Topic Five (1.5): Settings

Introduction Icon.png Introduction

Settings are just as important as characters in fictional texts and vivid settings contribute much to atmosphere, tone, mood and theme. They can be on a large scale, such as a whole country, or can be much smaller, such as a garden, prison cell or attic – the possibilities are endless. They provide the backdrop to the story and can reflect elements of character (pathetic fallacy) – or provide a stark contrast to them.

Description is vital when considering settings; a writer’s language may be elaborate and filled with figurative devices or pared down and simple – both can create very memorable settings which live on in the readers’ mind long after they have read the text. In this topic, you will learn more about how writers use settings and examine some famous examples from English Literature.

Read & Make Notes Icon.png Read and Make Notes

Read Chapter Five, ‘Settings’ on pages 55 to 58 in Mastering English Literature and make careful notes.

Skills Icon.png Tasks

  • Read the following document and add to your notes on why setting is important in fiction.

Download READ & COMPLETE – Setting in Literature and Creative Writing (University of Essex)

  • See also the Stretch Activity

Consolidate Icon.png Consolidate

  • The extracts that follow are all taken from novels and describe settings.
  • Read each one and answer the following questions:
    1. What literary devices does the writer use to depict the setting(s) described?
    2. In each case, identify the tone, mood and atmosphere. How is each established?
    3. What do the settings reveal about character?
    4. How do the settings relate to action?

READ - Extract from Bleak House (1853) by Charles Dickens (Novel)

READ - Extract from Brideshead Revisited (1945) by Evelyn Waugh (Novel)

READ - Extract from Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949) by George Orwell (Novel)

Stretch Icon.png Stretch Activity

The pack from Essex University above contains a series of exercises which you may like to attempt if you are interested in creative writing. (If you are not interested in creative writing, you can just use the extracts included in the document for further practice of your analytical skills.)

Glossary Icon.png Terminology

Make sure you understand any new literary terminology covered in this topic. You may like to make flashcards of key terms now, to help you with revision later on.