21st Elements of Short Story

As a learner of this module, you are expected
to:
1. define literature and its elements;
2. identify the elements of a given literary piece;
3. analyze the culture reflected in the text with

other cultures;
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Literature
It is a body of written works such as poetry, novels, history, biography,
and essays that reflects the background of a certain culture?
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Fiction
It is a type of literature that is a product of a writer’s imagination
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Plot
It is defined as the sequence of events that occurs from the first to the last
line of the story
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Non-fiction
It is a type of literature based on facts and talks about real people,
places, and events
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Resolution
It is a part of a plot refers to the conclusion or ending of a story
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Theme
It refers to the central idea or message of a story
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Conflict
It refers to the problem that the main characters have to face.
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Setting
It refers to the time and place in which the action of the story happens
1. FICTION
• type of literature that is a product of a writer’s

imagination.
• can be inspired by actual or completely
made-up events.
• usually created through the use of clear details
that we recognize or that move us in some
ways.
The story “The Soul of the Great Bell” is a
Chinese fiction retold in English by Lafcadio Hearn.
The story is all about a girl named Ko-Ngai, a virgin
maiden, who sacrificed her life to save her father
Kouan-Yu from the anger of the Son of Heaven and
Yung-Lo. Her blood was the main ingredient to
successfully make the great bell.
Another example of fiction is the “Story of the Aged Mother,” a
Japanese folktale by Matsuo Basho. It is about a son and his mother
going through struggles because of the unkind ruler who issued cruel
orders which included among others, sending the elderly to the
mountain to be abandoned and left to die. However, the son took
good care of his mother. Meanwhile, the governor ordered that
whoever could bring him a rope made of ashes would be honored. It
was the mother’s wisdom that saved the entire town when the son
revealed that it was his aged mother’s brilliant idea to make the
order possible. The governor, in the end, denounced his previous
order of killing all aged people.
What are the
Elements of a Story?
1. SETTING
• It refers to the time and place in which the

action of the story happens.
2. CHARACTERS
• It refers to a person, an object, an animal,

or imaginary creature personified in the
story.
PROTAGONIST
main character
who does
heroic acts in
the story
(BIDA)
ANTAGONIST
main character
who opposes
the protagonist
in some way
(KONTRA- BIDA)
Characterization
• refers to the development of characters through

actions, descriptions, and dialogue.
• Your audience will be more engaged with and

sympathetic toward your narrative if they can
vividly imagine the 10 characters as real people.
a. Direct
• through the specific description

of the character
• What kind of clothes do they
wear?
• What do they look, smell,
sound like?
b. Indirect
• through the behaviors, speech, and thoughts of the
character
• What kind of language, dialect, or register do they use?
• What is the tone, inflection, and timbre of their voice?
• How does their manner of speaking reflect their attitude
toward the listener?
• How do their actions reflect their traits? What’s on their
mind that they won’t share with the world?
3. PLOT
• It is defined as an interrelated sequence

of events in a story where each event
affects the other, thus showing the cause-
and-effect relationship.
a. Freytag’s Pyramid:
Chronological.
• the narration starts from

exposition, to rising action,
climax, falling action, and
eventually resolution
A plot has 5 elements
A. EXPOSITION/INITIAL ACTION.
• This is the very beginning of a story.
• authors usually introduce the major
characters and setting to the reader.
b. RISING ACTION
• This is the part when tension starts to
build.
• usually involves facing and
conquering minor conflicts, which is
what keeps the plot moving forward.
c. CLIMAX
• part of the story where the characters finally
have to face and solve the major conflict.
• This is the "peak" of the plot or the highest point

of interest where all the tensions of the rising
action lead to the success or failure of the hero
d. FALLING ACTION
• This is everything that happens after the climax

but before the resolution.
• This is when the tension lessens and starts
bringing the action to a close.
e. RESOLUTION/DENOUEMENT
• This is the conclusion or

ending of a story.
b. In media res
• In Latin, this means “in the middle of

things,”
• the story starts right in the middle of the

action.
c. Non-linear narrative
• the narrative may be told in a

series of flashbacks or vignettes
or it might jump back and forth
in time.
4. CONFLICT
• It refers to the problem that

the main characters have
to face.
a. MAN VS. MAN
• struggle is between the protagonist and

the antagonist.
• the protagonist wants something, and the
antagonist obstructs the protagonist from
getting what he wants
b. MAN VS. SOCIETY
• It is a conflict that occurs when the

character has a conflict with the
government, cultural, or societal tradition.
c. MAN VS. SELF
• a conflict that takes place within the

character himself.
• It often involves the character in making
a decision between right and wrong.
d. MAN VS. SUPERNATURAL
• conflict that happens when the

protagonist faces a struggle against a
god, gods, and supernatural forces.
5. POINT OF VIEW
• This is the angle of narration or the

perspective from which the story is
told.
a. First Person
• The narrator is a character in the story

who can reveal only personal thoughts
and feelings.
• It uses the personal pronoun I.
a. First Person
“I was standing in the dark. I was scared and cold.

Then, I felt something on my shoulder, and it was a
hand. I was trying to get away, but it wouldn’t let me
go. I screamed as loud as I could, but no one heard
me.” – In the Dark
b. Third Person
• when the narrator is removed from the story

and tells it from an outside perspective.
• narrator uses personal pronouns like "he,"
"she," and "they" to refer to the characters in
the story.
b. Second Person
“Ravana devised a plan to abduct Sita. He

sent a magical golden deer which Sita desired
Rama to hunt. A long time had passed, but Rama
didn’t return. Thus, Lakshmana went off to find his
brother.” - Ramayana
6. THEMES
• It refers to the central idea or

message of a story

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As a learner of this module, you are expected

1. define literature and its elements;

2. identify the elements of a given literary piece;

3. analyze the culture reflected in the text with

• type of literature that is a product of a writer’s

• It refers to the time and place in which the

• It refers to a person, an object, an animal,

• refers to the development of characters through

• Your audience will be more engaged with and

• through the specific description

• It is defined as an interrelated sequence

• the narration starts from

• This is the "peak" of the plot or the highest point

• This is everything that happens after the climax

• This is the conclusion or

• In Latin, this means “in the middle of

• the story starts right in the middle of the

• the narrative may be told in a

• It refers to the problem that

• struggle is between the protagonist and

• It is a conflict that occurs when the

• a conflict that takes place within the

• conflict that happens when the

• This is the angle of narration or the

• The narrator is a character in the story

“I was standing in the dark. I was scared and cold.

• when the narrator is removed from the story

“Ravana devised a plan to abduct Sita. He

• It refers to the central idea or

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