Using Elements as Techniques to Develop Themes

Elements of Fiction
1. Author’s Purpose- his or her reason for creating a work. The purpose may be to explain or inform,
entertain, persuade, or reveal an important truth.
2. Characters - a person, an animal, or an imaginary creature that takes the part in the action of the story.
Characterization - the techniques an author uses to develop the personality of a
character in a literary work. An author can give information about a character by describing
several aspects of the character:
– physical appearance and personality
– speech, behavior , and actions
– thoughts and feelings
– interactions with other characters

Character Types:
Protagonist- the main character of the story that is most central to the action of the story.

Antagonist- the person or thing working against the protagonist, or hero, in the story.

Static Characters- characters that stay the same throughout the story.

Dynamic Characters- characters that change and learn something during the story.

Flat – very few personality traits, do not change throughout the story, sometimes can be symbols
or stereotypes

Round –convincing and true to life, many different personality traits, usually undergo a change
during the story

3. Setting - the time and place in which the action occurs. Look for clues in the opening paragraphs of the story
or novel.
4. Point of view - the perspective or vantage point from which an author presents a story.

1st person- the story is told by one of the characters in the story. The character uses the pronouns I
and we.

3rd person- the story is told by the narrator who stands outside of the story and observes the events as
they unfold. The narrator uses the pronouns she, he, and they.
5. Plot - the action or sequence of events in a story. It is based on a key conflict.

There are five basic parts of plot-

• Exposition- the first part of the story. The author establishes the setting,
introduces characters, gives additional background information.
• Rising Action/Complications- the series of conflicts or struggles that build a story
toward its climax. Tension rises.
 • Climax- the high point, or turning point, of a story. It is the most intense point.
A decision is made that will decide the outcome of the conflict.
• Falling Action- the action that works out the decision arrived at during the
climax. The conflict is –or begins to be –settled.
• Resolution- the ending. It ties up loose ends and brings the story to a close.

6. Theme - the statement about life that the author wants to share with the reader. Often times, the reader
will have to make inferences or reasonable guesses as to the theme of the story.

Helpful hint- Ask yourself what lesson the main character learned in the story?

7. Symbolism -An image/object in a story that is used repeatedly and carries a deeper meaning.
Universal Symbols:
water = purity
black clouds = evil approaching

Basic Elements of Poetry

What is Poetry?
Poetry can be defined as 'literature in a metrical form' or 'a composition forming rhythmic lines'. A poem
is something that follows a particular flow of rhythm and meter. Compared to prose, where there is no
such restriction, and the content of the piece flows according to story, a poem may or may not have a
story, but definitely has a structured method of writing.

Elements of Poetry:
1. Rhythm: This is the music made by the statements of the poem, which includes the syllables in the
lines. The best method of understanding this is to read the poem aloud, and understand the stressed
and unstressed syllables. Listen for the sounds and the music made when we hear the lines spoken aloud.
How do the words resonate with each other? How do the words flow when they are linked with one another?
Does sound right? Do the words fit with each other? These are the things you consider while studying the
rhythm of the poem.

2. Meter: This is the basic structural make-up of the poem. Do the syllables match with each other?
Every line in the poem must adhere to this structure. A poem is made up of blocks of lines, which
convey a single strand of thought. Within those blocks, a structure of syllables which follow the
rhythm has to be included. This is the meter or the metrical form of poetry.

3. Stanza: Stanza in poetry is defined as a smaller unit or group of lines or a paragraph in a poem. A
particular stanza has a specific meter, rhyme scheme, etc. Based on the number of lines, stanzas are
named as couplet (2 lines), Tercet (3 lines), Quatrain (4 lines), Cinquain (5 lines), Sestet (6 lines),
Septet (7 lines), Octave (8 lines).

4. Rhyme: A poem may or may not have a rhyme. When you write poetry that has rhyme, it means that
the last words or sounds of the lines match with each other in some form. Rhyme is basically similar
 sounding words like 'cat' and 'hat', 'close' and 'shows', 'house' and 'mouse', etc. Free verse poetry,
though, does not follow this system.

5. Rhyme Scheme: As a continuation of rhyme, the rhyme scheme is also one of the basic elements of
poetry. In simple words, it is defined as the pattern of rhyme. Either the last words of the first and
second lines rhyme with each other, or the first and the third, second and the fourth and so on. It is
denoted by alphabets like aabb (1st line rhyming with 2nd, 3rd with 4th); abab (1st with 3rd, 2nd with
4th); abba (1st with 4th, 2nd with 3rd), etc. 

6. Theme: This is what the poem is all about. The theme of the poem is the central idea that the poet
wants to convey. It can be a story, or a thought, or a description of something or someone; anything
that the poem is about.

7. Symbolism: Often poems will convey ideas and thoughts using symbols. A symbol can stand for
many things at one time and leads the reader out of a systematic and structured method of looking at
things. Often a symbol used in the poem will be used to create such an effect.

8. Imagery: Imagery is also one of the important elements of a poem. This device is used by the poet
for readers to create an image in their imagination. Imagery appeals to all the five senses. For e.g.,
when the poet describes, 'the flower is bright red', an image of a red flower is immediately created in
the reader's mind.

The elements of poetry are an essential part of the structure of a good poem. Of course, it does not mean,
that all poems must have all these elements. It depends entirely upon the poet, who has all these tools at
his disposal to use in order to convey his ideas effectively.

Elements of Drama
What is Drama?
 A play is a story acted out, live and onstage.
  Like the p lo t o f a sto ry, the p lo t o f a d ra m a fo llo ws a
rising - a nd - fa lling struc ture .
Clim a x
te nsio n a t hig he st p o int

Co m p lic a tio ns
te nsio n b uild s

Re so lutio n
c o nflic t is se ttle d , p la y e nd s
Exp o sitio n
c o nflic t is intro d uc e d

Aristotle
Aristotle (384-322 BC) was a Greek philosopher whose writings still influence us today.
He was the first to write about the essential elements of drama more than 2,000 years ago. While
ideas have changed slightly over the years, we still discuss Aristotle's list when talking about
what makes the best drama.
Aristotle considered these six things to be essential to good drama:
 Plot
 Theme
 Characters
 Dialogue
 Music/Rhythm
 Spectacle
 Plot: This is what happens in the play. Plot refers to the action; the basic storyline of the
play.
 Theme: While plot refers to the action of the play, theme refers to the meaning of the
play. Theme is the main idea or lesson to be learned from the play. In some cases, the
theme of a play is obvious; other times it is quite subtle.
 Characters: Characters are the people (sometimes animals or ideas) portrayed by the
actors in the play. It is the characters who move the action, or plot, of the play forward.
 Dialogue: This refers to the words written by the playwright and spoken by the
characters in the play. The dialogue helps move the action of the play along.
  Music/Rhythm: While music is often featured in drama, in this case Aristotle was
referring to the rhythm of the actors' voices as they speak.
 Spectacle: This refers to the visual elements of a play: sets, costumes, special effects, etc.
Spectacle is everything that the audience sees as they watch the play.

Modern Theater
The list of essential elements in modern theater is as follows:
• Characters
• Plot
• Theme
• Dialogue
• Convention
• Genre
• Audience

In the modern theater, this list has changed slightly, although you will notice that many of the
elements remain the same.
• Convention: These are the techniques and methods used by the playwright and director
to create the desired stylistic effect.
• Genre: Genre refers to the type of play. Some examples of different genres include
comedy, tragedy, mystery and historical play.
• Audience: This is the group of people who watch the play. Many playwrights and actors
consider the audience to be the most important element of drama, as all of the effort put
in to writing and producing a play is for the enjoyment of the audience.

Three Major Elements in Drama

The elements of drama, by which dramatic works can be analyzed and evaluated into
three major areas:
 Literary elements
 Technical elements
 Performance elements
Literary Elements
 Exposition: “who, when, where and what”
 Initial incident: “gets the story going”
 Preliminary event: Whatever takes place BEFORE the action
 Conflict: struggle between opposing forces, ideas, or interests
 Climax: The turning point or high point of a story.
 Suspense: A feeling of uncertainty as to the outcome, used to build interest and
excitement on the part of the audience
 Rising action: following the initial incident and leading up to the dramatic climax
 Falling action: The series of events following the climax
 Denouement: Sudden drop

Technical Elements
 Scenery (set): The theatrical equipment, such as curtains, flats, backdrops, or platforms,
used in a dramatic production to communicate environment
 Costumes: Clothing and accessories worn by actors to portray character and period.
 Props: Short for properties; any article, except costume or scenery, used as part of a
dramatic production; any moveable object that appears on stage during a performance,
from a telephone to a train
 Lights: to help communicate environment, mood, or feeling
 Sound: The effects an audience hears during performance to communicate character,
context, or environment
 Makeup: Costumes, wigs, and body paint used to transform an actor into a character.

Performance Elements
 Acting: Use of face, body, and voice to portray character
 Character analysis: examining how the elements of drama are used
 Empathy: The capacity to relate to the feelings of another
 Speaking: The mode of expression or delivery of lines
  Breath control: Proper use of the lungs and diaphragm muscle.
 Vocal expression: How an actor uses his or her voice
 Inflection: Change in pitch or loudness of the voice.
 Projection: How well the voice carries to the audience
 Speaking style: The mode of expression or delivery of lines
 Diction: Selection and pronunciation of words; clarity of speech.
 Gestures: movement of the actor’s body to convey meaning
 Facial expression: Physical and vocal aspects used by an actor

Sample:
The World Is an Apple
By: Alberto Florentino

(Alberto Florentino is a Filipino playwright and publisher. His plays in English center on conflicts in the
everyday lives of Filipinos. The most famous of his works is The World is an Apple. )

Plot:
Mario and Gloria has no money to buy food for their daughter. Mario lost his job for stealing an
apple. Falsely figuring out the situation as misfortune he left his wife and daughter, went back to his
partner in crime Pablo and did crimes again to have money.

Character:
 Mario – the man who lost his job.
 Gloria – wife
 Pablo – the crime buddy of Mario.
 Tita – daughter

• Marios and Pablos character is flat/static because bad guys in the end are still bad.

Exposition:
Mario enters from the street at left. He is in the late twenties shabbily dressed and with hair that
seems to have been uncut for weeks. Gloria greeted him and then Mario asked about the condition of their
child

Setting:
 House – two wooden boxes flank the doorway. At left is an Acacia tree with wooden
bench under it.

Setting for the drama establishes the emotional atmosphere, or mood, for the story. Keep in mind that
the setting constitutes more than the physical characteristics of the set, such as the way a room is
decorated or how the furniture is arranged. It also includes the historical and cultural moment in which
the story takes place, or its social context.
Conflict:
 Man vs. Self - Internal Conflict

Rising Action:
 Mario started to elaborate his reasons why he doesn’t have money.

Climax :
 Mario confessed that he lost his job because of stealing an apple

Falling Action:
 Mario revealed the reason why he stole an apple and that he’s planning to apply as a
night watchman in a company.

Denouement:
 Gloria comes up him after he finishes and tries to hug him, but he pushes her away.
Suddenly confused, he sits on the steps. Gloria sits beside him and plays with his hands.
Suddenly unnerved, Mario starts to fidget . Gloria rises and walks to the center, her eyes
burning with hate and then she saw Pablo.

Resolution:
 Mario decides to get a "job" working with his old criminal friend Pablo. He is going back
to a life of thievery.

Mood:
 Sad, angry, bad, gloomy etc.

Tone:
 Acerbic, sarcastic, snarky etc.

Symbolism:
 Apple - symbol of Original Sin in Christian art and literature.

Genre:
 Drama

Dialogue:

Lines of Mario:
 “when I saw this apple roll out of the
broken crate, I thought that Tita would love to have it.”
 “All right, so I didn’t go drinking.”
 “I thought I could get another, without making you worry.”
Lines of Gloria:
 “I’m glad you’re home early”
 “My God! Wasn’t I thinking of her? Why do you think I need some
money? To buy me a pretty dress? Or see a movie?”
 “I knew God wouldn’t let us down. He never lets anybody down. I’ll pray tonight and ask
Him to let you have that job.”
DIALOGUE, or what the characters say to each other, to themselves, and in some cases, directly to the
audience. Dialogue helps to reveal characters and propels the plot. The way a character speaks, especially
elements such as speech patterns, accents, dialect, syntax, and vocabulary, can reveal a character's class
status and social background and will affect how the audience responds to him or her. Inflection, pitch,
and tone help to establish a character's feelings. Pauses in speech can be used to dramatic effect or to
express a character's feelings, suggesting a character's thinking before responding or difficulty accepting
an idea.

Theme:
It is man’s basic instinct that drives him towards his survival. But, no matter what, he should not
forget that society expects him to conform to its norms. One’s action is weighed right or wrong and thus
should be kept towards the proper action and how wrong decisions become greater burdens to a family.

Only a man who knows his limitations and looks after the welfare of his family and not sacrificing them
at the moment of his weakness, is the man who is worth the wealth of this world and who deserves respect
and admiration no matter what his economic state of life is.

Alternative: Depicts social realities, particularly of the problems of the urban poor. Man’s ineptness is
the cause of his own misfortune. Man can choose to become bad because he wanted the pleasures of life
and he does not exercise control over his reactions to the evils that life could bring.