Short Stories

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Short Story

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A short story is : a brief work of fiction where, usually, the main character faces a conflict that is worked out in the plot of the story

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A short story has

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One plot
One setting
One theme
Few main characters
Can be read in one sitting

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Character

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person in a story, poem or play.

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Round

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fully developed, has many different character traits

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Flat

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stereotyped, one-dimensional, few traits

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Static

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Does not change

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Dynamic

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Changes as a result of the story's events

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Characterization

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How the author develops the characters, especially the main character.

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This is done through

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what the character does or says
what others say of and to the character
What others think of the character
author’s word choice in descriptive passages

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Direct characterization

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The author directly states what the character’s personality is like. Example: cruel, kind

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Indirect characterization

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Showing a character’s personality through his/her actions, thoughts, feelings, words, appearance or other character’s observations or reactions

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Protagonist

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Main character of the story that changes(death is not a change)
the most important character
changes and grows because of experiences in the story

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Antagonist

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A major character who opposes the protagonist
the antagonist does not change
Types of antagonists:
people
nature
Society

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Dynamic Character

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Undergoes a change
The change is not physical
The change is emotional
May be caused by physical
May be caused by trauma

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Static Character

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Does not undergo a change
Remains the same emotionally throughout the selection

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Conflict

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A struggle between two opposing forces

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Internal

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takes place in a character’s own mind Man vs. Him(Her)self

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External

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a character struggles against an outside force
Man vs. Man
Man vs. Nature
Man vs. technology, progress
Man vs. Society
Man vs. Supernatural

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Plot

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Series of related events that make up a story.

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Exposition

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Section that introduces characters, the setting, and conflicts.

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Setting

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The time and place of the story’s action

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Rising Action

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Consists of a series of complications.
These occur when the main characters take action to resolve their problems and are met with further problems:
Fear
Hostility
Threatening situation

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Climax

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The turning point in the story: the high point of interest and suspense

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Falling Action

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All events following the climax or turning point in the story. These events are a result of the action taken at the climax.

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Resolution

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The end of the central conflict: it shows how the situation turns out and ties up loose ends

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Point of View

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Vantage point from which the writer tells the story.

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First person

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One of the characters is actually telling the story using the pronoun “I”

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Third person

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Centers on one character’s thoughts and actions.

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Omniscient

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All knowing narrator. Can center on the thoughts any actions of any and all characters.

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Theme

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The central message or insight into life revealed through a literary work.
The “main idea” of the story

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Flashback

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The present scene in the story is interrupted to flash backward and tell what happened in an earlier time.

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Foreshadowing

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Clues the writer puts in the story to give the reader a hint of what is to come.

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Symbol

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An object, person, or event that functions as itself, but also stands for something more than itself.

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Figurative Language

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Involves some imaginative comparison between two unlike things.

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Simile

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comparing two unlike things using like or as.

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Metaphor

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comparing two unlike things ( not using like or as)

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Personification

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Giving human qualities to non-human things.

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Irony

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A contrast between expectation and reality

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Verbal Irony

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saying one thing but meaning something completely different.

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Situational Irony

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A contradiction between what we expect to happen and what really does happen

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Dramatic Irony

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occurs when the reader knows something important that the characters in the story do not know.

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Allusion

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Reference to a statement, person, a place, or events from:
Literature
History
Religion
Mythology
Politics
Sports

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Suspense

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Uncertainty or anxiety the reader feels about what is going to happen next in a story.

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Imagery

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Language that appeals to the senses.
Touch
Taste
Sight
Sound
Smell