PLOT ELEMENT S What is PLOT Plot is

PLOT ELEMENT S

What is PLOT? Plot is what happens in a story

Plot Structure

EXPOSITION The first part of the plot Characters, setting, and basic situation are revealed

RISING ACTION Main part of the story Moves the plot along Where complications arise

CLIMAX Most exciting or intense part for the protagonist Usually a turning point

Climax The third part of plot is the climax. The climax is the story’s most exciting or emotional moment. Usually the story’s conflict is resolved during the scene that is the climax.

Climax Which of these scenes seems more like the climax of a story? A B In scene A, a soccer player is about to make a goal—perhaps the winning goal of the game. Scene A best represents the climax—or most exciting part—of a story about a soccer team.

FALLING ACTION Events that follow the climax and lead to the resolution Conflicts begin moving toward resolution

RESOLUTION End of the story Loose ends are tied up Remaining questions are answered Conflicts are resolved

Plot Structure

Conflict A conflict is a struggle between opposing characters or opposing forces. The conflict is usually revealed at the beginning of a story as part of the basic situation.

CONFLICT is a struggle between opposing forces or characters Without conflict, the story would be boring! A story can have several conflicts The main conflict is central to the plot and is usually resolved at the resolution

Conflict In an external conflict, characters struggle against something or someone outside themselves. Internal conflicts happen inside a character’s mind.

What are the two types of conflict? a. External man vs. nature man vs. man b. Internalman vs. self

TYPES OF CONFLICT IN DETAIL MAN A A VS. SELF (internal) struggle between a character and his feeling, conscience, or fear VS. MAN (external) struggle, mental or physical, between two characters

TYPES OF CONFLICT IN DETAIL MAN A A VS. NATURE (external) struggle between a character and mother nature (weather, animals, insects, sickness, epidemics) VS. SOCIETY (external) struggle between a character and the laws or beliefs of a group; could involve poverty, politics, social norms, expectations, or values

INTERNAL OR EXTERNAL CONFLICT? 1. 2. 3. 5. 4.

Events Each plot includes a series of events that make it hard for the characters to solve their problems or work out their conflicts. Sometimes these events are called complications.

Events If there were no complications, a character would solve the problem too quickly, and there would be no suspense in the story. Suspense is what keeps you reading to figure out what is going to happen next.

SUSPENSE Is a feeling of CURIOSITY, ANXIETY or UNCERTAINTY about the outcome of events v

SUSPENSE IS CREATED… Ø Through the PLOT (the reader wonders if the character will discover the truth before it’s too late), unexplained occurrences, intensifying conflict

SUSPENSE IS CREATED… Ø Through the SETTING

SUSPENSE IS CREATED… Through the CHARACTERS Ø (their words & actions in risky/tense situations)

It’s like music in a scary movie! Foreshadowing

Definition The use of hints or clues to suggest what will happen later in literature. Foreshadowing can warn of future events and/or create suspense.

Foreshadowing Read the following example of foreshadowing: “People say the shortcut is cursed and that using it will bring serious consequences, ” Carlos chuckled. “But I don’t believe them. ” What does Carlos’s description of the shortcut suggest about his decision to take it? What is the author trying to do by telling the reader this information?

RECAP SUSPENSE feeling of anxiety about what will happen next FORESHADOWING – a hint about what will happen later in the story

Plot Pyramid “Duffy’s Jacket” Bruce Coville rest