Elements of Fiction

TYPES AND ELEMENTS OF
FICTION
Objectives:
•Identify types of fiction.
• Identify, determine and discuss the

elements and types of fiction.
• Interpret a fictional literary piece through

the use of the eight (8) key elements of
fiction.
Introduction
Fiction is usually a fictional type consisting of characters,

events, or locations that are fictitious, in other words, not
exclusively based on history or facts. Fiction refers to written
narratives in prose and most specifically novels, but also
novellas and short stories, in its narrowest use.
Three Types of Fiction
According to Blakely 2003
1. Short Story
-According to the famous short story writer Edgar Allan Poe, a short
story is a piece of fiction that can be read in one sitting of about a half
hour to about two hour
-It contains between 1,000 and 20,000 words and typically run no more
than 25 or 30 pages.
Example:
'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'
By Washington Irving
A Tell-Tale Heart,' give it a try; you're in for a scary, shivery treat

2. Novella
-Longer than short stories and tend to run about 20,000 to
50,000 words, usually between 60 and 120 pages
-Typically have a more complex plot or storyline and more
characters than short stories.
Example:
The strange case of Dr. Jekeyll and Mr. Hyde
By Robert Louis Stevenson
The call of the Wind
By Jack London
3. Novel
-Novel is a work of fiction that contains over 50,000 words or

120 pages.
-Novels are even more complex than novellas, and they usually
have more than one plot or storyline and many well-developed
characters.
Example
The books in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series and Suzanne
Collins's Hunger Games series
Mark Twain (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer) and Charles
Dickens (Oliver Twist)
Types of fiction
According to zackhiem, S.P et Al.(2015)
1. Commercial fiction
-It attracts a broad audience and may also fall into
any subgenre, like mystery, romance, legal thriller, western,
science fiction, and so on.
-Other blockbuster commercial fiction authors include John

Grisham, Sidney Sheldon, Danielle Steele, and Jackie Collins.
Example:
The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller (Warner,

1992)
2.Literacy fiction
-This tends to appeal to a smaller, more intellectually adventurous

audience.
-It contains — excellent writing, originality of thought, and style — that

raise it above the level of ordinary written works
-Other popular authors of literary fiction include Toni Morrision, Barbara

Kingsolver, John LeCarre, and Saul Bellow.
Example:
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1997).

ELEMENTS OF FICTION
1. Character
There are two meanings for the word character:
1) the person in a work of fiction
2) the characteristics of a person.

1.1 Persons in a work of fiction
Protagonist
-One character who is clearly central to a story and commonly

named as the hero/heroine in the entirety of plot.
Antagonist
- The character in opposition to the main character. He/she is

often called as the “villain” in the story.
1.2 The Characteristics of a Person
-In order for a story to seem real to the reader, its characters must seem
real. Characterization is the information the author gives the reader
about the characters themselves.
-The author may reveal a character in several ways: a) his/her physical

appearance; b) what he/she says, thinks, feels and dreams; c) what
he/she does or does not do; and d) what others say about him/her and
how others react to him/her.
-Characters are convincing if they are: consistent, motivated and life-

like (resemble real people)
The Classification of characters
Individual - round, many sided and complex personalities.
Developing - dynamic, many sided personalities that change (for

better or worse) by the end of the story.
Static – stereotypes they have one or two characteristics that

never change and are often over-emphasized.
2. Theme
-The theme of a fable is its moral. The theme of a parable is its

teaching. The theme of piece of fiction is its view about life and how
people behave.
-It is not presented directly at all. You extract it from the characters,
action and setting that make up the story. In other words, you must
figure out the theme yourself.
Ways to uncover the theme in a story
-Check out the title. Sometimes it tells you a lot about the theme.
-Notice repeating patterns and symbols. Sometimes these lead you to

the theme.
-What allusions are made throughout the story?
-What are the details and particulars in the story? What greater
meaning may they have?
3. Plot
-A plot is a causal sequence of events, the "why" for the

things that happen in the story.
-Its structure is the way in which the story elements are

arranged.
What Goes into a Plot?
Narrative tradition calls for developing stories with

particular pieces -plot elements - in place.
•Exposition is the information needed to understand a story.
•Complication is the catalyst that begins the major conflict.
•Climax is the turning point in the story that occurs when

characters try to resolve the conflict.
4. Resolution
- The set of events that bring the story to a close.
-It's not always a straight line from the beginning to the

end of story.
5. Point of view
-Someone is always between the reader and the action of

the story
-This angle of vision, the point of view from which the

people, events and details of a story are viewed, is
important to consider when reading a story.
Types of Point of View:
• Objective Point of View
- The writer tells what happens without stating more than

can be inferred from the story's action and dialogue.
• Third person point of view
-The narrator does not participate in the action of the

story as one of the characters, but lets us know exactly how the
characters feel. We learn about the characters through this
outside voice.
• First Person Point of View
-In the first person point of view, the narrator does

participate in the action of the story. When reading
stories in the first person, we need to realize that what
the narrator is recounting might not be the objective
truth. We should question the trustworthiness of the
accounting.
•Omniscient and Limited Omniscient Points of
View
-A narrator who knows everything about all the
characters is all knowing, or omniscient.
-A narrator whose knowledge is limited to one character,

either major or minor, has a limited omniscient point of
view.
6.Settings
-Writers describe the world they know. Sights, sounds,
colors and textures are all vividly painted in words as an

artist paints images on canvas.
-The location of a story's actions, along with the time in

which it occurs, is the setting.
Aspects of setting should be considered when
examining a story:
• Place - geographical location. Where is the action of

the story taking place?
• Time - When is the story taking place? (historical

period, time of day, year, etc.)
• Weather conditions - Is it rainy, sunny, stormy, etc?

•Social conditions - What is the daily life of
the characters like? Does the story contain
local color (writing that focuses on the
speech, dress, mannerisms, customs, etc.
of a particular place)?
•Mood or atmosphere - What feeling is

created at the beginning of the story? Is it
bright and cheerful or dark and frightening?
7.Conflict
Conflict is the essence of fiction. It creates plot.
- The existence of conflict enhances the reader’s

understanding of a character and creates the
suspense and interest that make you want to
continue reading.
The conflicts we encounter can usually be identified as one of
four kinds.
• Human versus Human
• Conflict that pits one person against another.
• Human versus Nature
• This involves a run-in with the forces of nature.
• Human versus Society
• The values and customs by which everyone else lives are

being challenged.
• Human versus Human
-Conflict that pits one person against another.
-This involves a run-in with the forces of nature. On the

one hand, it expresses the insignificance of a single human life
in the cosmic scheme of things. On the other hand, it tests the
limits of a person’s strength and will to live.
•Human versus Society
-Internal conflict. Not all conflict involves other people.

Sometimes people are their own worst enemies.
-An internal conflict is a good test of a character’s values.
-The internal conflicts of a character and how they are

resolved are good clues to the character’s inner strength.
- This involves a run-in with the forces of nature. On the

one hand, it expresses the insignificance of a single human life
in the cosmic scheme of things. On the other hand, it tests the
limits of a person’s strength and will to live.
• Tone
- In literature, tone is the emotional coloring or the emotional

meaning of the work and provides an extremely important
contribution to the full meaning. In spoken language, it is indicated
by the inflection of the speaker's voice.
-Elements of tone include diction, or word choice; syntax, the

grammatical arrangement of words in a text for effect; imagery, or
vivid appeals to the senses; details, facts that are included or
omitted.
According to Harry Shaw (Dictionary of Literary
Terms), tone can be determined by three points:
1.An author's attitude or focus point toward his/her

subject. In this concern, the tone can be realistic,
somber, depressing, romantic, adventurous, etc.
2.The devices used to create the mood and atmosphere
of a literary work. In this sense, the tone consists of
alliteration, assonance, consonance, diction, imagery,
metre, theme, symbolism, irony, etc.
3.The musical quality in language. Here, the tone

depends upon the sounds of words, their arrangement
and their sequence
Summary
•The three main types of fiction according to Blakely
(2003) are: Short Story, Novella, Novel.
•Zackheim, S.P. et al. (2013)listed down two main

types of fiction also namely: Commercial fiction,
Literary fiction
•Elements of fiction: Character, Theme, Plot,

Resolution, Point of View, Setting, Conflict, Tone
References:
Bernales, R.A. (2017). Creative writing: a journey.

Mutya Publishing House, INC.: Malabon City
Zackheim, A. & Zackheim, A. (n.d.). Exploring the

different types of
fiction.https://www.dummies.com/education/language-
arts/creative-writing/exploring-the-different-types-of-
fiction/

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TYPES AND ELEMENTS OF

•Identify types of fiction.

• Identify, determine and discuss the

• Interpret a fictional literary piece through

Fiction is usually a fictional type consisting of characters,

'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'

A Tell-Tale Heart,' give it a try; you're in for a scary, shivery treat

-Novel is a work of fiction that contains over 50,000 words or

-Other blockbuster commercial fiction authors include John

The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller (Warner,

-This tends to appeal to a smaller, more intellectually adventurous

-It contains — excellent writing, originality of thought, and style — that

-Other popular authors of literary fiction include Toni Morrision, Barbara

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1997).

There are two meanings for the word character:

1) the person in a work of fiction

2) the characteristics of a person.

-One character who is clearly central to a story and commonly

- The character in opposition to the main character. He/she is

-The author may reveal a character in several ways: a) his/her physical

-Characters are convincing if they are: consistent, motivated and life-

Individual - round, many sided and complex personalities.

Developing - dynamic, many sided personalities that change (for

Static – stereotypes they have one or two characteristics that

-The theme of a fable is its moral. The theme of a parable is its

-Notice repeating patterns and symbols. Sometimes these lead you to

-What allusions are made throughout the story?

-A plot is a causal sequence of events, the "why" for the

-Its structure is the way in which the story elements are

Narrative tradition calls for developing stories with

•Exposition is the information needed to understand a story.

•Complication is the catalyst that begins the major conflict.

•Climax is the turning point in the story that occurs when

- The set of events that bring the story to a close.

-It's not always a straight line from the beginning to the

-Someone is always between the reader and the action of

-This angle of vision, the point of view from which the

• Objective Point of View

- The writer tells what happens without stating more than

• Third person point of view

-The narrator does not participate in the action of the

-In the first person point of view, the narrator does

-A narrator whose knowledge is limited to one character,

-Writers describe the world they know. Sights, sounds,

colors and textures are all vividly painted in words as an

-The location of a story's actions, along with the time in

• Place - geographical location. Where is the action of

• Time - When is the story taking place? (historical

• Weather conditions - Is it rainy, sunny, stormy, etc?

•Mood or atmosphere - What feeling is

Conflict is the essence of fiction. It creates plot.

- The existence of conflict enhances the reader’s

• Human versus Human

• Conflict that pits one person against another.

• Human versus Nature

• This involves a run-in with the forces of nature.

• Human versus Society

• The values and customs by which everyone else lives are

-Conflict that pits one person against another.

• Human versus Nature

-This involves a run-in with the forces of nature. On the

-Internal conflict. Not all conflict involves other people.

-An internal conflict is a good test of a character’s values.

-The internal conflicts of a character and how they are