The Art of Fiction

•The narrator – point of view

•Modes of presentation

•Characters and characterisation

•Composition and structure

•The short story

The narrator – point of view

A B

C D

Point of view

The first-person narrator is a character in the story. It can be a minor character or the protagonist. The first-person narrator has a limited point of view.

The omniscient narrator is a third-person narrator with a unlimited point of view. The narrator is in a godlike position behind the scenes, managing the characters like puppets on strings, knowing everything.

The third-person narrator with a limited point of view can be one or more persons in the the story whose thoughts and feelings we know but we are excluded from the the other characters’ inner life.

The third-person observer with a limited point of view is a narrator who employs an impersonal narration. He only describes or reports the action in dramatic scenes, making no comments.

D

A

C

B

Point of views - pros and cons

AdvantagesFirst-person narrator

• very convincing and vivid as we know everything of one character

• identification with character• very personal and credible

Third-person narratorOmniscient

• great freedom for writer• narrator can comment• readers know everything, too, so

they can choose a character they favour and draw own conclusions.

observer• objective style – dialogues and

descriptions3rd person limited

• perspective of one character but still free to move to other characters

• more personal than other 3rd person narrator

DisadvantagesFirst-person narrator

• limited knowledge and language• narrator may be unreliable, not objective

Third-person narratorOmniscient

• reader may has no guide, what is important, risk of losing a focus

observer• reader cannot identify with any character• too cool, impersonal, no access to characters’ thoughts and feelings

3rd person limited

• like in first person narration may be too limited, too restricted to one character

Modes of presentation

Scenic presentation (showing) Panoramic presentation (telling)

The characters’ words and action are shown in dramatic scenes (dialogue and detailed action).•effect of immediacy•conveys an intense moment vividly•offers an intensive view

The narrator summarizes the events in his own words.•gives general account of events•Provides an comprehensive and extensive view

Interior monologue• special kind of scenic pres. • reported thought (thoughts presented in reported speech)• narration consists of thoughts and feelings passing through a character’s mind.

stream-of-consciousness• special kind of scenic pres.• introduces the reader directly into a character’s interior life• often no sentence structure• explores the character’s mind

The way the narrator narrates events is known as mode of presentation. There are two different kinds:

Characters and characterisation

Direct or explicit characterisation Indirect or implicit characterisation

The reader is told about a characterdirectly by:a) the narratorb) another characterc) the character him-/herself

The reader must draw conclusions about a character by:

a) studying his or her behaviourb) opinionsc) choice of words and/or way of

talking

Characters can be flat or round:

flat: A character has only limited number of traits or represents only a single quality. He/she does not change in the story

round: A character is similar to real individuals and has several traits, good and bad. He/she is very complex and often develops or changes in the course of the story.

Composition and structure

The plot is the interplay between characters, what the do, say and think and what happens. There can be more than one plot in a story such as main plot and subplot.

In a story you have always main characters (hero/heroine) or a central character protagonist and an antagonist (opponent) between whom there is a conflict.

Other elements of a story you can describe are:, setting (time and place) and atmosphere (mood) The plot (dramatic) structure is normally given as follows:

exposition

rising action (complication)

conflict develops

climax

falling action

(turning point or crisis)

solution = dénoument

open ending, happy ending, catastrophe (tragic ending)

The short story

According to Edgar Allan Poe:

• Should be short to be read at one sitting (one general idea)

• Long enough to produce the desired effect on the reader (normally one single effect)

You can say that the short story …

is a brief fictional prose narrative with a simple, single motive (or theme)

deals with only a few characters who are revealed but do not develop

aims at a unity of effect (single situation, single character, single emotion or a series of emotions

that are uniquely interwoven so unity is achieved

no subplot

an abrupt opening, a turning point, an open (surprising) ending

plot structure in a very condensed form