An external conflict is.

Understanding Conflict

3.3 Analyze interactions between characters in a literary text by focusing on internal and external conflicts.

CONFLICT?

Conflict means tension between characters

A conflict can be. . . a problem a struggle a personal war

a clash of ideas

Every conflict needs a resolution

Without a resolution,

bad things tend to happen

In Star Wars, Darth Vader is the source of the external conflict

and

An external conflict is. . . a physical force something the character encounterscontrol face to face beyond the character’s that keeps the character from achieving his or her goals

An external conflict is NOT. . .

For many characters, an external conflict is a matter of

life and death

What kind of IMPACT do they have Think about the effects of an external conflict on the story? Who do they

In The Dark Knight, the Joker inflicts death, doom, and destruction on Gotham City— all effects of the external conflict he creates

Why is external conflict important?

Without external conflict, there is no action

no drama no tension no story

External conflict is what forces a character to make tough decisions

Without external conflict, the protagonist will always be a static character, without an opportunity to change, grow, or discover something new about life

There are FIVE external conflicts that are popular in fiction and movies

Man vs. man

Man vs. society

Man vs.

Man vs. machine

Now for INTERNAL conflict

An internal conflict can be. . . a fear a belief a need or desire

a personal problem

Another one of Batman’s internal conflicts is that he often makes choices that are dangerous and outside the law In The Dark Knight, Batman’s internal conflict is his unwillingness to kill the Joker

In The Dark Knight, the Joker triggers one of Batman’s biggest internal conflicts: his refusal to disclose his identity as Bruce Wayne.

When thinking about a story’s conflict,

What happens if the What’s at stake for the protagonist? conflict isn’t resolved? ask yourself these questions:

Dorothy’s internal conflict Dorothy is that resolves her conflicts by killing she feels as ifthe witch and by learning that there really is no place like home. she doesn’t belong in the Land of Oz.

Little Red Riding Hood’s Little Red Riding internal conflict is that Hood resolves her she has mixed feelingsconflicts by escaping about the Big Bad Wolf. the Big Bad Wolf and

by learning that she shouldn’t talk to strangers.

Motivation is the reason characters behave the way they do—it’s what drives their actions

To be motivated means to be moved to do something

There are two types of motivation

Extrinsic Intrinsic motivation motivation comes comes from from within outside ItIt means means doing doing something something because for an outcome it’s fun

There are different factors that motivate characters

In the movie Scarface, three things motivate Tony Montana: power, money, and his desire to move up in the world.

A sense of justice and a need to help others is what motivates most superheroes.

Antagonists like the Joker use fear and the threat of death or violence to motivate people.

Love is a source of motivation for many characters

Understanding a character’s motivation allows you to understand the character

So what motivates YOU?