The 5 Elements of a Short Story

Hey 7th graders,

Below is a quick review of the 5 Elements of a Short Story we discussed in class:

Character
A character is a person, or sometimes an animal, who takes part in the action of a short story or other literary work. An example of a character in the Harry Potter series is, of course, Harry Potter.

Setting
The setting of a (short) story is the time and place in which it happens. Authors often use descriptions of landscapes, scenery, buildings, seasons or the weather to provide a strong sense of setting. One of the settings in the Harry Potter series would be, for example, Hogwarts.

Plot
A plot is a series of events and character actions that relate to the story's central conflict. In the Harry Potter series, the plot is the sum of all the events that happen from when we first meet Harry at the Dursleys to his final triumph over Lord Voldemort.

Conflict
The conflict is the struggle between two people or things in a (short) story. The main character (protagonist) is usually on one side of the conflict. On the other side, the main character may struggle against another important character (antagonist), the forces of nature, against society or even against herself. In the Harry Potter series, Harry, the main character, struggles against Lord Voldemort, the antagonist, as the story's central conflict. 

Theme
The theme is the central idea(s) or belief(s) in a (short) story. It's the (short) story's messages: what it's all about. There can be many themes in a story, and finding them often depends on each individual reader's interpretation of the story. In the Harry Potter series there are many themes: love, death, justice, friendship, good vs. evil etc.

Last but not least... I should probably give you the definition of a short story:

A short story is a work of fiction. Fiction, as you know, is prose writing about imagined events and characters. Prose writing differs from poetry in that is does not depend on meters, rhymes or verses for its organization and presentation.

And with that, a happy weekend to you all!

Carmen :)