An Author’s Artistry: Elements of Fiction
Once you feel you understand the basic story (characters, plot, setting, and theme), it’s time to think about the elements of fiction. Just as understanding the elements of poetry helps readers better appreciate the artistry of the poet, understanding the elements of fiction helps readers better appreciate and understand the authors of short fiction and their work.
Remember that, while the elements are important, they are used by an author to support the theme or main idea of the text–to highlight certain things they want the reader to understand about the characters and the theme.
Point of View:
By point of view, we mean from whose perspective the story is being told. Short stories tend to be told through one character’s point of view, but this is not always the case. Sometimes a short story is told by a narrator who might be a character in the story, but the story can also be told by a person completely outside of the events of the story.
Whether a text is written from first person (I/me), second person (you), or third person (he/she/it) point of view can help you determine who is telling the story. As you determine whose perspective the story is written from, you might also consider why the author chose to use that perspective for this particular story.
Key Questions to Consider about Point of View
- Who is the narrator or speaker in the story?
- Does the author speak through the main character?
- Is the story written in the first person “I” point of view?
- Is the story written in a detached third person “he/she” point of view?
- Is there an “all-knowing” 3rd person who can reveal what all the characters are thinking and doing at all times and in all places?
Here is a video about Points of View in Literature:
Language & Style
Language and style are how the author presents the story to the reader. The author’s style has to do with the author’s vocabulary, use of imagery, tone, or feeling of the story. These elements are used to create the mood and tone of the story (ironic, humorous, or dramatic) through the type of language used. In particular, diction, symbols, and irony can help to create the type of language and the style of the story. As in poetry, fiction often utilizes diction and figurative language to convey important ideas.
Diction:
Diction references the specific words that an author chooses when writing a story. These word choices help to create the tone of the story. Just as with poetry, diction can include the connotation and denotation of words–their literal meaning in contrast to the implied meaning.
Another way to look at diction in short fiction is to compare the way the story is written to the standards of “proper” writing and speech. Diction can be seen as the mark of quality of the writing, but it is also understood as the selection of certain words or phrases that become peculiar to a writer.
Levels of diction include: archaic diction (diction that is antique, that is rarely used), high diction (lofty sounding language), and low diction (everyday language). Each of these forms is meant to enhance the meaning or artistry of an author’s work.
Symbolism:
Authors of short stories often use symbols to add depth to the story. A symbol represents something larger than itself, such as the road being considered one’s life path in the Robert Frost poem “The Road Not Taken.” Symbols can be very literal, like night representing death, or they can provoke deeper thought from the reader to decode. Symbols can be objects, actions, people, or places, and they might represent an attitude, belief, value, or quality.
Determining the symbols in a story can aid in defining the theme. Oftentimes, an author has intentional additions embedded throughout a story for the reader to interpret, but sometimes the use of symbols can be unconscious. Breaking down the symbolism in a story can give you more insight into the theme or meaning of the text.
Irony:
Irony is the contrast between appearance/expectation and reality. Irony can be verbal (spoken), situational (something is supposed to happen but doesn’t), or dramatic (difference between what the characters know and what the audience knows).
This updated version of Morissette’s song includes many examples of what some might call “cosmic” irony. Ironically, critics claim that none of the examples are actually examples of irony…which others argue is perhaps the point of the song.
Alanis Morissette Updates ‘Ironic’ Lyrics
Elements of Fiction Practice
Choose a short story from the Short Fiction Anthology. Follow the steps for reading fiction. Once you feel confident that you understand the meaning of the story and have written your personal response, it’s time to look at how the elements of fiction help the author to convey the theme/meaning of the story. Fill out the following form to help you think through the elements of fiction in the story you chose. You will be able to save and export the document when you are done.
Attributions:
- Content created by Dr. Karen Palmer. Licensed under CC BY SA.
- Content adapted from “Forming a Perspective on the Subject” from Writing and Literature, licensed under CC BY SA.
- Content adapted from How to Analyze a Short Story by Carol Dwankowaki aned licensed CC BY-SA.
- “Symbolism” adapted from Metaphor, Symbolism, and Symbols licensed under CC BY SA.
- “Diction” adapted from Diction licensed under CC BY SA.
