This presentation explains the different elements of a story.

2.  There are several elements that make up
a story. These include:
› Characters
› Setting
› Plot
› Conflict
› Theme

3.  A character is a person, or sometimes
even an animal, who takes part in the
action of a short story or other literary
work.

4. Major
characters take
part in most of
the action and
we see or hear
them often
Minor
characters
appear less
frequently and
play smaller
roles

6.  Flat Characters – Characters who we do
not know much about
 Round Characters – Characters who we
know everything about
 Dynamic Characters – Developing
through the story
 Static Characters – Stays the same
throughout the story
 Foils – Characters that contrast each
other

7.  Protagonist – the
main character or
hero of a story who
struggles with a
major conflict
 Antagonist – the
character who
struggles against
the protagonist; the
villain

8.  The setting of a short story is the time and
place in which it happens. Authors often
use descriptions of landscape, scenery,
buildings, seasons or weather to provide
a strong sense of setting.

9. The setting of a
story can be as
vague as
“London” or as
specific as “A
Beach”

10. A plot is a series of events and character
actions that relate to the central conflict.

11.  The conflict is a struggle between two
people or things in a short story. The main
character is usually on one side of the
central conflict.

12.  On the other side, the main character
may struggle against another important
character, against the forces of nature,
against society, or even against
something inside himself or herself
(feelings, emotions, illness).

13. Click the books below to learn more about
internal & external conflicts!

14.  A theme is the message, lesson, or moral
that an author is communicating through
a story.
 Themes present a deeper
meaning to a reader, and
require you to think about
what you have learned
while reading.

15.  Theme is what makes literature
memorable. It may be difficult to
remember the characters in a story, but
we will always remember what we have
learned by reading it.
 The theme is presented as a sentence. It
may be stated directly, or it may be
implied.
 Readers build connections with stories
through universal themes.

17.  These fables are known for their morals,
and usually state the theme in the final
line of the story.
 Not all morals are stated in the story.
Some morals are learned while reading.

18. One hot summer’s day a Fox was
strolling through an orchard till he
came to a bunch of Grapes just
ripening on a vine which had been
trained over a lofty branch. “Just the
thing to quench my thirst,” quoth he.
Drawing back a few paces, he took a
run and a jump, and just missed the
bunch. Turning round again with a One,
Two, Three, he jumped up, but with no
greater success. Again and again he
tried after the tempting morsel, but at
last had to give it up, and walked away
with his nose in the air, saying: “I am
sure they are sour.”
It is easy to despise what you cannot
get.

19.  “The Fox and the Grapes” had a THEME that
stated: “it is easy to despise what you cannot
get”
 The Fox was a CHARACTER in the story.
 The SETTING was an orchard during the summer
time.
 The PLOT consisted of a Fox walking through an
orchard, seeing grapes that would quench his
thirst, jumping to try to get them, failing, and
walking away from them.
 The CONFLICT was the Fox vs. nature. He was
unable to reach the grapes that he wanted.

20. Now you’re a professional at knowing what
elements are in a story. All you need to
know are the who, what, where, when,
how & why’s of a story. Just remember
that characters are the people/animals,
setting answers where & when, theme is
the moral, plot is what is happening, and
the conflict is the problem!