cheek.

Theme

•Theme is the central idea or central message of the story. It usually contains some insight into the human condition – telling something about humans and life.

•The theme can be stated directly or implied by the events and actions in the story.