THEME AND NARRATIVE ELEMENTS IN THE SHORT STORY

Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story

Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story

Introduction

A short story is a short work of fiction. Fiction, as you know, is prose writing about imagined events and characters. Prose writing differs from poetry in that it does not depend on verses, meters or rhymes for its organization and presentation. Novels are another example of fictional prose and are much longer than short stories. Some short stories, however, can be quite long. If a short story is a long one, say fifty to one hundred pages, we call it a novella. American literature contains some of the world's best examples of the short story. Readers around the world enjoy the finely crafted stories of American writers such as O. Henry, Stephen Crane, Jack London, Mark Twain and Edgar Allen Poe.

Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story

Many literature students are expected to be familiar with the basic terms listed below (and discussed in more depth in your text). Keep this study guide with your text. At the beginning of each reading assignment, write the elements of literature pertaining to the particular type of literature at the beginning of the short story or poem. After reading, define them in your text for class discussion, quizzes, and test preparation. To understand literature, it is necessary that you ask yourself certain questions, such as "what is the theme of this story?" or "why does the author use this particular type of imagery?" You are not necessarily reading for pleasure--although it is sincerely hope you will derive pleasure from your assignments--but for the development of critical analysis skills, so observe the author's style and intent carefully.

Ernest Hemingway (1927) begins the story by saying, “The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and white. On this side there was no shade and no trees and the station was between two lines of rails in the sun. Close against the side of the station there was the warm shadow of the building and a curtain, made of strings of bamboo beads, hung across the open door into the bar, to keep out flies. The American and the girl with him sat at a table in the shade, outside the building. It was very hot and the express from Barcelona would come in forty minutes. It stopped at this junction for two minutes and went to Madrid.” (Chapter 7) The setting which is on a train station in Spain has a lot to do with the story, since it is mainly where it takes place. Here is where the girl admires the scenery and compares it to white elephants, which is a large contribution to the significance of the story. The white hills symbolize her pregnancy that is in essence unwanted. They are addressing the situation and deciding of whether or not to have an abortion.

The setting involves two basic elements: the place and time of the incidents which are related ...