STRUCTURE AND FORM IN FICTION

Objective 1: Key Terms and Vocabulary

OBJECTIVES

• By the time you finish taking notes on this presentation, you should understand the definitions of the following terms and be able to identify examples of each:
• Plot
• Plot structure
• Chronology
• Nonlinear narrative
• Reverse chronology
• Flashback
• Flash forward
• In Medias Res
• Stream of Consciousness
• Internal Monologue

PLOT

• At its heart, plot is simply the term used to describe the events that make up a story.
• These events should relate to each other in some way, to create a sequence.
• The structure of a text, however, depends on how the author chooses to order the events of their plot.

PLOT STRUCTURE

• Most plots can be outlined using the following structure:
• Exposition
• Characters, setting, and conflict are introduced
• Rising Action
• The situation surrounding the conflict becomes complicated and the stakes are raised
• Climax
• The turning point of a story, when the conflict reaches its boiling point and tensions are highest
• Falling Action
• After the climax, when the conflict begins to be resolved
• Denouement
• The very ending of the story, where everything is wrapped up (or not)

PLOT STRUCTURE

You may have seen something like this before!

​

This is known as the classic “plot chart” and is a visual representation of the different stages of plot.

​

Pretty simple, right?

NOT SO FAST, MY FRIEND.

• Unfortunately (or fortunately) there aren’t a whole lot of works of great literature that follow that plot structure strictly.
• Why not?
• Authors like to play around with the chronology of their plots.
• Authors include things like subplots to complicate their stories.
• Authors like to use techniques like stream of consciousness to improve characterization at the expense (sometimes) of plot.

CHRONOLOGY

• Chronology refers to the order of events in a plot.
• Nearly all plots have a chronological order – meaning that you can order the events of the plot in the time order in which they happen.
• For example, a plot has Events A, B, C and D which occur in that exact order.
• The truth is, though, that very few novels actually present their events in exact chronological order.
• Authors use some of the following techniques to play around with chronology in order to achieve a specific effect:
• Flashback
• Flash Forward
• In Medias Res
• Nonlinear narrative
• Reverse chronology

​

NONLINEAR NARRATIVE

• A nonlinear narrative is simply any story in which the events are told out of their chronological order.
• In some cases, this could mean that the story is told completely out of order.
• In other cases, it could simply mean that the author makes use of techniques like flashbacks, flash forwards, and in medias res.
• Nonlinear narratives can be confusing at times, because it is more difficult to follow the plot. However, it is an effective technique to emphasize specific events or scenes, or to avoid revealing aspects of a character until a particular moment.

FLASHBACK AND FLASH FORWARD

• A flashback is a common technique that authors use to manipulate the chronology of their plots.
• Definition: The literary technique of giving an account of a conversation, an episode, or an event that happened before the main chronological sequence of the narrative.
• Flashbacks can be used to reveal crucial backstory to help develop the characters or the plot
• Less commonly used is the flash forward
• Definition: The literary technique in which the chronological sequence of events is interrupted by the interjection of a future event.
• The purpose of flash forwards vary, though in general, they are used to reveal the outcome of an event or to create suspense and tension.

IN MEDIAS RES

• Literally, in medias res means “in the midst of things”
• In the context of literature, this term refers to a story that starts in the middle of the action, usually skipping (at least at first) the exposition stage.
• Texts that utilize in medias res will often use flashbacks or elements of non-linear narrative later on to fill in the missing parts of the story

REVERSE CHRONOLOGY

• The most extreme example of a narrative structure that doesn’t follow a chronological timeline are narratives that employ reverse chronology.
• This means that the story is literally told backwards – starting with the ending (denouement) and working its way back to the beginning (exposition).
• This is not a common type of story, though it is useful to know about.
• A few examples:
• Chris Nolan’s film Memento
• Julia Alvarez used the technique in her novel How the Garcia Girls Lose Their Accents
• Martin Amis used the technique in his novel Time’s Arrow

STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS

• A literary technique in which the narration attempts to provide the character’s internal thought processes, often using the technique of internal monologue.
• As with most thought, stream of consciousness sometimes does not follow logical patterns – a character might have a thought or memory triggered by something and then shift attention entirely to that thing.
• This is largely used to deeply explore characters and their internal struggles and conflicts.
• Authors who are well-known for their use of stream of consciousness:
• Virginia Woolf
• James Joyce
• William Faulkner
• Dave Eggers
• Sylvia Plath