The form of Short story

 

Concept and definition of short story

an invented prose narrative shorter than a novel usually dealing with a few characters and aiming at unity of effect and often concentrating on the creation of mood rather than plot

short story, brief fictional prose narrative that is shorter than a novel and that usually deals with only a few characters.

The short story is usually concerned with a single effect conveyed in only one or a few significant episodes or scenes. The form encourages economy of setting, concise narrative, and the omission of a complex plot; character is disclosed in action and dramatic encounter but is seldom fully developed. Despite its relatively limited scope, though, a short story is often judged by its ability to provide a “complete” or satisfying treatment of its characters and subject.

Before the 19th century the short story was not generally regarded as a distinct literary form. But although in this sense it may seem to be a uniquely modern genre, the fact is that short prose fiction is nearly as old as language itself. Throughout history humankind has enjoyed various types of brief narratives: jests, anecdotes, studied digressions, short allegorical romances, moralizing fairy tales, short myths, and abbreviated historical legends. None of these constitutes a short story as it has been defined since the 19th century, but they do make up a large part of the milieu from which the modern short story emerged.

Example of Short story - The last leaf

Elements of Short story 

1. Characters

In short stories, the number of characters are usually limited. They’ll have a main character or protagonist, whom you’ll meet at a crucial stage in his or her life. You may only know a couple of his or her qualities. The other people who appear in the story are generally the minor characters.

2. Narrator

You must not confuse the narrator here with the author. In a short story, a narrator is the voice that tells the story. Narrators in short stories are purely fictional.

3. Setting

Because of the limited length of short stories, it is rather unusual to have many settings in them. A setting is the time and place where the events in the story take place. As a short story covers a shorter time span, its setting can be directly stated or implied.

4. Events

Events are the facts in the story that form the storyline and drive the action forward. The way the narrator arranges and presents the events is described as the plot. Mostly, the short stories have one main plot without the presence of any sub-plots. There’s no room for sub-plots in a short story.

5. Closure

A closure is the ending of the narrative. If it solves the problem or issue in the story, it closes the ending. If the situations are left unresolved, the ending is considered open. In this case, the short story ends with the climax.