THE ELEMENTS OF PROSE

1. SETTING
2. CHARACTER
3. PLOT
4. POINTOF VIEW
5. THEME
1. SETTING
 Setting is the “where and when” of a story.
 It is the time and place during which the story
takes place.
 The functions of a setting:
◦ to make action seem more real
◦ to create a mood or atmosphere
Mood is the feeling that the author tries to convey
throughout the story. The atmosphere or emotional
condition created by the piece, within the setting. Does
the author want the reader to be frightened or sad, or
does the story make the reader laugh and think happy
thoughts?
2. CHARACTER
The person, animals, and things participating in a story
Types of character:
Protagonist—the story revolves around the character.

Antagonist—the character who acts against the protagonist.

Flat Character—one who is not very developed.

Round Character—one who is multi-dimensional and complex.

Static Character—one who stays the same throughout the story.

Dynamic Character—one who changes over the course of the story.

Characterization is the way in which a writer reveals the
personality of a character.
Direct characterization
 The author tells the reader what the
personality of the character is.

“He’s good-looking, he’s strong enough to

handle the work in the mines, and he can hunt.”
Indirect Characterization - STEAL
Speech What does the character say? How does
the character speak?
Thoughts What is revealed through the character’s
private thoughts and feelings?
Effect on What is revealed through the character’s
others effect on other people? How do other
(others feel characters feel or behave in reaction to
about the the character?
character)
Actions What does the character do? How does
the character behave?
Looks What does the character look like? How
3. PLOT
 The sequence of events which are related to one another or cause
of effect in a story.
 Parts of plot:
1. Exposition - introduction; characters, setting and conflict
(problem) are introduced
2. Rising Action- events that occur as the result of central
conflict
3. Climax- the highest point of interest or suspense of a story
4. Falling Action - tension eases; events show the results of
how the main character begins to resolve the conflict
5. Resolution/Denouement- the conflict is solved
Plot Diagram

4
2
1
5
Diagram of Plot
Climax

Fal ion
tio /

Act
Ac ent

ling
n
ing pm
Ris velo
De

Introduction/
Exposition Resolution

Setting, characters,
and conflict are
introduced
4. POINT OF VIEW
 First Person Point of View:
 a character from the story is telling the story,
 uses the pronouns “I” and “me”
 Third Person Point of View:

 an outside narrator is telling the story,

 uses the pronouns “he”, “she”, “they”
 types of third person point of view:
 Third-Person Limited
o The narrator knows the thoughts and feelings on only ONE
character in a story.
 Third-Person Omniscient
o The narrator knows the thoughts and feeling of ALL the
characters in a story.
5. THEME
 The theme is
 the central, general message, the main idea, the controlling topic
about life or people the author wants to get across through a
literary work
 To discover the theme of a story, think big.
What big message is the author trying to say about the world in
which we live?
What is this story telling me about how life works, or how people
behave?
 For example: the class or group barriers

 The practical lesson ( moral) that we learn from a story

after we read it. The lesson that teaches us what to do
or how to behave after you have learned something
from a story or something that has happened to you.