The relationship between plot and time order

The plot is the plan used by the author to select and relate the events of a story, just as the outline is used by the nonfiction writer to decide the major and minor points of an essay. Traditional plot development in a short story follows this order: (1) The characters, their surroundings, and the situation are introduced right away. (2) Something happens to start the action and provide the basis for the conflict or problem in the story. (3) The conflict is developed by a series of actions or events that complicate the story or provide suspense. (4) The final action or event, which is of greatest interest to the reader because it brings the story to a point where matters have to be settled and some resolution made, is the climax. (5) If the final action does not satisfactorily conclude the story (that is, explain the «why» of it), then an unraveling or clarification, a de’nouement (from the French verb de’nouer, to untie), is included.

Not all plot development is traditional. Many stories omit one or more of these five points or change them around because of the way time is shown. We ourselves most often relate an incident as a simple chronology; that is, from beginning to end, without interruption. However, sometimes we stop to include things that happened before the incident occurred so that listeners understand it better. When earlier events interrupt the present in a short story, novel, or movie, the technique is called a flashback. For instance, a mother who is punishing her child for eating candy just before dinner might suddenly have a flashback of her own mother scolding her for doing exactly the same thing. As she looks back at herself (in her mind’s eye), for just a moment she is again a naughty child and feels everything her own child is feeling. The result is that her anger toward her child vanishes, but some kind of explanation is needed to explain the abrupt change in her attitude. The flashback provides this special insight. However, a flashback is never used to supply information that the author just forgot to include. Time order, then, is important to establish what happened, and when.

Reading for Writing

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Narration: What’s in a Story?	\|	The Night the President Met the Burglar

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