Conflict In Literature Conflict In literature conflict is

Conflict In Literature

Conflict In literature, conflict is the struggle between opposing forces in a story. It creates tension and excitement for the reader. Without conflict, there’s no plot!

Two Types of Conflict • Internal Conflict • External Conflict

Internal Conflict There is ONE type of internal conflict Person vs. Self › a struggle someone has within themselves and their own mind › a person must make a decision, overcome a fear, resist an urge, etc.

Person vs. Self Conflict › Someone on a diet is tempted to eat a bunch of junk food. › A boyfriend is considering cheating on his girlfriend while she’s out of town. › Your friends are about to skip school. Do you join them and risk getting in trouble? › Joe sees a dollar fall out of someone’s pocket in the hall. Does he tell them? Or keep it for himself?

External Conflict • There are THREE types of external (outside) conflict: – Person vs. Person – Person vs. Society – Person vs. Circumstances

Person vs. Person Conflict – Cassandra wants a hall pass, but Ms. Widman says “not right now. ” – Josh’s best friend is pressuring him to skip school on Friday, but Josh doesn’t want to. – A mom tries to put her toddler down for a nap, but he keeps getting up. – Two friends who aren’t speaking to each other due to a misunderstanding.

Person vs. Society Conflict – You want pizza for dinner, but everyone else in your family wants spaghetti. – Moana wanted to explore beyond her island, but her family and village said no. – Jeannette gets bullied by her classmates for dressing and acting differently. – Teachers in Iowa went on strike to protest low wages and large class sizes.

Person vs. Circumstances Conflict – Cinderella wants to attend the ball, but she has nothing nice to wear. – Maria needs to type a paper for school, but her computer is not working. – A ship crew knows they must deliver some important packages but there is a terrible storm brewing. – A hiker is stranded in the woods and must find food and water to survive.

REVIEW Internal Conflict External Conflict Person vs. Self Person vs. Society Person vs. Circumstances

Now You Tell Me �A young girl wants to be a famous actress but has terrible stage fright �Two brothers both want to be athlete of the year and have to compete against each other �A new business owner wants to change the world through his recycling program, but the community says he’s “doing too much. ”

Now You Tell Me �Janie and her sister were supposed to go shopping, but their car broke down. �Leo is extremely angry with his brother, for wearing his shoes without asking. He wants to shove him, but he doesn’t want to get in trouble. �The basketball team decides to shave their heads for the playoffs, but one player refuses.

Group Practice: Conflict 1. Partner up! 2. You and your partner will get a picture. Together, you will write a scenario that explains what is going on in the picture and what type of conflict is present. 3. You will have to use your imagination to make up names, details, etc. Be creative and include some dialogue to make that conflict really come to life. Your scenario must be 5 -8 sentences long. Be prepared to share

Example Scenario Kylie’s mom signed her up for swimming lessons, but Kylie is afraid of the water. Her friends in class have all jumped in, and the swimming instructor is encouraging her to come in, too. Kylie knows that her friends and her instructor would never let anything bad happen to her. It also looks like the others are having a lot of fun splashing around and getting ready to float in the shallow end. However, Kylie is nervous and scared. She cannot decide if she should jump in or not. This is an example of person vs. self conflict because Kylie has to overcome a fear within herself. Kylie wants to jump in, but she also afraid.