2.1: Review of Elements
- Page ID
- 284365
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)Elements, by Type.
Points-of-view:
FIRST-PERSON VIEW\(^{1}\)
The first-person narrative makes it necessary that the narrator is also a character within his or her own story, so that the narrator reveals the plot by referring to this viewpoint character as "I" (or, when plural, "we"). Oftentimes, the first-person narrative is used as a way to directly convey the deeply internal, otherwise unspoken thoughts of the narrator.
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“When I moved to Minnesota, I found there was a thriving and determined movement, a grassroots movement, to revitalize the Ojibwe language. And I've never come to be a competent speaker. I have to say that right now. But even learning the amount of Ojibwe that one can at my age is a life-altering experience.” ---Louise Erdrich |
THIRD-PERSON VIEW
Third-person narration provides the greatest flexibility to the author and thus is the most commonly used narrative mode in literature. In the third-person narrative mode, each and every character is referred to by the narrator as "he", "she", "it", or "they", but never as "I" or "we" (first person), or "you" (second-person). In third-person narrative, it is necessary that the narrator is merely an unspecified entity or uninvolved person that conveys the story, but not a character of any kind within the story being told.
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“The seller of lightning-rods arrived just ahead of the storm. He came along the street of Green Town, Illinois, in the late cloudy October day, sneaking glances over his shoulder. Somewhere not so far back, vast lightnings stomped the earth. Somewhere, a storm like a great beast with terrible teeth could not be denied.” ---from Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes |
Omniscient Points of View / First-Person Omniscient View
A rare form of first person, where the narrator is a character in the story, but also knows the thoughts and feelings of all the other characters. It can seem like third person omniscient at times.
Multiple-Person View
Sometimes, an author will use multiple narrators, usually all of them storytelling in the first person. In stories in which it is important to get different characters' views on a single matter, such as in mystery novels, multiple narrators may be developed. The use of multiple narrators also helps describe separate events that occur at the same time in different locations.
For example, in Chuck Klosterman’s Downtown Owl, one chapter is told by the perspective of a teacher, the next a student, the next an old man in the town. This allows the reader to see all sorts of viewpoints for one particular experience or situation.
Alternating Person View
While the general rule is for novels to adopt a single approach to point of view throughout, there are exceptions. Many stories, especially in literature, alternate between the first and third person. In this case, an author will move back and forth between a more omniscient third-person narrator to a more personal first-person narrator. Often, a narrator using the first person will try to be more objective by also employing the third person for important action scenes, especially those in which he/she is not directly involved or in scenes where he/she is not present to have viewed the events in first person.
Second-Person View
Probably the rarest mode in literature (though quite common in song lyrics) is the second-person narrative mode, in which the narrator refers to one of the characters as "you", therefore making the audience member feel as if he or she is a character within the story. [Ex: Create-Your-Own-Story books... remember those?]
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“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won’t either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up.” ― Louise Erdrich, The Painted Drum |
"The Protagonist" by mønsterdestrøyer is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Alt Text: Graffiiti of the word "Protagonist" written on a wall
Common characters & archetypes:\(^{2}\)
Characters can be classified by their role in the story. Some common roles are:
STOCK CHARACTER
- Standard, predictable background characters: The "best friend" of the main character.
PROTAGONIST
- The hero or central character: Captain Marvel, James Bond
ANTAGONIST
- The villain: The Bad Witch in Wizard of Oz.
ANTIHERO
- A protagonist without heroic qualities: Jack Sparrow in The Pirates of the Caribbean, Michael Scott on The Office.
Make your protagonist have flaws.\(^{3}\) Even though a hero sounds like they should be perfect, giving them something that holds them back will help readers empathize with them. Maybe your hero will do anything to save their life, even if it involves killing someone or maybe they’re selfish and only care about themselves. Brainstorm common personal flaws and pick one for your character.
Let your antagonist have some redeeming qualities. Just like how heroes can’t be entirely good, your villain of the story can’t be completely bad. An evil villain just for the sake of being evil makes your character flat and uninteresting. Give the antagonist a redeeming quality, such as doing what they need to save their child, so a reader can sympathize with them.
Setting:\(^{4}\)
Consider all 5 senses when describing your settings. Think about what characters in your story would see, hear, feel, taste, and smell. This will help you create a more vivid setting that readers will imagine the location better and feel like they are a part of it.
- Make lists of what your characters would experience when they first arrive in your setting. What sights would they see? Who would be there?
Write descriptions for each of your settings so you have an understanding of them. Work on brief paragraphs describing the landscape, people, culture, and animals for each of the locations you want to include. Think about the major set pieces in the locations and how the characters interact with them. If you need to get more detailed about wildlife or special quirks about your world, expand your notes further.
Common plots:\(^{5}\)
OVERCOMING THE MONSTER
The protagonist sets out to defeat an antagonistic force (often evil) which threatens the protagonist and/or protagonist's homeland. Examples: The Hunger Games, Shrek.
RAGS TO RICHES
The poor protagonist acquires things such as power, wealth, and a mate, before losing it all and gaining it back upon growing as a person. Examples: Cinderella.
THE QUEST
The protagonist and some companions set out to acquire an important object or to get to a location, facing many obstacles and temptations along the way. Examples: The Lord of the Rings, The Land Before Time, Indiana Jones, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle…
VOYAGE AND RETURN
The protagonist goes to a strange land and, after overcoming the threats it poses to him or her, returns with experience. Examples: Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz.
COMEDY
Light and humorous character with a happy or cheerful ending; a dramatic work in which the central motif is the triumph over adverse circumstance, resulting in a successful or happy conclusion. Most romances fall into this category. Examples: Bridget Jones Diary, Four Weddings and a Funeral.
TRAGEDY
The protagonist is a hero with one major character flaw or great mistake which is ultimately their undoing. Their unfortunate end evokes pity at their folly and the fall of a fundamentally 'good' character. Examples: Bonnie and Clyde, Romeo and Juliet, Breaking Bad.
REBIRTH
During the course of the story, an important event forces the main character to change their ways, often making them a better person. Examples: Beauty and the Beast, A Christmas Carol, Despicable Me, How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
The Hero’s Journey
Use “The Hero’s Journey”\(^{6}\) template for storytelling. A Hero’s Journey is a common storytelling device to make sure your main character goes through an emotional rollercoaster throughout your writing. Your hero starts in their ordinary and comfortable world, but something or someone makes them go out of their comfort zone. Throughout the story, they will hit their rock bottom before redeeming themselves and saving the day. Work through the 12 steps of The Hero’s Journey for your protagonist.
- The Hero’s Journey is not a set-in-stone way to write stories, but it will help guide you if this is the first time you’ve written.
- This works best in long-form writing, like a novel or screenplay.
Pace your story so action\(^{7}\) happens frequently. Think of your story happening in 3 acts, where the first act is what makes your protagonist go on the adventure, the second act is developing the conflict, and the third act is the resolution. You can quicken or slow your pacing by using shorter and longer chapters, adding details, or shifting to subplots.
- Use detailed language, but don’t be over-explanatory or else you risk bogging down your writing.
"Speech bubbles at Erg" by Marc Wathieu is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Alt Text: Empty text bubbles on a wall
Dialogue:
Work on writing believable dialogue\(^{8}\). Take each character’s upbringing, education, age, and career into consideration when you make your characters speak. Avoid using dialogue to info dump in stilted or unnatural language.
- Make sure each of your characters sounds different or else your readers will have a hard time telling which character is speaking.
- Avoid clichès like, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” or “I have a bad feeling about this.”
- Listen to how people talk in real life, so you have an idea of how people speak. Ask if you can record a conversation and try to transcribe the audio.
Dialogue\(^{9}\) is another way to bring life to your narrative. Dialogue is conversation or people speaking in your story. Engaging dialogue goes beyond what is simply being said to include description of non-verbal communication (facial expressions, body movement, changes in tone and speed of speech) and characterization. The way people speak and interact while talking reveals much about them and the situation. Writing natural sounding dialogue is not easy. Effective dialogue must serve more than one purpose – it should:
- Drive the plot forward,
- Reveal information about the characters, and
- Build tension or introduce conflict.
| Dialogue is a great way to show, rather than tell. |
Basic Dialogue Rules
- Use a comma between the dialogue and the tag line. a. “I want to go to the beach,” she said.
- End punctuation goes inside the quotation marks. a. He asked, “Where’s the champagne?”
- When a tag line interrupts a sentence, it should be set off by commas. a. “That is,” Wesley said, “that neither you nor me is her boy.”
- Every time you switch to a different speaker, start a new paragraph. a. Even if the speaker says only one word, with no accompanying attribution or action, it is a separate paragraph.
- Start a new paragraph when you wish to draw the reader’s attention to a different character, even if that character doesn’t actually speak.
- For internal dialogue, italics are appropriate.
Sample Dialogue
“So, what was it really like?” I asked.
“I’ve told you. It was amazing.”
I shifted to my side so I could look at her. “You have to give me more than that,” I insisted, “and not the mom and dad version.”
Liv mirrored my move to her side and propped up her head with her arm. Her blue eyes searched my greens, looking for the right words. “I shouldn’t–”
We broke our gaze as we heard our mom call for us. Once again, I didn’t get the truth.
Questions / Activities.
<Students might be assigned – as part of the final project? – to create questions and activities for chapters that do not contain those pieces quite yet.>
\(^{1}\)Wikipedia contributors. "Narration." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 30 Nov. 2016. Web. 30 Nov. 2016. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
\(^{2}\)Wikipedia contributors. "Character (arts)." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 20 Nov. 2016. Web. 20 Nov. 2016. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
\(^{3}\)Wikihow contributors. "How to Write Science Fiction." Wikihow. 29 May 2019. Web. 22 June 2019. http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Science-Fiction. Text available under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
\(^{4}\)Wikihow contributors. "How to Write Science Fiction." Wikihow. 29 May 2019. Web. 22 June 2019. http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Science-Fiction. Text available under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
\(^{5}\)Wikipedia contributors. "The Seven Basic Plots." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 20 Nov. 2016. Web. 20 Nov. 2016. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
\(^{6}\)Wikihow contributors. "How to Write Science Fiction." Wikihow. 29 May 2019. Web. 22 June 2019. http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Science-Fiction. Text available under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
\(^{7}\)Wikihow contributors. "How to Write Science Fiction." Wikihow. 29 May 2019. Web. 22 June 2019. http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Science-Fiction. Text available under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
\(^{8}\)Wikihow contributors. "How to Write Science Fiction." Wikihow. 29 May 2019. Web. 22 June 2019. http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Science-Fiction. Text available under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
\(^{9}\)Anderson, Dana. “Narration.” Writing Unleashed, Version 1. NDSCS; 2016. CC-BY-NC-SA.