2. PLOT
• A chain of related events that tell us what happens
in a story.
• The “hook,” or part that keeps us reading – is the
conflict. A conflict is the main problem faced by a
character.
• Stories follow a regular pattern that revolves around
the resolution of the conflict.
3. CONFLICT
• Conflict is the main problem in a story. It usually
occurs when a character wants something and
takes steps to get it. Along the way, complications
develop.
• External conflicts happen when the main character
struggles against outside forces.
• Internal conflicts happen when the main character
struggles against forces within him or herself.
5. PLOT PATTERN
• Exposition: the introduction of the characters,
setting, and conflict
• Rising Action: complications that get in the way of
solving the conflict; what happens as the
characters try to solve the conflict
• Climax: the peak of suspense, when the outcome
of the conflict is decided
• Resolution: the end of the story, when all the loose
ends are tied up and we know what happens to
the characters
6. SUBPLOTS
• Several stories in one
• We see subplots in movies, television shows, and
novels
• A subplot follows a series of events that is part of the
larger story but is not as important (for example, a
subplot of The Diary of Anne Frank is the growing
relationship between Anne and Peter)
7. PARALLEL EPISODES
• Repeated scenes in a piece of literature
• The plot repeats, with minor changes, a character’s
response to a complication or conflict.
• For example, in “The Three Little Pigs,” the wolf
appears to each pig in essentially the same way.
These are parallel episodes.
