Pd 3/7:
OM: Stop! Don't touch that button! (Write for four minutes.)
Read and discussed handout on the elements of a short story (see below).
Read the first paragraph of "Thank You M'am" by Langston Hughes. (Click link for full text. Discussed the amount of information given by the author about the two characters.
She was a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it but hammer and nails. It had a long strap, and she carried it slung across her shoulder. It was about eleven o’clock at night, and she was walking alone, when a boy ran up behind her and tried to snatch her purse. The strap broke with the single tug the boy gave it from behind. But the boy’s weight and the weight of the purse combined caused him to lose his balance so, intsead of taking off full blast as he had hoped, the boy fell on his back on the sidewalk, and his legs flew up. the large woman simply turned around and kicked him right square in his blue-jeaned sitter. Then she reached down, picked the boy up by his shirt front, and shook him until his teeth rattled.
Homework!
-Study for spelling test tomorrow.
-Study Story Elements handout for quiz on Tuesday.
-Read for 15 minutes
SHORT STORY ELEMENTS
A short story is a fairly brief work of fiction. Fiction, as you know, is prose writing about imagined events and characters. A short story presents characters in a struggle or complication, which has a definite outcome. Novels are another example of fictional prose and are much longer than short stories. Some short stories, however, can be quite long. It may range in length from 500 words up to 15-20,000 words. The short story has a definite construction or unity rather than the freedom of a sketch or a tale.
The essential elements of a short story are characters, setting, plot, theme, and point of view.
Character A character is a person, or sometimes even an animal, who takes part in the action of a short story. They may be described by the author mainly by conversation, indirectly or directly by action. By whatever method they are introduced, characters at once must be convincing to the reader since the author does not have a great deal of time to work with.
Protagonist- the major or central character
Antagonist- the character’s opponent, against whom the protagonist contends or struggles
Setting The setting of a short story is the time and place in whicbJ happens. Setting furnishes the background for a story. It includes the place, the time, and the mood of a story. Authors often use descriptions of landscape, scenery, buildings, seasons or weather to provide a strong sense of setting.
Plot The plot consists of a carefully chosen series of events and character actions that relate to the central conflict.
Conflict- the struggle or tension that sets the plot of the story in motion; it builds suspense or mystery and arouses expectations for events to follow.
Rising Action- develops and intensifies the conflict
Climax- plot reaches its greatest emotional intensity; turning point of story
Falling Action- the tension subsides and the plot moves towards conclusion
Conclusion/Denouement- the outcome or settling of the conflict
Foreshadowing- the presentation of information in a work in such a way that later events are prepared for.
Theme The theme is the central belief or idea behind the story, which the author intends to develop through the entire story; it is neither obvious nor hidden. It brings together the characters, setting and incidents so as not to destroy the unified impression.
Point of View The vantage point from which the story is being told.
First Person- The narrative is portrayed by what is known and seen through a single character. That focal character addresses the reader directly.
Character refers to themselves as “I” in the story and addresses the reader as “you.”
Third Person- An outside person or narrator relates the story and can direct the reader’s attention to the inner thoughts of any of the characters and controls the sources of information.
