Why do we like some books more than others?

Why do some characters

appeal to us and others don’t?

Why can we get a clear picture

of some characters in our heads?

Why does reading the description

of some settings make us feel

like we are there?

Because of the good use of the

Elements Of Literature!

A.K.A

C C S P P T

CHARACTER The people or personified animals or objects in a story.

1. appearance: what they look like 2. speech: what they say/think/feel 3. actions: what they do4. opinions: what others say/think/feel about them

-Round character:Fully developed, with many traits—bad and

good—shown in the story. Readers feel that they know the character so well that he or she has become a real person.

-Flat character:Not fully developed; readers know only one

side of the character.

Round-----------------------------------------------Flat

character can be

revealed in four

ways

stages of character

development

The amount of change in a character over the course of the story also affects its quality.

-Dynamic character:a character who does experience a basic character change during the course of the story. This

change is internal and may be sudden, but the events of the plot should make it seem inevitable.

-Static character: a character who does not experience a basic character change during the course of the story.

Dynamic-----------------------------------------Static

Sympathetic/Unsympathetic: if a character is likeable, he or she may be referred to as a sympathetic

character. An dislikeable character is unsympathetic.

change

reader involvement

Character

Round Flat

Dynamic Round and Dynamic; best type of character

development; usually seen

in protagonist

Flat and Dynamic;

cannot happen; we do not know

enough abouta flat

character to recognize change

Static Round yet static; okay for books for younger children

Flat and static; found in very simple

books like fairy tales or

for minor characters in

books.

a. Protagonist:The central/main character in the plot’s conflict. The “hero” or the person undergoing change.

Ex.:

b. Antagonist:The force in conflict with the protagonist. It may be society, nature, or fate, as well as another character. It can even be the protagonist him/herself!

Ex.:

Characters who help or hinder the main character

and help move the plot along.Ex.:

background characters who do not affect the plot

(extras in a movie)Ex.:

1. Main

2. Major

3. Minor

The struggle between the protagonist and an opposing force.

CONFLICT

Person Vs. Self:Occurs when the protagonist struggles within himself or herself. The protagonist is pulled by two courses of action or by differing emotions.

Person Vs. Person:Occurs when the protagonist struggles against another character in the story.

Person Vs. Society:Occurs when the protagonist is in conflict with the values of the society.

Person Vs. Nature:Occurs when the protagonist is in conflict with an element of nature.

internal conflict

external conflict

Includes the time period and place in which the story takes place. Setting may or may not have an important influence on the story.

SETTING

This type of setting is essential to the plot; it influences action, character and theme. The story couldn’t take place anywhere else.

integralsetting

This type of setting is relatively unimportant to the plot; it is like the flat painted scenery of a theatre.

backdropsetting

What happens in the story. PLOT

how the story starts;background information;meet protagonist

exposition

During the story, tension is built through a series of complications, incidents which either help or hinder (hurt) the protagonist in finding the solution to the problem.

rising action

The highest peak or turning point of the action; at this point we know the outcome. The two forces in conflict come together and the protagonist either wins or loses.

climax

The events that occur after the climax. They give any necessary information or explanations and “tie up loose ends.”

falling action

how the story ends; the sense at the end of the story that the story is complete

resolution

The most usual one in children’s books; readers feel that they know what will happen. The various parts of plot are tied together satisfactorily, and the reader feels a sense of completion.

closed:

Readers must draw their own conclusions; they do not know what will happen.

open:

Abrupt ending at an exciting and often dangerous time in the plot; its purpose is to keep the reader reading; usually found at the end of a chapter, but some books end this way.

cliffhanger:

The vantage point from which the story is told. Who is the narrator and how is he involved in the story?

POINT OF VIEW

The narrator is a character in the story, usually the protagonist. She tells the story from her own experience.Key pronouns: I, me, my

first-person

The narrator may or may not be a character in the story; he speaks directly to the audience. This P.O.V is rarely used in modern literature.Key pronouns: you, we, us

second-person

The narrator is not a character in the story. Key pronouns: he, she, they, it, him, her, etc.

third-person

third-person limited:

Narrator reveals the thoughts and feelings of only one character (sometimes, but very rarely of two or three.

Narrator reveals the thoughts and feelings of most or all the characters. “Omniscient” means having unlimited knowledge.

third-person omniscient:

The narrator does not reveal any thoughts or feelings of the characters. Readers are told only what happens and what is said. It is called “dramatic” because it is what you usually see and hear in a movie or play. It is called “objective” account is based on facts.

third-person dramatic/objective:

The underlying meaning of the story,a universal truth,a lesson,a moral,a significant statement the story is making about society, human nature, or the human condition.

THEME

The theme is openly stated in the book in universal terms.

explicittheme

The theme is NOT stated directly; the reader must infer it; figure it out.

implicittheme

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