Setting (narrative)

Aspect of literature

For setting in biblical narrative, see Sitz im Leben.

A setting (or backdrop) is the time and geographic location within a narrative, either non-fiction or fiction. It is a literary element. The setting initiates the main backdrop and mood for a story. The setting can be referred to as story world[1] or milieu to include a context (especially society) beyond the immediate surroundings of the story. Elements of setting may include culture, historical period, geography, and hour. Along with the plot, character, theme, and style, setting is considered one of the fundamental components of fiction.[2]

## Role

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Setting may refer to the social milieu in which the events of a novel occur.[3][4] The elements of the story setting include the passage of time, which may be static in some stories or dynamic in others with, for example, changing seasons.

A setting can take three basic forms. One is the natural world, or in an outside place. In this setting, the natural landscapes of the world play an important part in a narrative, along with living creatures and different times of weather conditions and seasons. The second form exists as the cultural and historical background in which the narrative resides. Past events that have impacted the cultural background of characters or locations are significant in this way. The third form of a setting is a public or private place that has been created/maintained and/or resided in by people. Examples of this include a house, a park, a street, a school, etc.[5]

## Types

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Setting may take various forms:

* Alternate history
* Campaign setting
* Constructed world (Worldbuilding)
* Dream world
* Dystopia
* Fantasy world
* Fictional city
* Fictional country
* Fictional crossover
* Fictional location
* Fictional universe
* Future history
* Imaginary world
* Mythical place
* Parallel universe
* Planets in science fiction
* Simulated reality
* Utopia
* Virtual reality

## See also

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* British regional literature
* Index of fictional places
* Landscape
* List of fictional universes
* Setting (disambiguation)
* List of narrative techniques
* Worldbuilding

## Notes

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1. ^ Truby (2007, p. 145)
2. ^ Obstfeld (2002, pp. 1, 65, 115, 171)
3. ^ Lodge (1992, pp. 58–60)
4. ^ Levin (1992, pp. 110–112)
5. ^ Roberts & Zweig (2014, pp. 238–239)

## References

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* Levin, Donna (1992), Get That Novel Started, Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, ISBN 0-89879-517-6
* Lodge, David (1992), The Art of Fiction, London: Martin, Secker & Warburg Ltd, ISBN 0-14-017492-3
* Obstfeld, Raymond (2002), Fiction First Aid: Instant Remedies for Novels, Stories and Scripts, Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, ISBN 1-58297-117-X
* Roberts, Edgar V.; Zweig, Robert (2014), Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, Pearson, ISBN 9780321944788
* Rozelle, Ron (2005). Write Great Fiction: Description & Setting. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books. ISBN 1-58297-327-X.
* Truby, John (2007), Anatomy of a Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller, New York, NY: Faber and Faber, Inc, ISBN 978-0-86547-951-7

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Narrative

Character|

* Antagonist
* Archenemy
* Character arc
* Character flaw
* Characterization
* Confidant
* Deuteragonist
* False protagonist
* Focal character
* Foil
* Gothic double
* Hamartia
* Hero
* Anti
* Byronic
* Tragic
* Narrator
* Protagonist
* Stock character
* Straight man
* Supporting character
* Title character
* Tritagonist
* Villain

Plot|

* Ab ovo
* Action
* Backstory
* Origin story
* Chekhov's gun
* Cliché
* Cliffhanger
* Conflict
* Deus ex machina
* Dialogue
* Dramatic structure
* Eucatastrophe
* Foreshadowing
* Flashback
* Flashforward
* Frame story
* In medias res
* Kishōtenketsu
* MacGuffin
* Pace
* Plot device
* Plot twist
* Poetic justice
* Red herring
* Reveal
* Self-insertion
* Shaggy dog story
* Stereotype
* Story arc
* Story within a story
* Subplot
* Suspense
* Trope

Setting|

* Alternate history
* Backstory
* Crossover
* Dreamworld
* Dystopia
* Fictional location
* city
* country
* universe
* parallel
* Utopia
* Worldbuilding

Theme|

* Irony
* Leitmotif
* Metaphor
* Moral
* Moral development
* Motif
* Deal with the Devil
* Conflict between good and evil
* Self-fulfilling prophecy
* Time travel

Style|

* Allegory
* Bathos
* Comic relief
* Diction
* Figure of speech
* Imagery
* Mode
* Mood
* Narration
* Narrative techniques
* Hook
* Show, don't tell
* Stylistic device
* Suspension of disbelief
* Symbolism
* Tone

Structure|

* Act
* Act structure
* Three-act structure
* Freytag's Pyramid
* Exposition/Protasis
* Rising action/Epitasis
* Climax/Peripeteia
* Falling action/Catastasis
* Denouement/Catastrophe
* Linear narrative
* Nonlinear narrative
* films
* television series
* Premise
* Types of fiction with multiple endings

Form|

* Drama
* Fabliau
* Flash fiction
* Folklore
* Fable
* Fairy tale
* Legend
* Myth
* Tall tale
* Gamebook
* Narrative art
* Narrative poetry
* Epic poetry
* Novel
* Novella
* Parable
* Short story
* Vignette

Genre
(List)|

* Fiction
* Action fiction
* Adventure
* Comic
* Crime
* Docu
* Epistolary
* Ergodic
* Erotic
* Historical
* Western
* Mystery
* Nautical
* Paranoid
* Philosophical
* Picaresque
* Political
* Pop culture
* Psychological
* Religious
* Rogue
* Romance
* Chivalric
* Prose
* Saga
* Satire
* Speculative fiction
* Fantasy
* Gothic
* Southern
* Horror
* Magic realism
* Science
* Hard
* Utopian and dystopian
* Underwater
* Superhero
* Theological
* Thriller
* Urban
* Nonfiction
* Autobiography
* Biography
* Novel
* Creative

Narration|

* Diegesis
* First-person
* Second-person
* Third-person
* Third-person omniscient narrative
* Subjectivity
* Unreliable narrator
* Multiple narrators
* Stream of consciousness
* Stream of unconsciousness

Tense|

* Past
* Present
* Future

Related|

* Dominant narrative
* Fiction writing
* Continuity
* Canon
* Reboot
* Retcon
* Parallel novel
* Prequel / Sequel
* Genre
* List
* Literary science
* Literary theory
* Narrative identity
* Narrative paradigm
* Narrative therapy
* Narratology
* Metafiction
* Political narrative
* Rhetoric
* Glossary
* Screenwriting
* Series of works
* Storytelling
* Tellability
* Verisimilitude

Authority control databases

National|

* United States
* Latvia
* Israel

Other|

* Yale LUX

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