Setting the Scene
These are the two main elements of a story’s setting.
What are time and place?
This part of a story introduces the main conflict.
What is the inciting incident?
This is the central message or lesson of a story.
What is a theme?
This type of figurative language appears in the following sentence: The wind howled through the trees.
What is personification?
If a story takes place in a dark, abandoned house, it likely creates this mood.
What is a creepy, suspenseful, or mysterious mood?
We would say a story has this type of conflict if it was about a character struggling to survive in a snowstorm.
What is person vs nature?
A story that uses "he/she/him/her" pronouns and reveals only one character’s experience is written in this point of view.
What is 3rd person limited?
A common theme in fairy tales, like Cinderella or Snow White.
What is "Good vs. evil" or "Love conquers all"?
This type of figurative language compares two things using "like" or "as."
What is a simile?
What is "the future, on Venus, in a technologically developed city"?
This is the turning point of a story, where the conflict is most developed.
What is the climax?
Rewrite this 3rd-person sentence into the 1st person: He didn’t trust the old man’s smile.
What is "I didn't trust the old man's smile"?
One of these is a thematic statement, while the other is just a topic:
A: "Friendship"
B: "True friends stand by you in difficult times."
What is "B is a thematic statement, and A is just a topic"?
These are the two types of figurative language in this sentence: My brother is basically a potato and sleeps like a log all day.
What is metaphor and simile?
In a story’s structure (plot diagram), this part occurs after the climax and leads to the resolution.
What is the falling action?
This is the main characteristic of 3rd person omniscient.
What is a "god-like" perspective / knowing the thoughts and feelings of all the characters?
A possible theme of The Landlady by Roald Dahl.
What is "appearances can be deceiving" or "trusting strangers can lead to terrible consequences"?
One reason an author might use figurative language instead of saying things directly.
What is "To create imagery, emotion, or deeper meaning"?
Rewrite this sentence to change the mood:
The small town was quiet under a clear blue sky.
What is (e.g., "The small town was eerily silent, shadows stretching long in the late afternoon sun")?
Two examples of stories or movies where the conflict is person vs. society.
What are (e.g. Hunger Games, Mulan, Handmaid's Tale, The Substance, etc.)?
In The Kayak, the 1st-person point of view makes the story feel more _________.
What is "personal / intimate"?
A possible thematic statement for this short story summary:
A young girl must choose between following her family's expectations or pursuing her dream of becoming an artist.
What is "staying true to oneself can be difficult but rewarding"?
The type of figurative language in this sentence and the effect it creates:
His words were daggers, slicing through her confidence.
What is "Metaphor—it makes his words seem sharp and painful"?