Distinctiveness of the literary art form of short story and the objectives of the Students as readers of short stories – Part - IV

Portrait of Anton Chekov - One of the fathers of short story

Sometimes this surprise is achieved by inverting the order of events, as is frequently done in detective stories. Te mystery or the murder is not allowed to be resolved till the very last, while every possibility is examined from all angles. As a rule, even in narratives where there is no murder or mystery, and the surprise is not so obvious, the direction, the aim or the essential significance of the whole situation is kept in reserve to enliven the general atmosphere and the final impact of the story. There should preferably be a twist at the end so that it can incorporate both surprise and an imaginative appeal. Such touches of surprises are in fact essential as they go a long way to drive home the message that the short story tries to impart. A short story has its sting in its tail, as the saying goes, in the sense, that the sense of wonder or shock is meted out to the reader towards its completion, not at any point of time before.
The challenges of a short story writer
The writer should straightaway take us to the heart of a situation without going into lengthy paraphernalia about things having no bearing on the central theme. He should also take are that the ending aptly presents itself in a perfect synthesis of time and something of depth or to look into perceptions or emotions which are normally beyond our comprehensions. In a word, our imagination should be stirred instead of being forced to boredom or tiredness.
The plot, not a must any more
For quite some time now, the short story is often written without any discernible plot as well, as is also the case with the novel to some extent. But while a novel should necessarily has to have at least a thinned-out plot, the short story writer, with his constraints of space and time, can do away with it to his advantage if he so desires. A modern short story may just portray a character or characters, an ambiance, a feeling or a piece of psychological analysis. Such treatments have been in vogue in recent times. Personal moods, intentions or some strange motives, not necessarily universal or familiar all the time, have been highlighted in these stories to make us realize the complex working of the human mind. Today the short story has infinite variety in contents as well as in treatments and rendering of the same. Hundreds of such excellent short stories are being enjoyed by the sensitive readers at the moment all over the world.
The objectives of the readers of short stories
Although reading a good short story is a pleasure in its own right, the reader should consciously try to absorb the very many aspects of this beautiful and complex art form as best as he can. First of all, getting even with the characters and the situations, and delving into the motives of the characters, help the readers to understand why and how the fictional characters behave in a picky fashion under the given circumstances in the story. And as he reaches the climax (the turning point) of the storyline, he must make sure that he has got the message (moral or simply a revelation) right. Has the reader really perceived the significance of what the writer wants to convey to him through the surprise element he presents at the end of the story? Repeated and animated reading of a short story, principally those of classical moulds, is a must to discover their real worth and more often than not, their hidden charms and mysteries.
Secondly, the student reader should be able to critically examine the story to discover its theme once he has read the same.
Closely following and comprehending the development of the storyline, the delineation of the plot and getting closely familiar with the setting and background will enable you to appreciate the story like a connoisseur does.

Distinctiveness of the literary art form of short story and the objectives of the Students as readers of short stories – Part - III

How short a short story should be?

The last hundred and fifty years have witnessed certain well marked features to be associated with short stories. This art form, has nevertheless retained its vital characteristics very well, which are unmistakably its own. Critics and scholars are now of the opinion that a short story is supposed to be in length between about two to seven thousand words. Shorter than this, would be inadequate even to be called a anecdote, and longer than this, would tend to make it a novelette.

The idea of unity

The paramount quality, which is invariably associated with the short story, is the all pervading sense of unity it tries to encompass and project throughout the length and breadth of its body. However, they are not the same as the three unities linked with the concept of the classical drama. The unifying property of a fine technical execution is not that important here, as compared to the concept, convincing delivery of a single message or the proper presence and manifestations of the aesthetic objectives, the short story is so famous for. The implication is that it is not an expansive thing which would accept any extraneous element or component that comes its way.
The short story must present a single idea, a unified situation or impression, rendering it with an uncanny precision in the most creative manner. These factors distinguish it from a novel. The novel is expansive whereas the short story is compressive, concise and pithy. The short story must be cohesive from the very beginning to its end, and so must avoid all, that is unnecessary or irrelevant to the unique purpose it sets out to achieve. The conditions, without doubts, are rigid, but as the artist has to work under these stringent requirements, he is made to give his best while adopting this particular fictional art medium. And that is why a good short story writer chooses an action or a character or an atmosphere or simply an emotional tone as the subject matter of his art. He has to be unusually focused to employ the best of his art in selection of his materials, as well as in giving it the desired shape to create an unforgettable effect on the readers’ mind.

The final twist or the element of surprise

The element of surprise is another landmark aspect of a short story. There is no hard and fast rule that every single short story must have this feature, but there must be some secret hidden up its sleeve till the very end. This serves the purpose of sustaining the interest of the reader during the progression of the story, and on its revelations at the end, transports the reader to a higher level of understanding. Hence, the completion of the reader’s gradually deepening interest is the most important element of a short story.

Distinctiveness of the literary art form of short story and the objectives of the Students as readers of short stories – Part - I

Dear Students,
What is a short story?
Since what time we do not know, stories have been giving delight to mankind. Tales of man’s experience have been told and retold to very keenly interested audiences throughout human history, and he was always inclined to derive suitable morals from them. In the prehistoric times, these were circulated by words of mouth through generations, and such had been the charm of them, that they were never forgotten or lost from man’s cultural heritage. One of the oldest examples of such story telling is said to be the Egyptian tale of “The Two Brothers” (3200 B.C.). The Jataka tales describing
Buddha’s earlier births and the Sanskrit fables about animals are also very well known in the story telling scene.
Man, being a social animal, had to tell and listen to anecdotes as his impulses forced him to do so, and this naturally began before he had learnt to write. In due course of time, in a natural evolution of this trend, there came a time, when the material of the story was worked upon and turned into much more entertaining and instructive form, which would, over a period o0f time, became more sophisticated and artistic so as to be called literature. Occasionally, mighty names like Solomon, Ulysses, Varuna and the likes were linked to the story line to arouse awe in the minds of the listeners, and to add historical and mythical importance to them. Great religious or historical events also inspired much story telling, and slowly but surely, the art bloomed into such finesse and lent such wonderful shape and form to the materials that numerous such narratives became timeless, and mankind preserved them as a precious inheritance.
Innumerable fairy tales, stories of gods and supermen of bygone millennia still gives us pleasure, including the tens of thousands of myths, folktales and legends of almost all countries. Our prophets and seers also told us parables which we have listened to avidly
over the ages to satisfy both our love of tales as well as to satisfy our spiritual quests.
Almost every country’s literary history is replete with such traditions of story telling and they have easily transgressed time and space, sometimes because of their ability to solve man’s spiritual crisis, and more frequently because of their wonderful capacity to impart pure joy. The glories of the Greek legends and their heroes were sung in the Iliad and the Odyssey. The extravagant tales of the Arabian Nights found a ready audience in all the corners of the globe, and the Bible, one of the most widely read books by mankind........