Narrative structure is a framework for telling stories, including buildup, climax, and resolution. The most common structure includes introduction, nascent action, climax, falling action, and resolution. Subplots can complicate structure, and some writers may choose to tell the story in an unordered fashion. In media res starts in the middle of the action, creating a sense of unease but risking disorienting the reader.
In literature and film, stories generally follow a narrative structure, which is basically a framework for telling a story. The specific elements included in this framework may vary, although in most cases the narrative structure will include buildup, climax, and resolution. Often, a story will include other elements, such as exposition, where background information is presented to orient the reader or viewer; and the tumbling action or denouement, where story elements begin to wrap around before the final resolution.
A typical narrative structure might look like this:
The introduction or exposition, in which characters and setting are introduced.
The nascent action, where problems begin to develop and the characters are faced with adversity.
The climax, in which the characters face adversity and either overcome it or are defeated by it.
The falling action, where the details of the plot are explained and the characters undergo changes due to the climax.
The resolution or epilogue, in which the plot elements are wrapped up and the story ends.
Not all stories will follow this narrative structure, but this is perhaps the most common structure that stories will follow. Subplots can complicate structure, and some writers may choose to tell the story in an unordered fashion to place emphasis on certain events, characters, or themes. A popular practice in movies, for example, is to start the story at the end, showing viewers the outcome of the climax. The film will then backtrack, start at the beginning, and give viewers a glimpse of how the aftermath unfolded.
Another type of narrative structure that alters how a story is told will include the use of in media res, which basically means starting in the middle. When such a story is told, the reader or viewer will find themselves in the thick of the action at the very beginning of the story. As the story progresses, the reader will have to reconstruct the events that occurred before the narrative begins and what will happen from then on. Such a narrative structure can create a sense of unease in the reader, which lends itself to the development of a particular plot, theme or tone. The writer risks, however, disorienting the reader to such an extent that plot elements make no sense or become increasingly unclear as the story progresses.
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