Characteristics of Short Story

 Characteristics of Short Story

1. Brevity or Economy: The brevity or economy is an important parameter of the short story relating to its length. The short story is called short story because it has brevity (shorter length). Its usual norm is that it should be in about 3000 to 6000 words in length. The excellent short stories are written even in 1000 words. The brevity, to be used effectively, implies command over language and control over incidents. In a good short story every word and every incident contributes to the final effect. The short story strictly allows the parameters of economy. It implies the economy of words as stated in the above parameter regarding length. The economy implies also the economy of incidents and characters. A good short story usually has 2 or 3 characters and a few incidents numbering 4 to 5 with minimum characters passing through minimum incidents. The short story writer effectively shows one dominant personal trait of a character or a single experience of life or a single moral of life. This is done alone in short story and it is possible due to the small canvas of short story. It is rather a skill to write effective short story with economy.

2. Short - A short story can usually be read in one sitting. It is a piece of prose fiction which can be read at a single sitting (fixed place and time, social surroundings).

3. Single Subject: Short stories usually focus on a single subject or theme. Subjects or themes may range from something as mundane as a daily errand or as thrilling as a ghost tale.

4. Concise and Simple Plot: A single, easily contained plot is one of the hallmarks of the short story and helps shape its other characteristics. Its plot is not very complex (in contrast to the novel), but it creates a unified impression and leaves us with a vivid sensation rather than a number of remembered facts.

5. Limited number of characters: Due to the limitations of the genre, short stories typically focus on just one or a couple characters. As short stories usually cover such brief periods of time, even a single character may never be fully developed. However, historical examples, like some of Geoffrey Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales,' may find interesting ways of involving many different people.

6. Factual and Poetic Style: It ought to combine matter-of-fact description with poetic atmosphere.

7. Unified Impression: It ought to present a unified impression of tone, colour and effect ‘unity of effect’ (Poe). It tries to leave behind a single impression or effect. Usually, though not always, it builds around one character, place, idea, or act.

8. There is often little action, hardly any character development, but we get a snapshot of life (slice-of-life story).

9. Union of Idea and Structure: There is both a unique union of idea and structure.

10. There is a limited set of characters, one single action and a simple plot (often: exposition, complication, crisis, sad / happy ending).