Elements of Literature: Conflict

Conflict: the Energy of a Story by John Leggett

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"Little Red Riding Hood," Revised

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Once upon a time, a girl named Little Red Riding Hood set off into the forest with a basket of goodies for her grandmother. She went merrily on her way and arrived safely at Grandma's house. The wolf who usually prowled the forest pathways was in New York that week, giving a lecture about endangered species.

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No Problem, No Story

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Imagine that your favorite novel or movie was written, like this revised tale of Little Red Riding Hood, with its main problem or struggle left out. Would you still find it interesting? Most readers would probably say no.

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What quality attracts us to certain stories, whether they are true stories or fiction? What keeps us reading these stories, even when we should be attending to other business or turning out the lights and going to sleep?

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Conflict: The Energy of a Story

It is conflict, or struggle, that gives any story its energy and makes it interesting.

Here are some common types of conflicts:

1 . a conflict between two characters

2. a conflict between a character and a group or a whole society

3. a conflict between two groups or cultures

4. a conflict between a character and a natural force or event, such as a flood or the law of gravity

5. a conflict between a character and something in himself or herself: perhaps fear, shyness, homesickness, or an inability to make a decision

6. a conflict between a character and a supernatural being or forces that are not of this world

7. a conflict between a character and technological forces such as robots or computers

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Conflict Inside and Out

All of the types of conflict fit into another category, of internal or external conflict. In an external conflict a character struggles with an outside force. A conflict that takes place within a character's mind, on the other hand, is called an internal conflict.

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A story may contain several conflicts. For example, in the story "Raymond's Run," the main character, Squeaky, has a major external conflict with a rival named Gretchen. Yet Squeaky is also in conflict with others, such as people who "get smart" with her brother Raymond.

Squeaky struggles with herself, too. For example, she experiences an internal conflict when she tries to decide whether to face Gretchen and her friends or to duck into a store until they pass. In literature, as in life, this kind of conflict, between opposing desires or emotions, can be the most interesting of all.

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A Writer on Conflict

"I work to tell the truth about people's lives; I work to celebrate struggle."

Toni Cade Bambara,

author of "Raymond's Run"

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