Elements of Short Stories

The overall feeling of the story

A literary work’s central idea or main message about life

Events that occur to complicate the plot and lead up to the climax

An outside narrator that shows the inside thoughts of only one character

An interruption in the plot events to remind the audience of an earlier event

The characters and setting are introduced and the problem begins to unfold

Hints or clues that suggest future action

Figures of speech, such as metaphors and similes

When expected events are different from what actually happens

The narrator is a character in the story and refers to himself or herself as “I”

Vivid description created by details that appeal to the five senses

The perspective from which the narration is told

A struggle or problem in the story

When trying to decide the point of view of a story, you SHOULD look at the dialogue

The writer’s word choice; a stylistic element that helps convey (show) mood and tone

The point of greatest interest or suspense in the story

The events between the climax and the resolution

An all-knowing narrator that is able to recount the background and thoughts of any character

Any object, person, place, etc. that represents itself, but also stands for something else