Objectives:
- Identify the choices authors make while developing and revising plot.
- Identify multiple themes of the familiar story “Little Red Riding Hood.”
What to do:
Today you will be looking for variations of the story “Little Red Riding Hood.” Since this story has been retold in many time periods, in many communities, and in many forms, it is useful in our study of short fiction to look at ways in which changes to the PLOT of the story impact the THEME.
Step One: Use the Internet to locate three different versions of the story. Keep in mind that the title may be slightly different. D. L. Ashliman offers some on his Pitt website.
Step Two: For each of the three stories, record the following in a Word document:
- Title
- Author
- Point of View
- Summary of the plot, using references to the five elements we discussed with the original text: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
- Theme statement
- And explanation about how changes in the plot, from the original, also change the theme. (Changes in theme may be major or minor. Read closely.)
