Fiction Elements Packet

20 LIT points for complete work

Jessica will face some sort of danger from which she will be cunning enough to escape.

Robin will go on a quest based on instructions in the book, complete three tasks, and succeed in his dream of making a mark in the world.

Detective Riley will solve the crime and probably drink a lot of coffee.

Genre:Realistic fiction

-- the story is believable; it could happen to anyone; the main character often faces an emotional or psychological conflict

Genre:Fantasy

-- the story has one or more features not seen in our world -- magic, time travel, talking animals

Genre:Historical fiction

-- the story is set in a specific time in history; sometimes an actual historical figure

Genre: Contemporary fiction-- the story takes place in today’s world

Genre:Science fiction-- a type of fantasy story, set in a time or place in which technology has reshaped society in significant ways; unusual setting often helps to highlight human dilemmas

Genre: Action adventure

--not much “psychological stuff” for these characters; one action-packed scene after another!

Genre:Mystery

-- a crime is committed; in finding the criminal, a detective or some determined character, must unravel the web of clues before pinning down a suspect

Genre:Folktale

-- a traditional story handed down from generation to generation by word of mouth -- fairy tales, fables, tall tales, myths, and legends

Building Blocks of Storytelling: plot, character, setting!

Plot --

the something that happens in a story

Character

-- the someone to whom the something happens

Setting

-- where and when a story takes place

4. Father is best described as enthusiastic (a). He clearly likes slom very much!

5. Aunt Louisa is best described by words and actions as disapproving of all the fuss over making slom.

Main characters --

the story would not exist without these characters; they drive the events and change because of the events

Dynamic-- a character who gains new ideas, learns a lesson, forms a different opinion about someone or something because of the events -- different in the end

Static --

a character who stays the same from the beginning to the end no matter what happens in the story --probably not capable of learning, changing, or growing from experiences

Supporting character

-- they can cause the main character to act or react in certain ways that affect the plot of the story -- they are usually static because they are not the focus of the story

Character Clues -- Is this a major or minor character?What is the character like?What does the character want most? Why?What is the main problem the character faces?What kinds of relationships does he or she have with other characters in the story?How doe the interactions of the character affect the plot?How does the character change during the story?

6. The fisherman exists only to move the plot along. Slema, who is the narrator, might also be a minor character, but she is less likely to be one than the fisherman, because she is a member of the family.

Genre:True Stories --three

biography -- a story about a person’s lifeautobiography -- a story about the author’s own lifepersonal or true experience account -- a story focusing on historical or cultural events and told by someone who witnessed the events

Setting -- not only the location, five of themtime of daytime of yearpoint in historyweatherlandscape

Mood --the way the setting makes you feel; the general atmosphere of the story, the overall feeling the story creates in the reader

7. The main setting of “Slom Season” is springtime on a farm in 19th centurey Sweden. The mood is lighthearted.

Conflict --the problems or struggles among different forces that move the action of the story forward

1. Person vs. person2. Person vs. society3. Person vs. nature4. Person vs. self5. Person vs. fate

8. The basic conflict of “Slom Season” is (b) Father loved slom, but Aunt Louisa hated it. (Person vs. person)

9. The central conflict is (a) that the family members are in conflict with Father over is now unreasonable insistence to eat slom at every meal!

Rising Action

-- the characters will try to resolve the main conflict

Complications

-- smaller problems that need to be solved to resolve the main conflict

Climax --

the point of the story when the main problem must be faced once and for all -- usually the main character learns something or gets help or figures something out

Falling action

-- just after the new information or big problem comes to a high point of frustration or conflict, the characters begin to resolve the conflict

Resolution --doesn’t mean the problem has been solved; it describes or explains the outcome of the action and often points to the theme -- the message or lesson of the story

10. The complication in the plot of “Slom Season” is ©. It is bad enough that the family has to eat slom every day. The problem gets worse when Father insists that it be served at every meal!

11. Someone will do something to stop the unending flow of slom to the family dinner table.

12. The climax of the story occurs when Father is served the boiled slom. The tension in the story increases until this point when Father is forced to come to his senses.

13. The boiled slom did not look appetizing. Father, who may have been getting sick of slom as well, was given an opportunity to reject it and still save face. Father bought no more slom, and all were glad.

Narrator --

the person who tells the story; it can be a person in the story -- This is called “first person.” Pronoun Clues: I, myself, me, we, our.

Point of View:

determines how much we get to know about the characters and the plot

Point of View: four first personthird-person omniscient - third-person limitedsecond person

third-person omniscient -

narrator is an invisible observer who sees and hear everything that is taking place, but he/she is not a character in the story! Pronoun Clue -he, she, them

third-person limited -

narrator is half-way between: an invisible observer, yet able to understand the thoughts of only ONE character; Pronoun Clue: he, she, them, they

Second person --

a few stories are written addressing the reader -- “You go to the store.”

To determine the point of view and narrator, listen to the VOICE: Who is telling the story?What words does the this person use?Is the language very formal, or does it contain a lot of slang?Does the story sound likes it’s being told by a college professor or a ten-year-old kid?The strong voice of the narrator keeps us interested.

14. (C) The narrator uses words like we and us, so readers can assume the narrator is part of the story. Because the narrator mentions Father and Aunt Louisa by name, neither of them can be the narrator -- Selma is the narrator.

15. The point of view of “Slom Season” is (a) first person.

Fiction Forms --short story --

a brief story that can be read in one sitting; few characters; one central conflict; in magazines or anthologies

Fiction Forms --novel

-- longer and more complex than a short story; characters and events are described in great detail; book form

Fiction Forms --novella --

a piece of fiction that falls between a short story and a novel in length and complexity

Fiction Forms --anthology

-- a collection of writings, often by many different authors; published in book form

Theme --

the main message an author is trying to get across -- more general than the main idea;

Theme is the “big concept” that applies NOT only to the characters in the story but to human beings in general.

The author’s commentary on human nature is….

Universal theme --

a theme common to all cultures

16. The theme of “Slom Season” is (b) that you can have too much of a good thing.

Genre:Drama --

a play, containing dialogue and stage directions telling actors what to do

Comedy-- one type of play, with a happy ending (today this means funny)

Tragedy --

serious play; characters struggle against some higher power such as society, law, fate

Caught’ya Story“Tales of the Four-eyed

Weirdo”Exposition -- genre, point of view, narrator, mood, setting, character,

conflict

AppositiveAn appositive is a noun or pronoun -- often with modifiers -- set beside another noun or pronoun to explain or identify it. Here are some examples of appositives:

Appositive1. Bill, your friend, is in trouble

2. My brother’s car, a sporty red convertible with leather seats, is the envy of all my friends.

3. Harold Weird, a hapless, inept kid, had to move against his volition.

2 adjectivesTwo adjectives need a comma if there is no “and”

1. a sporty red convertible

2. a hapless, inept kid

Caught’ya Point of View

3rd Person - “he”

Caught’ya Narrator

Invisible 3rd person not in the story who knows thoughts of at least one character so far.

Caught’ya Genre

Realistic Fiction-the story is believable; it could happen to anyone; the main character often faces an emotional or psychological conflict.

Caught’ya mood

May be serious, silly, sad...

Caught’ya setting

Time -- school year

Place -- Winston Junior High, Palatine, Illinois

Caught’ya protagonist

Harold Weird, without Harold, there would be no story!

Caught’ya direct characterization

The author directly TELLS us that he is poor, hapless, inept, weird, and unfortunate.

INdirect characterization- The author SHOWS us….S, speech -- none yet

T, thoughts -- none yet

E, effect on others -- none yet

A, actions --inept at sports, moved against his volition

L, looks: Four-eyed (glasses), chubby, fat tummy, chocolate brown skin, zits, round face

Conflicts Harold will face...

1. Harold vs. person2. Harold vs. society3. Harold vs. nature4. Harold vs. self5. Harold vs. fate

Harold had to move against his volition.

1. Harold vs. parents2. Harold vs. peers3. Harold vs. self, fear of new school being inept and hapless