Elements Of Short Stories

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How does an author create a work of art? His written art must have various elements, such as characters, setting, plot, conflict and theme. Every element is important, but authors of short stories have the opportunity to emphasize one of these elements in their story. These elements are usually not stated directly. Because of this, short stories and their elements must be analyzed. W. W. Jacobs is able to combine setting, plot development and conflict in his story, some used in a nontraditional way, to make an entertaining story that attracts readers. Setting is not only place and time, but also the mood, or how the work makes the reader and characters feel. The place of a story is where the story happened, but the time is when…show more content…
The third stage of plot is the climax, or the peak of the story. It is the highest point of tension for the readers and characters. In Jacobs’s story this is when someone knocks on the door, Mrs. White runs downstairs and Mr. White makes his last wish as Mrs. White opens the last bolt on the front door. The falling action is when the tension begins to lower and the conflict is coming to an end. In The Monkey's Paw, this is when Mrs. White opens the door and wails, because there is no one outside. Resolution is when the conflict of the story is resolved and the events conclude. This is when Mr. White stands by Mrs. White looking at the lonely road. During plot, the conflict of the story comes from being introduced to being resolved. Conflict is the struggle or problem faced by characters in the story. A conflict may be interior (man vs. himself) or exterior (man vs. man, man vs. nature or man vs. society). Stories may have more than one conflict. The conflict of a story will set the plot in motion, for it begins the rising action and helps characters grow and develop. One of the main conflicts of The Monkey's Paw is internal, because Mr. White is arguing with himself as to hat wishes he…show more content…
This conflict is very clear when Mr. White must decide if he will wish for Herbert to be alive again, for he feared the horrible talisman and that his mutilated son would appear before him. Each one of a story's elements is a crucial part of it. Without characters, setting, conflict, plot or theme the story would just not exist. Element in a short story also help develop the theme of the story. The theme of The Monkey's Paw was found at the beginning of the story instead of at the end, where most authors prefer to place it. The theme of the short story would be that fate rules over people's lives and those who interfere with it do so to their sorrow. Although the theme was found at the beginning, characters, setting, plot and conflict's took a part in creating this theme throughout the story. Every wish that Mr. White made further strengthened the theme. In conclusion, characters, setting, conflict and plot revolve around theme, and each one of these is necessary in short stories, such as The Monkey's
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