The Old Man and the Sea and Moby Dick are classic examples. This type of conflict is particularly interesting in that it casts light on the resilience of the human spirit. In man versus nature conflict, the protagonist is hindered by or fighting against natural forces like weather, animals, or climate change. He believes everyone deserves a fair trial, while the rest of Maycomb is eager to punish Tom without second thought based on the color of his skin. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch wrestles with society in his efforts to achieve justice for Tom Robinson. The character’s values or beliefs or preferences go against what’s deemed “acceptable” or “normal” within the community. Man versus society is an external conflict between the character and societal norms. Whenever one side wins out, the other takes a hit. His desire to hide his crimes with his desire to assure his wife that he isn’t drifting. He’s constantly battling his desire to build a booming business to support his family with his desire to remain part of his family. Man versus self refers to inner conflict, when a character’s objective is in opposition to her values or long-held, deep-seated beliefs, or when her own decisions get in the way of achieving her goals.īecause I’m finally watching Breaking Bad (I know, I know, I’m behind), let’s use Walter White as an example. Both Dumbledore and the Order have Harry’s best interest in mind-it’s just that their objective to protect him gets in the way of his objective to defeat Voldemort. But when Dumbledore keeps information secret from Harry or the Order of the Phoenix tries to stop him from participating in their business, that’s man versus man conflict, too. When Voldemort tries to kill Harry several times per book, same. (My favorite example.) When Vernon is preventing Harry from reading his letters from Hogwarts in The Sorcerer’s Stone, that’s antagonistic man vs. This other character could be an antagonist who actively wants to prevent your protagonist from succeeding, or it could be a well-meaning character (like a parent or a teacher) who has a different perspective and enough authority to get in the way. This is the most common type of conflict you’ll see, when your protagonist’s objective is in opposition to another character’s. So let’s take a look at the four main types of conflict that can make your story-and every scene in it-crackle. It’s only when they get to see your main character fighting for what she wants that readers will be able to immerse themselves in her journey, feeling with her and rooting for her. Jane desperately wanted X, so she went and got it. Without it, your story would be super short and not so fulfilling. At its simplest, conflict consists of the obstacles your protagonist faces in her quest to achieve her objective. That’s identifying the conflicts that drive your story, impede your protagonist’s progress, and make things interesting. You’ve built your characters from the ground up, you’ve developed your fictional world and the rules that guide it, and you know your protagonist’s objective like the back of your hand.
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