8/18/23

Elements of Narrative
LAB 2
WRITTEN AND ORAL COMMUNICATION – SECTION D
ASHESI UNIVERSITY

Based on LewisU Writing Center: https://lewisu.edu/writingcenter/pdf/narrative-elements-1.pdf

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Elements of a Narrative
1) Characters
2) Setting
3) Conflict
4) Plot
5) Theme
6) Point of view
7) Style

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1) Characters
• The people involved in the narrative
• Protagonist vs antagonist
• Main character(s) vs secondary characters
• What makes a character interesting?
o Detailed background
o Motivations/internal conflict
o Evolution (or lack of)
• Characterisation = the process by which a write creates characters.

2) Setting

• Time and place where the

story takes place

• Real vs fictional

• Symbolism?

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3) Conflict
• Issue or problem the characters face
• Types of conflict
o Person vs person
o Person vs self (internal conflict)
o Person vs nature
o Person vs technology
o Person vs society
• What makes a conflict interesting?
o Impacts characters, makes them change and evolve
o Has an underlying theme

4) Plot

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5) Theme

• The main idea/message

that the write wants the
reader to understand

• Often implied rather

than explicit

6) Point of View
The perspective the story is told from:

• First-person narrator

• Third-person limited narrator

• Third-person omniscient narrator

• Second person (addressing the reader)

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7) Style

The way the writer uses language to convey the story

o Diction

o Tone

o Sentence style

o Figures of speech

Writing Exercise
Ø Go back to the narrative writing you have done so far (Discussion) and write
down your choices for the narrative composition in relation to the elements
we discussed today:
1) Characters
2) Setting
3) Conflict
4) Plot
5) Theme
6) Point of view
7) Style

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