In this classic, long poem, the Mariner tells a terrifying story of external and internal conflicts. He describes being trapped alone at sea, faced with the prospect of death in multiple forms, the resurrection of his comrades, and other supernatural elements. Here are a few famous lines from the poem:
literary terms internal conflict and external conflict
The external conflict is mostly written as an outside narrative and has nothing to do with the internal conflict. It is relations of the characters that seriously impact the entire situation in the narrative. It acts as the foreign agent that impacts the protagonists, their thinking, their relations, and ultimately the results of their efforts. In case it comes into collusion with the antagonists, it hinders the efforts of the protagonists to come out of the existing conflicts or adverse situations.
Conflict is a serious tense situation between characters due to some dispute, squabble, or controversy. However, tension does not simply mean that it is due to some dispute. It is just an impending sense of something ominous that is about to happen but may not happen even until the end. It could be the fear of divorce, the sense of disclosure or some secret that may cause a rift among the characters, or even the discovery of something that continue to haunt the characters.What does Conflict Mean in a Story?Conflict in a story means that the characters are interacting with each other and one another and that they have good or bad relations to build their lives on. The existence of a conflict in the story means the progress of the story. It takes the story to the next level as it prompts the characters to do something and not sit idle. Therefore, conflict is as important in the story as characters, situations, and settings.What is the Central Conflict or Core Conflict?A story or a narrative could have several conflicts in case there are several characters or events. However, there is the main conflict that runs throughout the story until the end. This is called the central conflict or the core conflict upon which the success of the story hinges. Besides this conflict, there could be several small or minor conflicts going on between secondary characters, foils, or minor characters.
The protagonist in a story always wants something, but something else is stopping them from getting it. This interaction between the character, their wants, and their obstacles is what drives every story. If that central conflict is boring or nonsensical, the plot will be dull and confusing. But if the conflict is compelling, logical, and emotionally impactful, readers will be desperate to know how it all pans out.
External conflict is the struggle between characters and the outside forces that are preventing them from getting what they want. This type of conflict is usually interpersonal or societal. That is, they either occur on a larger, systemic scale between groups of people, or they occur on a smaller scale, between individuals.
In A Game of Thrones, the external conflict is mainly represented by the various characters who all want the same thing: power. Because power, i.e. sitting on the iron throne, can only fall into the hands of one person, their desires clash, inciting murder and betrayal.
In the movie Philadelphia, Denzel Washington plays Joe, a lawyer who must overcome his homophobia in order to win the case for a man (Tom Hanks) who believes he has been wrongfully fired on account of having AIDS. The external conflicts are represented by:
While there is some disagreement about how many types of conflict are evident in literature, the most commonly accepted number is six different types. These include: Man vs. Self, Man vs. Man, Man vs. Society, Man vs. Nature, Man vs. Technology, and Man vs. Fate (or the Supernatural.) It's important to point out that in these literary terms, "Man" insinuates "Human," so it isn't limited to the male gender.
Man vs. Self is the only example of internal conflict you'll see in literary works and involves a character experiencing conflict within his or her own mind. Hamlet is probably the most well-known literary character experiencing Man vs. Self conflict throughout much of the famous Shakespearian play. A good example of how Shakespeare uses this conflict for character building are the following lines:
Man vs. Self conflict is most often seen when a character faces mixed emotions over his or her actions, or a decision that has to be made/has been made. You can also see this conflict evident when a character is facing mental illness or is unable to forgive himself or herself over past actions.
Man vs. Man is commonly seen in literature and modern storytelling and is a type of external conflict. This conflict will most often play out between a protagonist and his or her antagonist, although it can also appear between friends or acquaintances, as well.
In these opening lines, the narrator, Montresor, establishes his conflict with another man named Fortunato. This story also involves internal conflict (Montresor is what is known as an unreliable narrator, and the reader isn't quite sure how much of Montresor's claims they can trust).
This type of conflict is often seen in Science Fiction and is an external conflict that involves a protagonist at odds with a ruling body (which could be one's family), or social or cultural norms. For example, if the protagonist is fighting his or her government, or is accused of a crime he or she didn't commit, these would be examples of Man vs. Society as conflict. If a protagonist is going against the grain of what his or her society and people expect, this is also an example of Man vs. Society conflict.
An example of Man vs. Society conflict can be seen in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, in which the main character, Hester Prynne, is shunned by her people, the Puritans, for having a baby with a man who was not her husband (who has been lost at sea). Below is a quote that summarizes this struggle:
If you've read a story or seen a movie where the main character must face some sort of storm or event that happens as a force of nature (such as an animal attack), you've seen the Man vs. Nature conflict in action. Natural disasters like tornadoes or a character who is lost at sea and trying to find land are examples of this conflict, as well. In these stories, the concept of human survival despite the forces of nature is highlighted and in many cases, you'll also find the internal conflict of Man vs. Self playing out simultaneously. A large reason for this is that nature can be significantly more powerful than humanity, so there is much self-doubt and struggle as the protagonist comes to terms with this fact.
Another popular conflict seen in Science Fiction is Man vs. Technology, which is when a protagonist is facing machines or technology (such as mechanical failure or robots) and must prevail against it. In many cases, you'll see elements of Man vs. Society conflict happening within these same stories, as the technology is often used to enforce or maintain social and cultural norms.
A great example from literature of the Man vs. Technology conflict is Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, a book which inspired the cult hit movie, Blade Runner. Here's a quote from it:
You'll find Man vs. Fate conflict often throughout ancient literature, particularly Greek myth and Arthurian lore. You'll even see it a lot in Shakespearean plays. Man vs. Fate or Man vs. the Supernatural is a conflict that occurs when the protagonist finds himself or herself pitted against a vengeful god or powerful supernatural force. As with other types of conflict, particularly Man vs. Nature, you'll often see this one combined with the Man vs. Self struggle. This is because the protagonist must come to terms with his or her own humanity and limitations when involved in a Man vs. Fate conflict.
A perfect example of this conflict from literature would be Homer's The Odyssey, in which Odysseus, on his way home from the Trojan War, encounters a range of supernatural forces and beings attempting to stall him. Here's a good quote:
What does external conflict mean? In any literary work, the protagonist, or main character, will experience some kind of conflict. An external conflict definition is fairly simple to remember: the conflict comes from an external source. External conflicts can happen between the protagonist and other characters, between the protagonist and the environment, between the protagonist and a monster, or any number of other scenarios.
External conflict comes from a variety of sources. If a character has to fight against something or someone other than themselves, chances are that they are dealing with an external conflict. A character who has to fight in a war, who has a challenging relationship with a family member, or who is trying to solve an important puzzle is experiencing external conflict. Internal conflict, on the other hand, comes from uncertainty or struggles within the self. A character who is having an identity crisis, who is trying to make a difficult decision, or who is battling an illness may be said to be experiencing an internal conflict.
What makes a story interesting? When you read a book or watch a movie, why do you care what happens? Yes, most stories have characters, a setting, and a plot, but there is one thing in particular every story must have in order to create interest in the audience: a conflict.
A conflict in literature is defined as any struggle between opposing forces. Usually, the main character struggles against some other force. This type of conflict is what drives each and every story. Without it, the story would have no point or purpose. There needs to be some struggle in order for the reader to get involved and care about what might happen to the characters.
There are two types of conflict that can drive a story. The first is an internal conflict. In this case, the struggle actually occurs inside a character, usually the protagonist, or main character. With internal conflicts, the character could be struggling with a decision he must make or with his own weaknesses in his personality. 2ff7e9595c