Bell Ringer

"Do you think the Whites will

make another wish? Why or
why not?"
Short Story Elements
Plot Summary
Plot Summary
Is a series of related events.
Exposition
Basic situation, opening of a story,
characters/conflict introduced.
An exposition is typically positioned at the
beginning of a novel or a movie because the
author wants the readers to be fully aware of
the characters in the story.
The famous story for children titled The Three Little
Bears applies this technique of exposition.
Once upon a time, there were three bears. There
was a Daddy Bear, who was very big, a Mama
Bear, who was middle-sized, and a Baby Bear,
who was very small. They all lived together in a
little cottage in the middle of the woods. Their
favorite breakfast was porridge. One morning,
after they made their porridge, Daddy Bear said,
Lets go for walk in the woods until it cools.
Mama Bear and Baby Bear liked the idea, so off
they went. While they were away, a little girl
named Goldilocks came walking through the
forest and smelled the porridge
Conflict
Basic problems, internal/external
Rising Action
Main character takes some action to resolve
the conflict more problems, danger, fear,
situations introduced; intensifies the
internal/external conflict.
Authors use rising action to intensify and
complicate their stories.
Rising Action Example
The rising action in The Three Little Pigs takes place as
the pigs set out on their own and begin to make their
own decisions.
We know that the first two individuals are asking for
trouble when they choose unsound materials to build
houses. These decisions (along with the wolf who lurks
in the background) create an air of tension that mounts
as the story progresses. Things get more and more
exiting and tense each time the wolf blows down a
house!
The action builds toward an ultimate
showdown between pig and wolf.
Climax
Turning point: key scene, tense, exciting,
greatest point.
It is a decisive moment or a turning point in a
storyline at which the rising action turns
around into a falling action.
Climax Example
I Have a Dream, a memorable address of
Martin Luther King
This note was a promise that all men, yes,
black men as well as white men, would be
guaranteed the unalienable Rights of Life,
Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Falling Action
What the outcome of the conflict is.
The falling action occurs right after the climax.
It is what happens after the main problem of
the story has been solved.
Resolution / Denouement
Occurs at the end; all struggles over, usually
knows what happens to all; closes story.
Denouement is a significant part of a literary
piece of writing because it resolves the
conflicts.