Introduction to Short Fiction Background Fiction writing in
Introduction to Short Fiction
Background • Fiction writing in its current form barely 200 years old • Novel and short story considered modern forms, and are relatively new inventions • Come from distinct oral traditions – Myths – Fairy tales – Folk tales – Fables/parables
The Short Story • No one really knows exact origin of the short story • Believed to have come from the Italian novella during the Renaissance • Novella – Short stories that are long enough to be published in stand-alone book form (~15, 000 words) • Saw great rise in the early 1800 s in the US – Literary market of newspapers and magazines aimed at middle class – Increasing literacy rate among the non-wealthy – Edgar Allen Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, others • Short story flourished in early 20 th century, then declined in the latter half of the century
Analyzing and Discussion Short Fiction • Literary reading falls somewhere between escapist and didactic reading – Escapist reading – reading for fun or enjoyment – Didactic reading – reading for a meaning or lesson (moral) • Literature must be analyzed and discussed in order to yield its meaning(s) • Specific vocabulary / lexicon for doing so • Several components of a short story work together to create a unified meaning or theme – – – Plot Characterization Point of View Setting Style
Theme • Theme – the overall meaning a reader gets from a work of literature • Oftentimes not readily apparent – Can be frustrating – Different from escapist or didactic reading • Can be interpreted in multiple ways – No interpretation is 100% correct, or the only possible answer – Some interpretations are more valid than others – An interpretation only as valid as the supporting evidence
Plot • Plot - a series of related events in a work, arranged in dramatic structure • Each event connects to the next like a chain • Events are constructed deliberately to “hook” the reader’s curiosity and pull them forward in the story • Not necessarily chronological, but can be • No truly original plots; only varied combinations of plot elements
Dramatic Structure – Exposition • • The setup of the story Who, what when, where Should “hook” the reader like any good introduction Examples: “Once upon a time, ” in media res (“in the middle of things”) – Complication / Rising Action • Some sort of conflict arises to move the plot – External Conflict – struggle with an outside force – Internal Conflict – struggle inside the character’s head (emotional) • Building tensions that will be resolved
– Climax / Falling Action • • Climax – The moment of greatest tension in the story Conflict is resolved in a pivotal scene Indicates that the story’s tensions will be released Surprise Ending (O. Henry Ending) – A twist that takes the reader by surprise – Resolution / Denouement • Denouement – French term meaning “to untie a knot”; the resolution of a story’s conflict – Closed Denouement – Ties up all story’s loose ends – Open Denouement – Leaves lingering questions for the reader • “Wraps up” the story, though not always completely
Characterization • Protagonist – the main character of the work – Greek term meaning “first debater” – Not always heroic; often an anti-hero – a central character who is not a clear, didactic hero • Antagonist – Opposing character, often in conflict with protagonist
• Two main types of characterization – Round Character – a character that is well-developed and feels lifelike • Often the protagonist • Complex and often contradictory character traits – Flat Character – a character that is not developed with much detail • Usually reduced to a single character trait • Stock characters – trivial, stereotypical supporting characters • Two types of character development – Static – the character does not grow or change through the course of the story – Dynamic – the character grows or changes throughout the work
Point of View • Point of View – the voice of narrative authority in the story – Three basic kinds: first, second, third person – Most short fiction will be first or third • First-Person – the narrator is a participant in the action of the story – Point of view is limited – Unreliable narrator – a narrator whose limited perspective causes the reader to doubt his or her account (Poe)
• Third-Person – the narrator is removed from the action of the story – Point of view can be limited or unlimited • Third-person limited – the narrator is detached but doesn’t know everything • Third-person unlimited (omniscient) – the narrator is godlike, and knows everything about everyone in the story – Authorial intrusion – the narrator comments upon the actions and thoughts of the characters • Point of view should be consistent throughout the story, with few exceptions
Setting • Setting – the time and place of the story – Historical time period – Physical location – Atmosphere – the emotional feeling of a setting • Both specific and general – Specific setting – the precise time and place where the story takes place – General setting – broad sense of the time period and social backdrop of the story • Important in placing characters’ and authors’ attitudes and actions in context
Style and Tone • Style – the characteristics of language use in a work or body of works – – Diction Sentence structure Punctuation Figurative language • Tone - The attitude a writer takes toward his or her subject, characters, and readers – Can influence the reader’s emotional response to the work – Created through word choice and details • Can vary in accordance with work’s intended theme
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