ELEMENTS OF FICTION ANALYSIS—A Review

(1) Character: The purpose of literature is not to simply reveal information, but to reveal
something about the characters and their lives – to reveal the human condition. The
protagonist is the central character, or hero, and is considered dynamic. In other words,
the character grows as a person, learns a vital lesson, or becomes something else. A
static character, despite credibility, does not change in the story.

(2) Point of View (POV): Stories are told from the point of view of a narrator. When the
narrator is a character it is referred to as first-person narration. If we have reason to
doubt the information we are getting, we call the narrator unreliable. In third person
narration, the narrator can have omniscience (all-knowing) or limited omniscience
(narrator tells us the feelings/thoughts of only one character). Stream of consciousness
narration shows us the continuous stream of inner feelings and thoughts of one
character.

(3) Plot: Plot is a linked chain of events. A narrator may present these events out of
chronological order through a flashback. A complication in the character’s lives
introduces the story’s conflict, which occurs when the protagonist struggles against an
antagonist or opposing force. There are four different kinds of conflict:
• Person-against-self - an internal conflict of feelings.
• Person-against-person - the typical protagonist vs. antagonist scenario.
• Person-against-society - the protagonist battles against the larger
organizations of society (or a system of beliefs held by society).
• Person-against-nature - the protagonist is threatened by a component of
nature.
• Person-against-the supernatural – the protagonist is threatened by a
component of spiritual or unexplained phenomena.
The chain of events, known as the rising action, builds to a climax, the point in a story
where the conflict is decided.

Sometimes a writer will use the technique of foreshadowing by planting clues about the
outcome or about conflict that will occur later in the story. Following the climax is a
resolution, or denouement. In a closed ending, loose ends are tied up – the fate and
perhaps the future of the characters is revealed. An open ending does not offer a
complete resolution – the reader is left to imagine the fate of the characters.

(4) Theme: Theme in literature is the idea that holds the story together, such as a
comment about society, human nature, or the human condition. It is the main idea or
central meaning of a piece of writing.

(5) Symbol/Motif: The writer may use a symbol, a person, object, situation, or action that
operates on two levels of meaning. A motif is an image, object, character, situation,
theme, or word that the writer uses repeatedly throughout a story – many times it carries
a symbolic meaning.

(6) Setting: Setting is the locale in which you find the characters. Description of setting
can establish the atmosphere, mood, or tone of the story, the emotional state the writer
wants you to be in while you read the story.