Plot Sujet Composition Plot and composition Plot and

Plot (Sujet). Composition Plot and composition Plot and Fabula The structure of a plot The types of plots

Содержание и форма литературного произведения

The form and content of a literary work: composition Idea Theme Sujet System of Images Language/linguistic level

The content of the literary work is regarded as a set of subjective meaning (idea) and objective-subject (thema) values, and the form is regarded as linguistic or verbal level The content of the literary work, expressed in a the form of images differs from the content of scientific work, expressed in formulas, concepts. Mastery in achieving a high level of unity of content and form is associated with a talent of artist, composer, writer. The conceptions of THEME, IDEA, PROBLEM make the content of works of art.

Plot as a category of artistic form Composition of plot Plot is the story line or the way a story is written. Fabula and Sujet (also sjuzhet, syuzhet, sjužet, or suzet) are terms originating in Russian Formalism and employed in narratology (теория повествования) that describe narrative construction. Sujet is an employment of narrative and fabula is the order of retelling events. They were first used in this sense by Vladimir Propp and Shklovsky. The fabula of a text is the raw order in which events occurred, while sujet is defined as the way in which these events are depicted and reshaped in their emplotment. Since Aristotlenarrative plots are supposed to have a beginning, middle, and end. Фабула (лат. fabula - рассказ, повествование) in English – fable

4 conceptions about the relations between sujet and fabula Cюжет -это целостная система событий во всей их последовательности, а фабула -это сюжетная схема. Фабула- это целостная система событий, а сюжет - это ее схема. Сюжет- это художественно целесообразная система событий, а фабула- это выпрямленный сюжет. Понятие фабулы избыточно. Sujet is a complete system of events in their sequence, and the fabula is a sujet scheme. Fabula is a complete system of events and the sujet is its scheme. Sujet is artistically purposeful system of events and the plot is straightened sujet. The concept of fabula is redundant.

Freytag's pyramid This three-part view of a plot structure (with a beginning, middle, and end) prevailed until 1863, when the German playwright and novelist Gustav Freytag laid out what has come to be known as Freytag's pyramid. Under Freytag's pyramid, the plot of a story consists of five parts: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

Freytag's pyramid

Exposition This is the introduction of story - background information that is needed to properly understand it. This information can include the protagonist, antagonist, the setting and so forth. The inciting incident occurs here - the initial event which triggers the rest of the story. In other words, what was it that put everything in motion? Exposition is concerned with introducing characters and setting. These elements may be largely presented at the beginning of the story, or may occur as a sort of incidental description throughout. Exposition may be handled in a variety of ways—perhaps a character or a set of characters explain the elements of the plot through dialogue or thought, media such as newspaper clippings, and diaries.

COMPLICATION –includes situation – what’s new, what’s wrong and aspects of conflict, especially the appearance of obstacles to the protagonist’s objective Conflict is the "problem" in a story which triggers the action. There are five basic types of conflict: Person vs. Person: One character in a story has a problem with one or more of the other characters; Person vs. Society: A character has a conflict or problem with society; Person vs. Himself or Herself: A character struggles inside and has trouble deciding what to do; Person vs. Nature: A character has a problem with some element of nature, (e. g. , a snowstorm, an avalanche, the bitter cold); Person vs. Fate: A character has to battle what seems to be an uncontrollable problem. Rising Action is what occurs leading up to the climax. These tasks are the "rising action", and the final battle would be considered "the climax". Rising Action is the central part of a story during which various problems arise, leading up to the climax.

Climax CLIMAX-is the Greek word for ladder. A climax makes us feel as if we have climbed to the top of a conflict. The moment of recognition is usually a major climax. It is the release of tension. Although drama contains moments of many kinds of recognition, there is usually one key moment somewhere in the middle of the play, when the agentprotagonist sees, or believes he sees, the true nature of his situation. The climax is the high point of the story, where a culmination of events create the peak of the conflict. The climax usually features the most conflict and struggle, and usually reveals any secrets or missing points in the story. Alternatively, an anti-climax may occur, in which an expectedly difficult event is revealed to be incredibly easy or of paltry importance. Critics may also label the falling action as an anti-climax, or anti-climactic. The climax isn't always the most important scene in a story. In many stories, it is the last sentence, with no successive falling action or resolution.

Falling Action The falling action deals with events which occur right after the climax. These events are usually the after-effects of the climax. The falling action is the part of a story following the climax. This is the turning point of the story, leading up to the solution of the conflict. Critics may label a story with falling action as the anti-climax or anti-climactic if they feel that the falling action takes away from the power of the climax.

Resolution/Denouement DENOUEMENT- is French for ‘untying the knot’ as the knot of the situation is untied; all the accumulated tension of the play is finally released. Major conflicts are resolved, balance is restored to the world of the play and a new occasion is about to be born. RESOLUTION – all images of action are resolved into one total and complete image, which contains an implied vision of the future. S. brings all of the forces into balance, giving the audience a final image of the whole world of the play.

Sujet in a lyrical work as a system events is absent but there is a lyrical sujet as a system feelings and emotions of a lyrical character, his relationship with the world. There are plotless prosaic literary works such as lyrical prose, essays, that are close to the lyrical works. They can be identified as 'psychological‘ sujets, which are not based on events but on “movements” of thoughts, feelings and emotions. Themes and motifs in Comparative Literary Study tell about the genesis of the works, about typological similarity or difference, about the laws of the idea - thematic and genre-compositional development.

Optional elements of the plot Prologue is preface, an introduction to the literary work, not related to the developing events, but anticipating the story. Epilogue is afterword, opinion, some information about the fate of the characters after the depicted events. Peripetieia is reversal of fortune.

Optional elements of the plot Anagnorisis: A revelation, or a moment of self-discovery. Deus ex Machina: the crane by which gods flew in as saviors at the end of a Greek play. The term is used nowadays to refer to a device at the end of a play in which characters are saved or problems are resolved. Hamartia: a character’s flaw. Hubris: an act of arrogance, where a character oversteps the mark. Usually followed automatically by nemesis. Nemesis: Goddess of retribution/ воздаяние, возмездие, кара, наказание, расплата/; also refers to someone who avenges or punishes. Peripeteia: a reversal of Fortune. Stychomythia: a technique of quickfire dialogue.

The types of plot Concentric plot = cause-and-effect relations "The king died and then the queen died of grief. " This is a better example of a plot because it shows one event (the king's death) being the cause of the next event (the queen's death). The plot draws the reader into the character's lives and helps the reader understand the choices that the characters make. Chronicle plot= chronological sequence "The king died and then the queen died. " This is a bad example of plot. Why? Well, there are two events - one followed by the other. But there is no tie between the two events. Mixture of two types of plot.

Plot in the epic literary work develops smoother, slower than in drama. Plot in the drama more intensive, the culmination is strained and colorful. In the composition of the drama there can be an unexpected turn, complications, reversals in the plot as well as in the fate of the hero. Descriptions, retreats, introductory and inserted episodes, frames are not included in the composition of the plot, but are an integral parts of the composition of a literary work. Permutations of chapters, author’s digressions, extended descriptions, considerations are dominant of psychological literary works. Some works has open finale.

Frame and frame elements of a literary work v Title v Subtitle v Epigraph v Devotion v introduction

Composition The subject matter of a literary work (the sequence of events, character collisions) may be represented in a variety of ways. Intuitively or not, an author chooses his technique according to his meaning. The narration may be done in the first person, the narrator can be either his own protagonist, or focusing on another one. The narration may be done in the third person, as observer. An author may not be present at all, be entirely anonymous. The narration: first-person, third – person, anonymous rest on such forms as: interior monologue; dramatic monologue, dialogue, narration, description. All these forms of presentation interrelate in a literary text. The arrangement and disposition of all the forms of the subject matter presentation make up the composition of the literary text.

Composition of a literary work Scenery Pictures of nature Portrait (physical and psychological) The basic requirements to a composition are personal and artistic motivation, strict subordination of all elements of literary work (episodes, images, motives) to a theme, idea, a problem and a plot of a work of art. Various ways of a plot structure: a place the exposition, a detained and a sudden initial act, various groupings of personages, epic and dramatic development of action, a culmination place.

Inner world of personage/psychologism The various methods for psychological disclosing of private world of personage. The description of inner world of personage by strengthening one side of character. A variety of the means applied by writers to show inner world of personage: author's characteristics, other personage’s characteristics, internal monologues, diary, letters, behavior acts.

Genre specific features of a composition of literary works In lyrics, there is only the image of the lyrical hero, so we do not have to talk about the composition of the images. But there are the diverse components of the composition of the image. The lack of plot are compensated by expressions of emotions that make up the particularity of lyric literary work. In these literary works there is a close relationship of poetic composition and speech order. Systemic unity at all levels of compositional construction of literary works provided the idea and thematic unity of the work. In Epic works there are descriptions that gave the impression of statics of narration or narrative dramatism that give the impression of compositional dynamics. Chronope is decretive, historically determined.