ELEMENTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENT LITERATURE

At the end of this unit, the students are expected to:

a. Demonstrate knowledge on the elements of children and adolescent literature;
b. Analyze elements of the selected children and adolescent literature;

ELEMENTS OF FICTION
1. CHARACTERIZATION
At the heart of every story is an array of characters. A character is one of the most significant
elements in fiction. A character is the "who" of the story. "The successful development of the
main character is the most vital element of the work" (Brown & Stephen, 2007). Characters
include the people and animals that are featured in the narrative. Every character is especially
designed based on the function in the story, thus, every single character is essential. The
characterizations are developed through dialogues and descriptions of the authors.
Characters are developed based on:

 the narrators' portrayal of how the characters look like and their personality through
the vivid description;
 what other characters see;
 on what they do, how they act and interact, what they feel and speak.

Main Characters
The central characters are either the protagonist or antagonist. The protagonists the hero in
the story, while the antagonist is the villain or someone whose function is to oppose the hero
or has qualities opposite of the hero. An antagonist is someone who has evil ulterior motives
and a plot to destroy the protagonists. The heroes are significant figures in children's literature
since they show commendable qualities and serve as models of good values to the children.
While heroes are always depicted as physically pleasant, good-natured, and naturally lovable,
villains are described as ugly, with a typical evil power or bad qualities. Although the
protagonists are the most important characters, the role of the villain is equally significant
since, without the villain, the heroes will not experience events that will help develop their
characters. Without the villain, the hero cannot shine.
Not only that, villains help the heroes fulfill their heroic acts. They also help the young readers
deal with the idea of darkness, injustice, unfairness. They are the exact figures of what children
have to avoid becoming, what behaviors should not be followed. It will help children to make
favorable choices. They will help children process negative emotions positively. They also
represent the tangible forces that give people challenges and obstacles, which happen in real
life.
Among the unforgettable villains is Count Olaf in the story "A Series of Unfortunate Events,"
Lord Voldemort in "Harry Potter," The White Witch in "Narnia". In fairy tales, the most hated
villains of all time include the big bad Wolf, Snow White's step-mother, Maleficent, Ursula in
"Little Mermaid," Cinderella's step-mother, and more.

Supporting Characters
Supporting characters are people who serve as a backdrop to the main character’s story.
Supporting characters are usually the allies of the protagonists who provide support, they
create a particular interest, provide comic relief or enhance the main characters. Supporting
characters exist to affect the heroes and give us a better view of the heroes' characterization.
Supporting characters' archetypes are the confidantes, the mentors, the sidekicks, the love
interests, or the fool.

Round Characters
Characters can be identified as round or dynamic, flat or static, stock and foil. The most
developed character is the round or dynamic characters since they have to undergo character
transition and changes to respond to their experiences and the events in the story. Round or
dynamic characters are the most detailed characters who change in the course of the plot.
The main characters are mostly round. The character's development is very important,
especially the protagonists since readers will always tend to relate to the protagonist of the
story. The main characters' strengths must be distinct as well as their weaknesses. This will help
the readers to identify themselves with the main characters and make a connection to
maximize their reading experience. Flat, Static, and Stock Characters
Supporting characters are the less developed characters compared to the main characters. They
are typically given a flat and static character. Only a few of their traits and one side of their
personality are revealed.
Flat characters are usually static characters. Flat and static characters can be distinguished in
terms of character change and emotion. A flat character is someone who has not shown
complex emotions or complex motivations, while static characters are those who do not change
over time; the personalities do not evolve. They consistently show the same qualities from the
beginning of the story until the end. Harry Potter was characterized as static since his
characterization did not undergo any change. The protagonists and antagonists in most of the
classical and medieval literature are static characters. They are consistent with their side being
good or bad. However, modern-day characterization is more interesting since some
protagonists reveal their weak side, and other antagonists reveal their good side. Many of the
21st literary pieces adapted to films show the story of the antagonist who became a
protagonist. Two of which are Maleficent and Cruella.
Stock characters are those that are usually stereotyped or those that are recognizable and are
based on cliches, Stock characters are in between archetype and stereotype. A stereotype is an
oversimplification of the characterization. This oversimplification will usually lead to negative
characterization. Cliches, on the other hand, are those with predictable character qualities. This
happens since every character must play a role that shows a universal truth. On the contrary,
an archetype is a familiar character. This familiarity is due to the emotional recursion brought
about by the readers' parallel human experience with the characters. Examples of archetypes
are the warrior, the explorer, the hero, the villain, the creator, the sage, the ruler, and others
that are usually portrayed in stories.
Stock characterization includes the qualities of heroes as manly, handsome, good, courageous,
usually with a heroine counterpart who is beautiful, innocent, gentle, and kind personality.
While a villain is always characterized as the nemesis of the hero who creates the odds, there is
always a villain accomplice who serves as the sidekick and whose role is to execute the villains'
plans. Another, is a faithful servant of the heroes. In the classical stories where females are
stereotyped as weak, they usually play the damsel in distress who will be rescued by the
heroes.

Foil Characters
The foil character is anyone who exhibits contrasting qualities of the protagonist or another
character in the story to highlight the difference. The hero and the villain foil each other. In
many stories, a wise hero is foiled with a dumb sidekick. The famous Harry Potter is foiled by
Draco Malfoy. Without the White Witch, we could not recognize Aslan's good qualities. Without
the White Queen, we cannot point out the Red Queen's strengths and weaknesses.

Deuteragonists and Confidante

Deuteragonists are secondary characters of importance. They are sometimes close to the main
characters and share the same intention with them or play neutral. They may serve as a foil to
the protagonist or share the same qualities with them. The confidantes are the closest persons
to the protagonists. The main character usually reveals his/her mind to the confidant.
Confidantes help the protagonists to make decisions, handle situations, analyze problems and
recover. The confidante provides advice, persuades the main character, or confronts them. The
main character usually reveals his/her mind to the confidant. In the "Lord of the Rings,"
Samwise Gamgee played both deuteragonist and a confidante, while Gandalf played a
deuteragonist.
 2. SETTING
Every story occurs in a geographical location during a certain period. This Is called the setting.
The setting can be introduced by directly stating the place and the time the story takes place.
Setting can be revealed through the characters' eyes, manners, and orientations. A setting
generally describes the time and place where the story takes place. In a single-story, there
could be one or more settings.
Further, when the setting is mentioned as the title of the story, readers would expect its greater
significance. Wilder's "The Little House on the Prairie" are examples. Understanding the setting
will also help the readers in identifying the mood that the author wants to convey.
To understand the setting, the readers should look into the following:

 the alternative realities such as the past, present, future, or the combination of the
three;
 the weather, climate, location, or the topography;
 the concrete or imaginary time and place;
 the abstract location (such as the wardrobe in "The Lion, the Witch, and the
Wardrobe").
A setting has been given more weight in some stories and less in others. Settings can be an
integral part or serve as a backdrop. In historical and realistic fiction, the setting is an important
element thus, referred to as integral.
In an integral setting, the time and place are described in detail. Integral setting dictates the
language that the character uses, the norms of the society and culture, the means and style of
transportation, the clothes that the characters wear, and the activities that the people are
engaged in. The setting is integral when the story could not have been set anywhere but the
time and location where the author intended the story to happen. An integral setting is used in
Erdrich's "Birchbark House," Gidwtiz's "The Inquisitor's Tale," Kalmar's "A Stitch in Time," and
others.
On the other hand, the setting used as a backdrop has moderately less importance than the
setting used as an integral element. A backdrop setting creates a visual charm but is not
significant to the whole plot. Backdrop setting in many traditional pieces of literature helps in
presenting universal or general ideas. It is nonspecific and vague like a huge castle, in a
countryside, in the peasant's shack, into the woods or in any city or place. In fairytales, the
setting is always a "once upon a time or in a faraway land" that conveys a timeless tale.
 3. PLOT
A plot is a narrative or the logical order of events in a story. A basic structure of the plot
includes the exposition or introduction where the characters and the setting are introduced.
Aristotle formulated a unified triangle-shaped plot that consists of a continuous sequence of
beginning, middle, and end. It describes a linear path where the beginning imitates an action
towards achieving the intended chains of cause and effects. The middle is where the
complication is introduced and how it is overcome. The ending provides a resolution or closure
to the story.

Gustave Freytag's pyramid plot structure is modified from Aristotle's, which consists of 5 parts,
exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. The exposition introduces the
setting and provides a background of the major characters and their relationships. The plot
thickens in the rising action. It is where the complications are introduced and tensions built
between and among the characters that lead to climax. The highest peak of the plot is the
climax, where the central characters make a decision, or where there is a revelation, a twist, or
a turning point for the major character. Next to the climax is the falling action. The falling action
takes place when the conflict of the major characters is almost resolved. The final part of the
story is the resolution, where the readers are provided with a sense of closure.
 4. CONFLICT

Another very essential element of a story is conflict. A conflict is the main challenge to the
characters. The main types of conflict include man versus himself, man versus nature, man
versus man, man versus society. Man versus himself highlights the inner conflict of the main
character that causes him or her to fail. Man versus nature portrays the struggle of the main
character against nature. Man versus man is a conflict between the protagonist and the
antagonist of the story. Man versus society depicts the protagonists' struggle between the
norms, the culture, and the society itself.

5. THEME
A theme is a central idea or a hidden meaning of the story. It is always related to the subject yet
can be distinguished from the subject. A subject is the topic of the story, such as the contrast
between good versus evil, true love, friendship or connection, seeking freedom or revenge.
Themes are ideas or opinions on the subject which are written in statement form. We think of
the contrast between good and evil; the theme could be "In the battle between good and evil,
good always triumphs." If the subject is true love, the theme could be "True love knows no
reason." For friendship, the theme could be "No matter how friends are separated by time and
distance, true friendship remains."
Themes can be conveyed by the characterization, the plot, the setting, and other elements of
the story. In short, a theme is the "what" of the story. In understanding the theme, a reader
needs to look for the recurring symbolism or images and relate them to human experiences.
Themes can be expressed in sentences or clauses. It can be directly stated or implied. In a
single-story, there can be one or many themes. Themes can also be chunked into subthemes.
Main themes present the overall idea of the story, while minor or subthemes can be deduced at
a certain point of the narrative.

6. MORAL
Theme and moral are two related elements. If the theme is the "what" of the story, the moral is
the "why." Moral refers to the piece of wisdom that the author wants to convey. Morals are
deduced at the end of the story. It is a suggested lesson that could be explicitly written at the
end of the story, like that of fables or implied. To understand the moral of the story, readers
need to finish reading. The morals teach the readers how to behave as part of society. The
moral is an essential element in children and adolescent literature since it helps them realize
how to act or become better people.

7. POINT OF VIEW

A point of view is a perspective that determines who tells the story. It could be the first-person
point of view or the point of view of the main character, telling the story, the second person
point of view where the readers are involved in the story, or the third person point of view
where the author is directly telling the story. The point of view also explains how the narrator
presents the story and how much the narrator knows. Classical literature is usually consistent
with the one-person narrator's point of view; and these are revealed on the first and second
pages. In modern stories, the point of view may shift from one person to another. This is
referred to as an alternating point of view.
Alternating Point of View
There are stories told from the point of view of two characters or more.
This happens when a single incident is told from different eyes. In the "Animorphs: The
Andalite's Gift," each of the five children told a first-person account in each. The novel "Never
Mind! A Twin Novel was told alternately by the male and female twins.
Third Person Omniscient Point of View
The omniscient narrator is an all-knowing narrator being aware of everything that happened
and about to happen in the story. This includes the more profound thoughts and voice of each
character. The third-person omniscient narrator can move freely from one mind to another and
reveals to the readers how each character thinks. The omniscient narrator knows the
characters more than they know themselves. He is also aware of the past and future events or
events that occur simultaneously. This type of narration is a third-person omniscient point of
view. Examples of Omniscient narration are the "Little Women," "Peter Pan," "Charlotte's
Web," "Frog and Toad are Friends" and many others.
Third Person Limited Point of View
When the story unfolds through the eyes of one character, the narration used is a third-person
limited point of view or the limited omniscient point of view.
It is a point of view that allows the readers to get to know the character deeply by observing
the feelings and senses the emotions of the characters. An example of third-person limited
omniscient is 'The Little House on the Prairie".
Objective Point of View
An objective point of view is a narration where the narrator does not disclose or enter the
minds of the character but narrates as an observer or reporter. The narrator, in an objective
point of view, only reports facts. The readers do not know what the character thinks unless they
are engaged in dialogues. The narrator does not also comment on the events of the story. The
story unfolds based on the actions of the characters.

8. MOOD
As a literary element, mood is the emotive atmosphere within the story conveyed through the
use of language, setting and physical location, feelings of the main characters, or music. The
mood of the literary piece is described as an emotional impact to the readers, or what the
readers feel about the plot, dialogues, setting, and events in the story.
Commonly the mood of the story is cheerful when the characters are happy, the songs used are
lively, the colors are bright, and the emotion that the story gives to the readers is light. On the
other hand, using dark colors, sad music, and melancholic characters, the mood becomes
pensive and sad. The mood is humorous when the characters throw punch lines, or the actions
are ridiculous, or when there is a comic relief intentionally inserted which gives a fun vibe to
the readers. The mood is idyllic when the story gives a peaceful and calm feeling to the readers.
The mood is mysterious when there is a feeling of thrill or suspense in the story. Many
detective stories give a mysterious mood. The most common mood is romantic. This happens
when the author makes the readers fall in love or feel the love vibe.

9. TONE
For fiction, tone refers to the author's attitude towards a subject that serves as the backdrop of
the story. It is conveyed through the use of expressions or the author's choice of words and
syntax. Usually, the author's tone creates the mood or the overall feeling of the story. The
authors choose a tone to serve as the backdrop of a story. Common tones are intellectual,
hopeful, melancholy. Children's literature usually has a didactic tone. This includes hopeful,
moralistic, loving, sympathetic, and wondrous tones. Since tone influences the meaning of the
reading material, stories must be processed so children can understand the message of the
story.
Tones can change throughout the story. Authors can change the tone as the characters change.
Further, most authors use the setting to emphasize the tone. An example is the use of rain to
emphasize the gloomy feeling of the character or the use of the rainbow to signal hope.
10. STYLE
Style is an element that is very personal to the author. It has to do with the author writes rather
than what the author writes. It reflects the author's choice of diction, literary techniques,
figurative language, sentence structures, rhythm, and symbolism. Style usually sets the mood of
the story. Style is what distinguishes one author from another. Most readers choose a literary
piece because of the authors' style of writing. Several authors have specific writing styles, such
as the use of flashbacks or media res. Style is what distinguishes one author from another.
To analyze the author's style, the readers must look into the following:

 the words used as well as the structures of the sentences;

 the mood created;
 the tone of the story;
 the effect that the author wants to achieve;
 the symbolism, imagery, details; and
 the use of the literary devices.

ELEMENTS OF POETRY: SOUND

RHYTHM
Rhythm is the repetition of sound patterns. It describes the beat or sound that the poem
produces. Rhythm is created in stressing the syllables. Rhythms are created mainly by using
letters that produce the same sounds at the end of every line. This technique is used to
captivate the readers with the musical effect of the poem or literary text. Poets use rhythmic
patterns to create emphasis and produce a pleasant sound.
A rhyme scheme is the pattern of repeated sounds that occur in lines or stanza of the poem.
Observe the rhythm in William Blake's "Tyger."
Tyger
Tyger! Tyger! Burning bright,
In the forests of the night'
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy
Fearful symmetry.

ALLITERATION
Alliteration is referred to as the initial or head rhyme. It is the use of conspicuous repetition of
consonant sounds in a sequential pattern. In the poem "Betty Butter" by Mother Goose, the
initial sound /b/ is very dominant.
Betty Botter
Betty Botter bought a bit of butter;
"But, "she said, "this butter's bitter!
If I put it in my batter
It will make my batter bitter.
But a bit o'better butter
Will make my batter better."

Then she bought a bit o' butter

Better than the bitter butter;
Made her bitter batter better.
So 'twas better Betty Botter
Bought a bit o' better butter.
ASSONANCE
When one says "chips and dip, or keep your eyes on the price," there is a lyrical effect created
due to the repetition of internal sounds of vowels such as the /i/ for chips and dip and /ai/ for
eyes and price. Assonance refers to the repetition of vowel sounds. The internal vowel sounds
are usually repeated. This is used to emphasize important words in the poem as well as create a
recognizable rhythm. It allows the writers to create a lyrical effect and enhance the mood.
Mother Goose's poem "Baa Baa Black Sheep" has a dominant repetition of the /a/ sound.
Baa Baa Black Sheep
Baa, baa, black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
One for the master
And one for the dame,
And one for the little boy Who lives down the lane.

CONSONANCE
When one says "Mike likes his new bike", the consonant sound /k/ is repeated which creates a
rhythmical effect to the statement. This is an example of consonance. While assonance is
referred to as the repetition of vowel sounds, consonance refers to the repetition of consonant
sounds or the presence of identical consonants in a sequence of words, the vowels of which are
different such as "bed and bad" or "tip and tap". The poem of Shel Silverstein's "The Acrobats
has a dominant consonance /ng/ and (z).
The Acrobats
I'll swing by my ankles
She'll cling to your knees.
As you hang by your nose,
From a high-up trapeze.
But just one thing please,
As we float throught the breeze,
Don't sneeze.
CACOPHONY
Recall a day walking on a busy street, and you hear a combination of different sounds that are
inharmonious and a bit harsh, you hear cacophony sounds. In literature or poetry, cacophony
uses words that give an unmelodious sound to achieve the desired outcome or create a
different rhythmic effect to enhance the listening experience. Lewis Carroll's successful use of
nonsensible words in the "Jabberwocky" and Sylvia Plath's "The Colossus" are examples of
successful cacophony.
The Jabberwocky
"Twas brilig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe
All mimsy were the borogoves
And the mome raths outgabe.

The Colossus
I shall never get to put together entirely,
Pieced, glued, and properly jointed.
Mule-bray, pig-grunt and bawdy cackles
Proceed from your great lips.
It's worse than a barnyard.

EUPHONY
Euphony is the opposite of cacophony. It is the use of vowels and consonant sounds that blend
and create a pleasant effect. The semi-vowels and vowels, when combined with the
consonants "l, m,n,r,and y" create euphonious sounds. Examples are the nursery rhymes
"Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and Robert Frost's "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening."

ONOMATOPOEIA
Onomatopoeia is a sound device that is the careful use of words that - phonetically mimics and
resembles the sound of nature or the sound that the author intends to describe. These include
the machine noises such as "honking, beeping, clanging", or the animal noises like the
"cuckooing of chickens" or the sounds of voice such as the "shushing, giggling,
whining ,growling ,hissing, whispering". Statements such as "the staircase crackled", "he gulped
down his chicken soup", “the dogs angrily growled when by they see their enemies.

Cynthia in the Snow (Gwendolyn Brooks)

It SHUSHES It hushes
The loudness in the road.
It flitter-twitters,
And laughs away from me.
It laughs a lovely whiteness,
And whitely whirls away,
To be Some otherwhere,
Still white as milk or shirts,
So beautiful it hurts.

Generally, the sound elements of poetry are used by authors and poets to improve the reading
experience of children and adolescents and relate more to the texts.