Literature

Component
Form 1

Short story

What is a short story?

A short story is a piece of writing that tells
stories. It is shorter than a novel.
The characters in a short story are fewer
than the novel.
The storyline of a short story is less
complicated than a novel.
The setting does not vary much and the
story takes place over a shorter period of
time.
A short story usually only has one main
theme and probably one or two subthemes.

Elements of a short
story

plot
This is the outline of events in the short story.
It often develops in four stages:
a) the exposition- the part of the story that
introduces the
characters, gives readers a
background
of the story.
b) conflictthe point in the story where the
main characters
face problems or complications.
c) climaxthe most exciting part of the story.
d) resolutionthe solution to the conflict is

setting
This refers to the time, place and people or
society where the story takes place.
The physical setting means the place where
the story happens.
There is usually more than one physical
setting in a short story.
Time setting tells us when the story took
place and how long it lasted.
The social setting of a short story refers to
the social background of the people in the
story. We can learn and understand many
things about the people in the story by
looking at the social setting of the story.

Characters
The people in the story are called
characters.
The main characters are the main
person in the story. The story is
about them. Sometimes there may
be more than one main character
in a story.
The minor characters are the other
people in the story. They play a
smaller role in the story.

theme
The theme is the main idea or message
that the writer wants to express.
The story is told around this main idea.
There may be more than one theme in a
story.

Moral values
These refer to any lessons that we
can learn from the story.

Tone and mood

Tone and mood refer to the feelings
that the story invokes in the reader.
The story may be sad, humorous,
intriguing or horrifying.

Point of view
This refers to the way the story is told. A writer
may choose to tell the story in the first persons
point of view. This means that the writer is writing
as he is one of the characters in the story. The
words I will be used.
A story can also be told in the third persons point
of view. This means that the writer is not directly
involved in the story. The words he, she, it
or they. The author knows everything about the
characters; their feelings and their thoughts.

Language and style

These refer to how the story is written. The writer may use any
number of ways to write the story and achieve the effect that he
or she wants.
Some narrative devices that a writer may use are:
simile- Comparing one thing with another using words such as
like and as.
metaphor- Comparison made between two things without the use
of words like and as.
personification- A way of writing about ideas, things and
animals as though they have human qualities.
imagery- Using words or phrases that appeal to the readers
senses, in other words, what we see, hear or feel while
we are reading the story.
symbolism- Using a specific object to represent abstract ideas.