*Characters: The people in the story
Main character(s) � the important people in the story
� protagonist (main person in the story, the hero)
� antagonist (person against the protagonist)
Secondary character(s) � the not-so-important people in the story
*Plot: What happens in the story
*Theme: The main idea, the lesson of the story
*Point of view: Who is telling the story
3rd person point of view: a narrator tells the story�most stories use 3rd person
point of view
1st person point of view: one of the characters tells the story and uses "I"
to tell the story
*Conflict: The "fighting" or the problem in the story
Internal conflict�a problem inside a character
External conflict�a problem outside
Examples of conflict:
Person versus Person
Person versus Himself or Herself
Person versus Society
Person versus Nature
Person versus Supernatural
Person versus Technology
*Conflict resolution: How the problem is fixed
* Do not mix up plot and theme of a story. The plot is the story�what happens. The theme is the main idea, the lesson behind the story.
THE ELEMENTS OF A NOVEL � THE RAINBOW FISH
*Setting:
When � now or anytime. Where � in the ocean
*Characters:
Main character � Rainbow Fish
Secondary characters � The little blue fish, the starfish, the octopus
*Plot:
The Rainbow Fish has beautiful, shiny scales but he has no friends. The octopus tells Rainbow Fish to share his scales, but Rainbow Fish thinks that is a terrible idea, because then he won�t be beautiful anymore. A little blue fish asks for one of his scales. Rainbow Fish gives him a scale; he doesn�t think that �just one� is a big problem. Soon the other fish come along and ask him for one scale too. The Rainbow Fish gives away all of his scales and keeps just one for himself. But he is happy now, because he has many friends to play with.
*Theme:
It is good to share.
It is better to have friends than to be beautiful.
It is better to be beautiful inside than outside.
*Point of view:
3rd person point of view � a narrator tells the story
*Conflict:
Rainbow Fish fights with himself.
The problem is that he has no friends.
Internal conflict�a problem inside a character
Person versus Himself (Rainbow Fish vs. himself) � Rainbow Fish
is fighting with himself, his pride and his need to be beautiful.
*Conflict resolution:
Rainbow Fish gives away his scales and gets many friends.
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