Codename Hight
03-February-2007, 11:26 PM
Theres one part in my english exam where I have to read a short story and then point out the plot, climax, characteristics etc. Can someone
give me some good tips on how to identify these elements?
http://www.search.for-very-good-webmasters.com
Im really bad in english and hoping this exam would turn the tables, its worth 30% of my final mark and im running into this exam with a 60%.
ToSeek
04-February-2007, 04:48 AM
Plot is just the structure of the events of the story. The climax is where the events come to a head and are resolved: In a detective mystery, it's where all the suspects are gathered in the drawing room, and our brilliant hero fingers the culprit. In romance, it's where the hero and heroine overcome whatever's keeping them apart and finally come together for good. In space opera, it's when the Death Star blows up.
The plot is what leads up to all this.
Hope this helps.
Jeff Root
04-February-2007, 03:14 PM
Theres one part in my english exam where I have to read a short
story and then point out the plot, climax, characteristics etc.
Can someone give me some good tips on how to identify these
elements?
Plot is the events which take place, the circumstances which
motivate and cause those events to happen, and the results and
effects of the events. Only a broad outline of the plot is
needed. The plot of a short story can usually be described in
one short paragraph. If your description is much longer than
that, you are probably going into uneccessary details. If it
is much shorter than that, you may not be getting the whole
idea across.
For example, the plot of 'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry
might be described as:
A couple show both the depth and importance of their love for
each other when they each sacrifice their most valued possession
to give the other a nice Christmas gift. The couple has no
money, but the man has a pocketwatch which had been owned by
his father, and which he cherishes, and the woman has beautiful,
long hair, which she takes great pride in. The man sells his
watch so that he can buy his wife a comb to fasten her hair up.
She has her hair cut and sells it so that she can buy her husband
a chain for his watch. Because they love each other, they are
happy with their presents.
(I hope I remembered that right.)
The climax of a story is when something that you have been
expecting, something you have been waiting for, something you
knew had to happen, finally happens, and it turns out to be a
surprise after all. In order to have a climax, there has to be
a set-up, which gives you expectations. Often the set-up will
consist of many different pieces of information which seem not
to fit together, and the climax occurs when a final bit of info
is revealed which causes everything to suddenly make sense.
There is usually only one climax in a short story, if any.
By "characteristics", I wonder if you meant "characters".
Actually, describing the characteristics of the characters
sounds like a pretty good idea. Imagine describing Darth Vader.
Powerful and power-hungry. Frightening. Malevolent. Imagine
describing the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz. A dreamer. Wants
to be helpful. Clumsy. Prone to rust.
-- Jeff, in Minneapolis
satori
04-February-2007, 03:32 PM
i thought this storry a Maupassant's
great what you can learn on a science forum