Overview
This lecture covered key literary elements in fiction, focusing on plot and conflict, and included activities involving character descriptions and creating conflict posters.
Literary Elements in Fiction
- Literary elements include plot, literary techniques, and literary devices.
- The focus for this session was on plot and conflict in different modes of fiction.
Character Types Review
- Static characters do not change throughout the story.
- Round characters are fully developed and complex.
- Protagonists are the main characters who drive the story and engage the reader.
Plot Structure and Types
- Plot is the arrangement of events and actions to convey a theme.
- Common plot elements: exposition, rising action, conflict, climax, falling action, resolution, and flashback.
- Exposition introduces setting and characters at the start of the story (e.g., "Once upon a time...").
- Rising action develops interrelated events, building suspense.
- Climax is the peak of the conflict or the story’s turning point.
- Falling action follows the climax, showing consequences of main events.
- Resolution concludes the story and resolves conflicts.
- Flashback interrupts the narrative to show past events.
Types of Conflict
- Conflict is a struggle between opposing forces, essential for suspense and plot movement.
- Internal conflict: Man vs. self (struggle within the character).
- External conflicts:
- Man vs. man (characters in opposition, e.g. Anna vs. Elsa in Frozen)
- Man vs. society (character against social norms, e.g. Mulan)
- Man vs. nature (character faces natural forces, e.g. Moana vs. the ocean)
- Man vs. God/the supernatural (character vs. higher powers, e.g. The Odyssey)
Examples & Activities
- Students shared original fictional character descriptions.
- Previous and upcoming activities involve creating and analyzing fictional characters and conflicts.
- Students discussed images representing different types of conflict.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Plot — Sequence of events and actions in a narrative.
- Exposition — Introduction of setting and characters.
- Climax — Highest tension point; turning point of the story.
- Falling Action — Events following the climax leading to resolution.
- Resolution — Outcome where conflicts are resolved.
- Flashback — Narrative technique showing past events.
- Conflict — Opposition between forces/characters in a story.
- Internal conflict — Struggle within a character’s mind.
- External conflict — Struggle between a character and outside forces.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Create an original movie poster illustrating a type of conflict and post it on Facebook with the specified hashtag.
- Prepare for assessment on plot structures and conflict in the next session.