Literary Elements of a Story

Use this information for your notes and test on the Literary Elements of a Story. Remember, these elements are important things you will find in stories in all their forms (book, comic, tv show, movie).

When you are reading or watching TV, can you identify these elements?

Plot:
The sequence of events that happen in a story. The plot
usually happens in the order of: Exposition, Rising Action,
Climax, Falling Action, and Denouement.

Setting:
Where and when the story takes place. The setting is the
geographic location of the story. When a character walks
from one part of a neighborhood to the other, the scene
changes, but the setting always stays the same.

Characters:
The people, animals, or creatures in the story.

Protagonist:
One character who is central to the story and all the
major events in the story.

Antagonist:
The character who opposes, or goes against the main
character or protagonist. The antagonist tries to
prevent the main character (protagonist) from
succeeding or being happy.

Conflict:
Conflict is a problem that happens in the story. Usually, the
conflict happens toward the beginning of the story, at the
beginning of the Rising Action. There are different types of
conflicts:
(1) Person versus Person
(2) Person versus Self
(3) Person versus Nature
(4) Person versus Society
(5) Person versus Circumstance

Theme:
The message that is in the story. Common themes are love, friendship, loyalty, faith, hope, forgiveness, sacrifice, honor, justice, truth, freedom.

Download the Literary Elements of a Story here.