4.

Conflict

 Conflict is the opposition of persons or forces in the

story that give rise to the dramatic action in a
literary work.

 It is the basic tensing predicament, or challenge that

propels a story’s plot.
 Be it a short story, drama or novel, conflict is the essential element
of all these literary forms.

 A plot becomes interesting and intriguing when it has its share of

inbuilt conflict and twists.

 Kinds of Conflict:
 Internal conflict
 External conflict
 Internal Conflict

Man vs Self

A type of conflict where a

character has trouble
deciding what to do in a
particular situation.
 External Conflict

Man vs Man

A type of conflict where a

character in the story has
a problem with one or
more of the other
characters
 External Conflict

Man vs Society
A type of conflict where a
character has a conflict or
problem with some element
of the society – the law, the
school, the accepted ways of
doing things, and so on.
 External Conflict

Man vs Environment

A type of conflict where a

character has a problem
with some natural
happening; a snowstorm,
an avalanche, etc.
 External Conflict

Man vs Fate
 A type of conflict where a
character has to battle what seems
to be an uncontrollable problem.
 Whenever the problem seems to
be a strange or unbelievable
coincidence, fate can be
considered the cause and the
effect.
 5. Point – of - view

 pertains to who tells the story and how it is told.

 The point of view of a story can sometimes
indirectly establish the author's intentions.

Kinds of Point-of-view:
 First person
 Second person
 Third person limited
 Third person omniscient
 First Person

 The narrator is a character in the story who can reveal only personal
thoughts and feelings and what he or she sees and is told by other
characters.

 He can’t tell us thoughts of other characters.

 In first person point of view, one of the story’s characters is narrating the
literary work.

 This viewpoint is indicated by the use of first person pronouns, including “I,”
and the reader assumes that the character is close to the story’s action.

 First person narrative voice provides the reader an intimate and close look
into a character’s thoughts, but the perspective of the story is limited by
what the character is able to see and know.
 Second Person

 Narrator addresses the reader directly as though she is part of the story.

 (i.e. “You walk into your bedroom. You see clutter everywhere and…”)

 Second person point of view utilizes the pronoun “you” to address the reader
and bring them into the action of the story.

 However, second person point of view is problematic in a couple of ways.

First, it is a stylistic choice that is uncommon, especially in novel-length works.
 In addition, second person point of view can overwhelm the writer and
confuse and/or alienate the reader. Most writers avoid constructing a
narrative voice through second person point of view.
 Third Person Limited

 The narrator is an outsider who sees into the mind of one of the
characters.

 A third person limited narrator utilizes third person storytelling,

but is closely “assigned” to one character. Therefore, this
limited narrator shares access with the reader to a character’s
thoughts, feelings, experiences, etc., but is limited in doing so
with other characters in the story.

 Writers choose third person limited point of view to create a

deeper bond between a specific character and the reader.
 Third Person
Omniscient
 All-knowing narrator (multiple perspectives).

 The narrator knows what each character is thinking and

feeling, not just what they are doing throughout the story.

 An omniscient narrator is aware of and knows everything

about the story and its characters. There are no limitations for
this narrator in terms of expressing any character’s thoughts,
and this includes their own opinions and observations.

 An omniscient point of view features a narrator who knows

more than the characters of a story.
 6. Flashback
 The insertion of an earlier event into the time order of a
narrative.
 7. Foreshadowing
 A technique for hinting at events that may occur later in the
plot.
 8. Theme

 The central idea about life that the story

highlights; THE MAIN IDEA (universal truths).

 The message the author is conveying.

1. Determine the specific conflict

2. Decide what side of the conflict the story
represents
3. How is the conflict resolved? Who wins? Who
loses?
 Theme is NOT the moral of the story
 Theme is NOT plot
 Theme IS the general subject matter of a work of
art
 Theme may contain a message
 Here are some common examples of literary themes:
 Love
 Redemption
 Mortality
 Human versus nature
 Good versus evil
 Power
 Isolation
 Coming of age
 Revenge
 Courage and perseverance
 Quest
 Individual versus society
 Faith versus doubt
 Chaos versus order
 Gender roles
 Peter Pan: out-growing the world of childhood
 Mulan: girls/women can do battle as honorably as boys/men
 The Sword in the Stone: education and courage are stronger than
brawn and force
 Cinderella: kindness and inner beauty are rewarded
 Pinocchio: dishonesty leads to trouble
 Aladdin: the best course of action is to be who you are
 The Rescuers: it doesn’t take great size to make a difference
 Snow White: jealousy can lead to cruelty
 The Fox and the Hound: the importance of friendship
 The Little Mermaid: love often requires choices and sacrifices
Theme or not a theme?

1) Red Riding Hood is about how you shouldn’t trust

strangers
2) Stars Wars is a movie about Luke Skywalker
3) Apocalypse Now is about the insanity of war.
4) This painting is about loneliness
5) That story is about two guys who steal a car
6) Romeo and Juliet is about love
7) Romeo and Juliet is about two families fighting
8) I saw a movie last night about survival
9) Hansel and Gretel is about two children
10) Cinderella is about poetic justice