※ PLOT the sequence if incidents of which a story is composed

ⓐ Rising Action ⓑ Climax ⓒ Falling Action * some stories end with a climax ⓓ Exposition * background info. if any * many include Antecedent Action * occurs early in Rising Action ⓔ Complicating Incident * initiates the conflict * occurs early in Rising Action ⓕ Foreshadowing * hints of the climax and outcome of conflict * occurs during Rising Action ⓖ Moments of crisis * moments of direct clash or conflict * occur apart from and lead up to the climax (advance the plot) ⓗ Denouement/Resolution * “unknotting” of the plot * many occur as part of the Falling Action * some stories do not have a denouement ⓘ Ending * various kinds of ending (i.e. happy, unhappy, undetermined)

Flashback : the story shifts from the past to the present either to explain a character’s action or to explain some important point in the story

In Medias Res : when the narrator begins the story at some exciting point in the middle of action thereby gaining the reader’s interest before explain preceding events, through flashbacks, at some later stage

Subplot : a secondary sequence of events usually involving characters of lesser importance. A subplot is usually intended as a contrast or parallel to the main plot.

Suspense : that quality in a story that make the reader ask, “What’s going to happen next?” and impels the reader to continue on to finding the answers to the question. Suspense is greatest when combined with anxiety about the fate of some sympathetic character. Common devices for suspense are: * mystery : an unusual set of circumstances for which the reader craves an explanation * surprise : when an event or conclusion departs radically from our expectation

Artistic Unity : a story has artistic unity when nothing in it is irrelevant, there for its own sake or its own excitement

※ Conflict a clash of ideas, desires or wills that may be physical, external, internal or moral

Terms associated with conflict include:
① Protagonist : the central character in the conflict, whether this character is a sympathetic or an unsympathetic person
② Antagonist : the forces arrayed against the protagonist whether persons, things, conventions of society, or traits of the character
③ Man vs. Man : when the protagonists is pitted against another character or group of characters (external)
④ Man vs. Environment : when the protagonist is in conflict with some external force – physical nature, society, or “fate” (external)
⑤ Man vs. Himself : when the protagonist is in conflict with some element of his own nature (internal)
⑥ Dilemma : when a character is in a position in which he or she must choose between two courses of action, both undesirable
⑦ Motivation : in which causes the character to do what he or she does. The motivation must always be equal to the conflict or the story will not be valid in the reader’s eyes
⑧ Plot Manipulation : any unmotivated action by a character or when the author relies too heavily on chance or coincidence to bring about a solution to the conflict
⑨ Predicament : when a character finds himself or herself in a situation that is very difficult to resolve

Questions to ask when determining conflict:
What goals does the protagonist have or wish to achieve?
What obstacles are there, in terms of a character or environment, which create conflict or prevent the protagonist from reaching the goal?
Does the protagonist achieve his or her goal? Why or why not?

※ Character a personage in a narrative or dramatic work defining or describing a character is difficult and requires describing what a person IS not just what that person has done in a story

Types of character:
① Flat Character : is characterized by one or two traits. Can be summed up in one sentence. Usually a minor character

② Round Character : complex and many sided: a very realistic person.