Elements of Narrative

 A narrative is a literary work that involves the retelling of a story. To develop an effective
narrative essay, paper, poem or book, you need to include several common narrative
elements.

These elements include a main theme of the story, characters, a plot and the setting.

1. SETTING – The time and place in which the events of a story take place.

o Place – Geographical location; where is the action of the story taking place?
o Time – When is the story taking place (historical period, time of day, year, etc.
o Weather conditions – is it rainy, stormy, sunny, etc.
o Social conditions – What is the daily life of the characters like? Does the story mention
the speech, dress, mannerisms, customs, etc. of a particular place?
o Mood or Atmosphere – what feeling is created during the story? Is it bright and cheerful
or dark or frightening?

2. CHARACTERS - refers to people, animal, robots, etc. who play parts in the action of the story.

 Dynamic – a dynamic character is a person who changes over time, usually a result of
resolving a central conflict or facing a major crisis.
 Static – a static character is someone who does not change over time; his or her personality
does not transform or evolve.
 Round – A rounded character is anyone who has a complex personality; he or she is often
portrayed as a conflicted and a contradictory person.
 Flat – A flat character is the opposite of the round character. This literary personality is notable
for one kind of personality trait or characteristics.
 Protagonist – The protagonist is the central person in a story, and is often referred to as the
story’s main character.
 Antagonist – The antagonist is the character(s) that represents the opposition of forces against
which the protagonist must contend. In other words, the antagonist is an obstacle that the
protagonist must overcome.

3. CONFLICT – Conflict is essential to plot. Without conflict there is no plot. It is the opposition of
forces which ties one incident to another and makes the plot move.

There are two types of conflict:

1. External – a struggle with a force outside one’s self.

 Man vs. Man (physical) – The leading character struggles with his physical strength
against other men; forces of nature or animals.
 Man vs. Society (social) - The leading character struggle against ideas, practices, or
customs of other people.
 Man vs. Nature – A character struggles with a force of nature (natural disaster,
desolation, animal, etc.)
 Man vs. Supernatural - Gods, ghosts, monsters, spirits, aliens, etc.
 Man vs. Technology – computers, machines, etc.
2. Internal – a struggle within oneself.

 Man vs. Himself/Herself (psychological) – The leading character struggles with

himself/herself; with his/her own soul, ideas of right or wrong, physical limitations,
choices, etc.

3. PLOT – The plot is how the author arranges events to develop his basic idea; it is the
sequence of events in a story or play. The plot is a planned, logical sequence of events having
a beginning, middle and end. The short story usually has one plot so it can be read in a one
setting.

There are five essential parts of plot:

1. Introduction – The beginning of the story where the character and setting is revealed.
2. Rising Action – This is where the events in the story become complicated and the
conflict in the story is revealed (events between the introduction and climax).
3. Climax – This is the highest point of interest and the turning point of the story. The
reader wonders what will happen next; will the conflict be resolved or not.
4. Falling Action – The events and complication begin to resolve. The reader knows what
has happened next and if the conflict was resolved or not (events between climax and
denouement).
5. Denouement – This is the final outcome or untangling events in the story.

4. THEME – the theme in a piece of fiction is its controlling idea or its central insight. It is the
author’s underlying meaning or main idea that he is trying to convey. The theme may be the
author’s thoughts about the topic or view of human nature. The title of the short story usually
points to what the writer is saying.