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English
Quarter 1-Module 3:
Appraising the Unity of Plot, Setting and Characterization in a
Material Viewed to Achieve the Writer’s Purpose
English – Grade 10

Quarter 1 – Module 3: APPRAISING THE UNITY OF PLOT, SETTING AND

CHARACTERIZATION IN A MATERIAL VIEWED TO ACHIEVE THE WRITER’S
PURPOSE, First Edition 2020

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Published by the Department of Education-Region III

Secretary : Leonor Magtolis Briones

Undersecretary : Diosdado M. San Antonio

Development Team of the Module

Authors : Marygold A. Apolonio
Daisyline C. Cruz
Illustrator : Liezl S. Calma
Language Reviewer : Roda S. Jimenez
Content Editor : Czarlaine Valderrama
Layout Artist : Rosanna C. De Leon
Management Team:
Gregorio C. Quinto, Jr., EdD
Chief, Curriculum Implementation Division
Rainelda M. Blanco, PhD
Education Program Supervisor - LRMDS
Agnes R. Bernardo, PhD
EPS-Division ADM Coordinator
Jay Arr V. Sangoyo, PhD
EPS – English
Glenda S. Constantino
Project Development Officer II
Joannarie C. Garcia
Librarian II

Department of Education, Schools Division of Bulacan

Curriculum Implementation Division
Learning Resource Management and Development System (LRMDS)
Capitol Compound, Guinhawa St., City of Malolos, Bulacan
Email address: lrmdsbulacan@deped.gov.ph

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 10

English
Quarter 1-Module 3:
Appraising the Unity of Plot, Setting and
Characterization in a Material Viewed to Achieve
the Writer’s Purpose

3
 Introductory Message
For the facilitator:
Welcome to English 10 Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM) Module on Appraising the
Unity of Plot, Setting and Characterization in a Material Viewed to Achieve the Writer’s
Purpose.
This module was collaboratively designed, developed and reviewed by educators
from public institutions to assist you, the teacher or facilitator, in helping the learners meet
the standards set by the K to 12 Curriculum while overcoming their personal, social, and
economic constraints in schooling.
This learning resource hopes to engage the learners into guided and independent
learning activities at their own pace and time. Furthermore, this also aims to help learners
acquire the needed 21st century skills while taking into consideration their needs and
circumstances.
In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the body of the
module:

Notes to the Teacher

This contains helpful tips or strategies that will
help you in guiding the learners.
As a facili- tator, you are
expected to orient the learners on how to use this module. You also need to keep track of
the learners’ progress while allowing them to manage their own learning. Furthermore,
you are expected to encourage and assist the learners as they do the tasks included in the
module.

For the learner:

Welcome to English 10 Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM) Module on appraising the unity of
plot, setting and characterization in a material viewed to achieve the writer’s purpose. This
module was designed to provide you with fun and meaningful opportunities for guided and
independent learning at your own pace and time. You will be enabled to process the
contents of the learning resource while being an active learner. This module has the
following parts and corresponding icons:

This focuses on the competencies that you are

expected to learn in the module.
This part includes a pre-assessment that intends to
check your background knowledge regarding the
lesson that you are about to take.

This serves as a review to help you link the current

lesson with the previous one.

This is where the new lesson will be Introduced to

you in various ways.
This is where the discussion of the lesson was
provided. This will help you understand new concepts
and skills.

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 This contains activities and independent exercises to
test and build up your understanding of the topic.
This also highlights morals and values that you can
apply in real life.

This includes sentences/phrases to summarize the

concepts, skills, and values that you learn from the
lesson.

This section provides an activity which will help you

use your new knowledge in applying it to real life
situations, or concerns.

This serves as a final evaluation which aims to check

if you have mastered the target learning
competency.

This is located at the end of the module where all the

answers to the assessment, activities and exercises
you take are to be found.

This is a list of all the resources used or cited in this

learning module.

At the end of this module you will also find:

References This is a list of all sources used in developing this module.
The following are some reminders in using this module:
1. Use the module with care. Do not put unnecessary mark/s on any part of the
module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises.
2. Don’t forget to answer What I Know before moving on to the other activities
included in the module.
3. Read the instruction carefully before doing each task.
4. Observe honesty and integrity in doing the tasks and checking your answers.
5. Finish the task at hand before proceeding to the next.
6. Return this module to your teacher/facilitator once you are through with it.
In case that you have related questions bearing in your mind or if you encounter any
difficulty while browsing this module, make sure to ask the help of your teacher. With high
hopes, let this learning resource bring you applicable knowledge that will help you in
deepening your understanding of relevant competencies. Enjoy learning and always aim
towards greater things!

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 This module provides varied activities that will help you learn about the appraising the
unity of plot, setting and characterization in a material viewed to achieve the writer’s
purpose.

At the end the module, you are expected to:

1. identify the setting, plot and characterization of the material viewed;
2. determine how the unity of plot, setting and characterization contribute to the
effective development of a story;
3. create a plot using the provided setting and characterization; and
4. show realization on how to cope with changes.

Directions: Read each question carefully. Circle the letter of your answer.
1. Which of the following is not part of a story’s setting?
a.the character c. the social situation
b.the place d. the time

2. Where in the plot pattern does the tension peak happen?

a.climax c. falling action
b.exposition d. resolution

3. Which part of a story's plot introduces the characters and setting?

a.climax c. falling action
b.exposition d. resolution

4. Which part of the plot line leads to the climax?

a.exposition c. resolution
b.falling intonation d. rising action

5. Which of the following is NOT a method of characterization?

a.action c. speech
b.physical description d. social situation

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B. Read the short text below and answer the questions that follow. Circle the letter of your
answer.

As the night ended, the sun rays splashed across Tinay’s bed. She opened her eyes
slowly. The first thing she saw was the beautiful pink box wrapped with a ribbon on her
study table. She smiled and she realized that it’s her special day. She opened the box and
was surprised with what was inside - it was a new laptop for her online study. Tinay was
teary-eyed and felt grateful for her parents. She knew that her father saved money from his
daily earned salary as a tricycle driver. It was a happy day indeed and she exclaimed “It is
the best birthday present I have ever received!”. Meanwhile, a tall dark man with broad
shoulders from afar was witnessing Tinay’s reaction with the gift she received and he was
wiping his tears happily.

6. Where did the event happen?

a.at Tinay’s garden c. at Tinay’s bedroom
b.at Tinay’s kitchen d. at Tinay’s study table

7. What time of the day the event happened?

a.at night c. in the afternoon
b.at midnight d. in the morning

8. What attribute was NOT exhibited by Tinay’s father in the text?

a.a good provider c. an idle father
b.a hardworking father d. a loving father

9. How did the character respond to the setting and event in the story?
a.The character was ecstatic c. The character was irritated.
b.The character was gloomy. d. The character was unwilling.

10. Which of the following statements best describes Tinay’s response to the setting
and event in the story?
a.She opened her eyes slowly.
b.The first thing she saw was the beautiful pink box.
c.She smiled and she realized that it’s her special day.
d.She opened the box.

C. Identify the method of characterization in each statement. Circle the letter of your
answer.
11. She opened her eyes slowly.
a.action c. physical description
b.inner thought d. speech
12. Tinay was tear-eyed and felt grateful for her parents.
a.inner thought c. reaction
b.physical description d. speech
13. She realized that it’s her special day.
a.action c. physical description
b.inner thought d. speech
14. a tall dark man with broad shoulders
a.action c. physical description
b.inner thought d. speech
15. She exclaimed “It is the best birthday present I have ever received!”
a.inner thought c. reaction
b.physical description d. speech

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 In the previous lesson, you have learned that textual aids are effective tools that you
can use to retain information, organize complex ideas in a visual manner. The main
function is to help present information in concise ways that highlight the organization and
relationships of concepts.

Using the graphic organizer below, write words that are associated with the word
“CHANGE”.

CHANGE

We live in a world that is full of uncertainties. The only certain is change. Change
can either make us or break us. Change can either strengthen or weaken us. However,
there is only one truth about change, it is inevitable. Time passes by even if we try to stop
it. People change no matter how hard we try to deny it. The thing we can do is just to
acknowledge and accept change.

BIG SISTER
Consorcio Borje

“YOU can use this,” said Inciang, smiling brightly and trying to keep her tears back.
“It is still quite strong, and you will not outgrow
if for a year yet.”
Itong watched his sister fold his old khaki
shirt carefully and pack it into the rattan
tampipi, which already bulged with his clothes.
He stood helplessly by, shifting his weight from
one bare foot to the other, looking down at his
big sister, who had always done everything for
him.
“There, that’s done,” said Inciang,
pressing down the lid. “Give me that rope. I’ll
truss it up for you. And be careful with it, Itong?
Your Tia Orin has been very kind to lend it to
us for your trip to Vigan.”

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 Itong assented and obediently handed his sister the rope. His eyes followed her
deft movements with visible impatience; his friends were waiting outside to play with him.
He was twelve years old, and growing fast.
Sometimes when Inciang toiling in the kitchen, sweeping the house, or washing
clothes by the well in the front yard held a long session with herself, she admitted she did
not want Itong to grow. She wanted to keep him the boy that he was, always. Inciang had
raised Itong from the whimpering, little, red lump of flesh that he was when their mother
died soon after giving birth to him. She had been as a mother to him as long as she could
remember.
“May I go out now and play, Manang?”
And Inciang heard herself saying, “It will be a year before you will see your friends
again… Go now.”
She listened to the sound of his footsteps down the bamboo ladder, across the
bare earthen front yard. Then she heard him whistle. There were answering whistles,
running feet.

“TELL him, Inciang,” her father had said. That was about three months ago. Inciang
was washing clothes by the well with Tia Orin.
“Yes, you tell him, Inciang,” said Tia Orin. It was always Inciang who had dealt with
Itong if anything of importance happened.
Inciang rose to her feet. She had been squatting long over her washtub and pains
shot up her spine.
“Hoy, Itong,” called Inciang. Itong was out in the street playing with Nena, Lacay Illo’s
daughter. “Hoy, Itong,” called Inciang. “Come here. I have something to tell you.”
Itong gave a playful push at Nena before he came run-
ning. He smiled as he stepped over the low bamboo barrier at
the gate which kept the neighbors’ pigs out. How bright his face
was! Inciang’s heart skipped a beat.
“You have something to tell me, Manang?”
Inciang brushed her sudsy hands against her soiled skirt.
“Yes. It is about your going to Vigan.”
Itong sat down suddenly on the barrier.
“Your are going to high school, after all, Itong,” Inciang
said. She said it defiantly, as if afraid that Itong would like going away. She looked up at
her father, as if to ask him to confirm her words. Father sat leaning out of the low front win-
dow, smoking his pipe.
Itong looked at her foolishly. Inciang’s heart felt heavy within her, but she said, with a
little reproach, “Why, Itong, aren’t you glad? We thought you wanted to go to high school.”
Itong began to cry. He sat there in front of his father and his sister and his aunt Orin,
and tears crept down his cheeks.
“The supervising principal teacher, Mr. Cablana,” went on Inciang in a rush, “came
this afternoon and told us you may go to high school without paying the fees, because you
are the balibictorian.”
Itong nodded.
“Now, don’t cry,” said his aunt Orin. “You are no longer a baby.”
“Yes,” added the father. “And Mr. Cablana also promised to give his laundry to
Inciang, so you’ll have money for your books. Mr. Cablana is also sure to get the Castila’s

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laundry for Inciang, and that will do for your food, besides the rice that we shall be send-
ing you. Stop crying.”
“Your Tata Cilin’s house is in Nagpartian, very near the high school. You will stay
with him. And,” Inciang said, “I don’t have to accompany you to Vigan, Itong. You’ll ride in
the passenger bus where your cousin Pedro is the conductor. Your cousin Pedro will
show you where your Tata Cilin lives. Your cousin Merto, son of your uncle Cilin, will help
you register in school. He is studying in the same school. Will you stop crying?”
Itong looked at Inciang, and the tears continued creeping down his cheeks. Itong
was so young. Inciang began to scold him. “Is that the way you should act? Why, you’re
old now!”
Then Itong ran into the house and remained inside. His father laughed heartily as
he pulled at his pipe. Inciang started to laugh also, but her tears began to fall fast also,
and she bent her head over her washtub and she began scrubbing industriously, while
she laughed and laughed. Outside the gate, standing with her face pressed against the
fence, was Nena, watching the tableau with a great wonder in her eyes.
Inciang had watched Itong grow up from a new-born baby. She was six years old
when she carried him around, straddled over her hip. She kept house, did the family
wash, encouraged Itong to go through primary, then intermediate school, when he
showed rebellion against school authority. When he was in the second grade and could
speak more English words than Inciang, her father began to laugh at her; also her Tia
Orin and her brood had laughed at her.
“Schooling would never do me any good,” Inciang had said lightly.
She watched Itong go through school, ministering to his needs lovingly, doing more
perhaps for him than was good for him. Once she helped him fight a gang of rowdies from
the other end of the town. Or better, she fought the gang for him using the big rice ladle
she was using in the kitchen at the time.
And her father had never married again, being always faithful to the memory of
Inciang’s mother. The farm which he tilled produced enough rice and vegetables for the
family’s use, and such few centavos as Lacay Iban would now and then need for the
cockpit he got out of Inciang’s occasional sales of vegetables in the public market or of a
few bundles of rice in the camarin. Few were the times when they were hard pressed for
money. One was the time when Inciang’s mother died. Another was now that Itong was
going to Vigan.
Inciang was working to send him away, when all she wanted was to keep him
always at her side! She spent sleepless nights thinking of how Itong would fare in a
strange town amidst strange people, even though their parientes would be near him. It
would not be the same. She cried again and again, it would not be the same.
WHEN she finished tying up the tampipi, she pushed it to one side of the main room
of the house and went to the window. Itong was with a bunch of his friends under the
acacia tree across the dirt road. They were sitting on the buttress roots of the tree, chin
in hand, toes making figures in the dust. And, of course, Itong’s closest friend, Nena, was
there with them. Strange, Inciang thought, how Itong, even
though already twelve years old, still played around with a girl.
And then, that afternoon, the departure. The passenger
truck pausing at the gate. The tampipi of Itong being tossed
up to the roof of the truck. The bag of rice. The crate of
chickens. The young coconuts for Tata Cilin’s children. Then

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Itong himself, in the pair of rubber shoes which he had worn at the graduation exercises
and which since then had been kept in the family trunk. Itong being handed into the truck.
Lacay Iban, Tia Orin, and Inciang were all there shouting instructions. All the
children in the neighborhood were there. Nena was there. It was quite a crowd come to
watch Itong go away for a year! A year seemed forever to Inciang. Itong sat in the dim
interior of the bus, timid and teary-eyed. Inciang glanced again and again at him, her
heart heavy within her, and then as the bus was about to leave, there was such a
pleading look in his eyes that Inciang had to go close to him, and he put his hand on hers.
“I’m afraid, Manang.”
“Why should you be?” said Inciang loudly, trying to drown out her own fears. “This
boy. Why, you’re going to Vigan, where there are many things to see. I haven’t been to
Vigan, myself. You’re a lucky boy.”
“I don’t want to leave you.”
“I’ll come to see you in Vigan.” She had considered the idea and knew that she
could not afford the trip.
“Manang,” said Itong, “I have a bag of lipay seeds and marbles tied to the rafter
over the shelf for the plates. See that no one takes it away, will you?”
“Yes.”
“And, Manang, next time you make linubbian, don’t forget to send Nena some, ah?”
Inciang nodded. “You like Nena very much?”
“Yes,” coloring a little.

Itong had never concealed anything from

her. He had been secretive with his father, with
his aunt Orin, but never with her.

From Vigan, Itong wrote his sister only

once a month so as to save on stamps and
writing paper. His letters were full of expres-
sions of warm endearment, and Inciang read
them over and over again aloud to her father
and to Tia Orin and her brood who came to
listen, and when her eyes were dim with read-
ing, Inciang stood on a chair and put the letters away in the space between a bamboo
rafter and the cogon roof.
“My dear sister,” Itong would write in moro-moro Ilocano, “and you, my father, and
Tia Orin, I can never hope to repay my great debt to all of you.” And then a narration of
day-to-day events as they had happened to him.
And so a year passed. Inciang discussed Itong with her father every day. She want-
ed him to become a doctor, because doctors earned even one hundred pesos a month,
and besides her father was complaining about pain in the small of his back. Lacay Iban,
on the other hand, wanted Itong to become a lawyer, because lawyers were big shots
and made big names and big money for themselves if they could have the courts acquit
murderers, embezzlers, and other criminals despite all damning evidence of guilt, and
people elected them to the National Assembly.

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 Itong’s last letter said that classes were about to close. And then, one morning,
when Inciang was washing the clothes of the supervising principal teacher, with a piece of
cotton cloth thrown over her head and shoulders to shelter her from the hot sun, a
passenger truck came to a stop beside the gate and a boy came out. He was wearing
white short pants, a shirt, and a pair of leather slippers. It was Itong. But this stranger was
taller by the width of a palm, and much narrower. Itong had grown so very fast, he had no
time to fill in.
“Itong, are you here already?”
“It is vacation, Manang. Are you
not glad to see me?”
They ran into each other’s arms.
Father came in from the rice field
later in the afternoon. “How is my
lawyer?” he asked, and then he noticed
Itong wore a handkerchief around his
throat.
“I have a cold, Father,” said Itong
huskily.
“How long have you had it?”
“For several weeks now.”
“Jesus, Maria, y Jose, Inciang,
boil some ginger with a little sugar for
your poor brother. This is bad. Are you
sure your cold will not become tubercu-
losis?”
Itong drank the concoction, and it eased his sore throat a little. It seemed he would
never get tired talking, though, telling Inciang and Lacay Iban about Vigan, about school,
about the boys he met there, about his uncle Cilin and his cousin Merto and the other
people at the house in Nagpartian.
He went out with his old cronies, but he had neglected his marbles. The marbles
hung from the rafter over the shelf for the plates, gathering soot and dust and cobwebs. It
was a reminder of Itong’s earlier boyhood. And he did not go out with Nena any more.
“Have you forgotten your friend, Nena, already?” Inciang asked him and he reddened.
“Have you been giving her linubbian, Manang?” he asked. And when she said “Yes,” he
looked glad.

On those nights when he did not go out to play, he occupied himself with writing
letters in the red light of the kerosene lamp. He used the wooden trunk for a table. Inciang
accustomed to go to sleep soon after the chickens had gone to roost under the house,
would lie on the bed-mat on the floor, looking up at Itong’s back bent studiously over the
wooden trunk.
Once she asked, “What are you writing about, Itong?”
And Itong had replied, “Nothing, Manang.”
One day she found a letter in one of the pockets of his shirt in the laundry pile. She
did not mean to read it, but she saw enough to know that the letter came from Nena. She
could guess what Itong then had been writing. He had been writing to Nena. Itong had
changed. He had begun keeping secrets from Inciang. Inciang noted the development
with a slight tightening of her throat.

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 Yes, Itong had grown up. His old clothes appeared two sizes too small for him now.
Inciang had to sew him new clothes. And when Itong saw the peso bills and the silver
coins that Inciang kept under her clothes in the trunk toward the purchase of a silk
kerchief which she had long desired, especially since the constabulary corporal had been
casting eyes at her when she went to market, he snuggled up to Inciang and begged her
to buy him a drill suit.
“A drill terno! You are sure a drill terno is what you want?”
Itong patted his throat, as if to clear it. “Please Manang?”
“Oh, you little beggar, you’re always asking for things.” She tried to be severe. She
was actually sorry to part with the money. She had been in love with that silk kerchief for
years now.
“Promise me, then to take care of your throat. Your cold is a bad one.”
Another summertime, when Itong came home from school, he was a young man.
He had put on his white drill suit and a pink shirt and a pink tie to match, and Inciang
could hardly believe her eyes. She was even quite abashed to go meet him at the gate.
“Why, is it you, Itong?”

He was taller than she. He kept looking down at her. “Manang, who else could I be?
You look at me so strangely.” His voice was deep and husky, and it had queer inflections.
“But how do I look?”
Inciang embraced him tears
again in her eyes, as tears had
been in her eyes a year ago when
Itong had come back after the first
year of parting but Itong pulled
away hastily, and he looked back
self-consciously at the people in
the truck which was then starting
away.

“You have your cold still, so I

hear,” said Lacay Iban, as he came
out of the house to join his children.
“Yes,” said Itong, his words
accented in the wrong places. “I
have my cold still.”

Looking at Itong, Inciang un-

derstood. And Itong, too, under-
stood. Lacay Iban and Inciang
looked at each other, and when Inciang saw the broad grin spreading over her father’s
face, she knew he understood, too. He should know!
“Inciang,” said Father gravely. Inciang wrested her eyes from Nena whom she saw
was looking at Itong shyly from behind the fence of her father’s front yard. “Inciang, boil
some ginger and vinegar for your poor brother. He has that bad cold still.”

Inciang wept deep inside of her as she cooked rice in the kitchen a little later. She
had seen Itong stay at the door and make signs to Nena. She resented his attentions to
Nena. She resented his height, his pink shirt, his necktie.

10
 But that night, as she lay awake on the floor, waiting for Itong to come home, she
knew despite all the ache of her heart, that she could not keep Itong forever young, forever
the boy whom she had brought up. That time
would keep him growing for several years yet, and
more distant to her. And then all the bitterness in
her heart flowed out in tears.
In the morning, when Nena came to borrow
one of the pestles. “We are three to pound rice,
Manang Inciang; may we borrow one of your
pestles?” Inciang could smile easily at Nena. She
could feel a comradely spirit toward Nena growing
within her. After all, she thought, as she gave
Nena the pestle, she never had a sister, she
would like to see how it was to have a sister. A
good-looking one like Nena. Inciang smiled at Nena, and Nena blushing, smiled back at
her.

Read and understand each question carefully and look for the answers in the story. Write
your answers in complete sentence.

1. Who is the Big Sister? Why is this story entitled that way?
____________________________________________________
2. What did Inciang sacrifice for her brother Itong?
____________________________________________________
3. What is the time period of the story?
____________________________________________________
4. What changes have happened to Itong as he grew up?
____________________________________________________
5. What is the conflict in the story?
____________________________________________________

Notes to the Teacher

The activities in this module are arranged from simple to complex to help the learners
gradually master the desired learning competency. Give him/her the needed support
and guidance so that he/she will be able to appraise the unity of plot, setting and
characterization in a material viewed to achieve the writer’s purpose.

The story has basic but important elements. Among these are the
plot, setting and character/s. These essential elements keep the story running
smoothly and allow the action to develop in a logical way that the reader can follow.
Read the fable below.

The Crocodile and the Peahen

Once there lived a young crocodile on the bank of the Pasig River. He was so
fierce and so greedy that no animal dared to approach him. One day while he was
resting on a rock, he thought of getting married. He said aloud, I will give all that I have
for a wife. As he pronounced these words, a coquettish peahen passed near him. That

11
 naughty crocodile expressed his wish again. The coquette listened carefully, and began to
examine the crocodile's looks. She said to herself, I will marry this crocodile. He is very
rich. Oh my! If I could only have all those pearls and diamonds, I should be the happiest
wife in the world. She then alighted on the rock where the crocodile was, who made his
offer again with extreme politeness, as a hypocrite always does. She thought that the big
eyes of the crocodile were two beautiful diamonds and that the rough skin was made of
pearls, so she accepted the proposal. The crocodile asked the peahen to sit on his mouth,
that she might not spoil her beautiful feathers with mud. The foolish bird did as she was
told. What do you think happened? He made a good dinner of his new wife .

I. What is Plot?
In a narrative or creative writing, a plot is the sequence of events that make up a
story, whether it’s told, written, filmed, or sung. The plot is the story, and more
specifically, how the story develops, unfolds, and moves in time.

Plots are typically made up of five main elements:

1. Exposition: At the beginning of the story, characters, setting, and the main
conflict are typically introduced.

Example: Once there was a greedy crocodile who was living on the bank of the
Pasig River.
2. Rising Action: The main character is in crisis and events leading up to facing
the conflict begin to unfold. The story becomes complicated.
Example: One day the crocodile of thought of getting married and he said aloud
that he will give all that he has for a wife.

3. Climax: At the peak of the story, a major event occurs in which the main
character faces a major enemy, fear, challenge, or other source of conflict. The
most action, drama, change, and excitement occurs here.

Example: The Peahen said that she will marry the crocodile because he is rich.
4. Falling Action: The story begins to slow down and work towards its end, tying up
loose ends.

Example: The crocodile asked the peahen to sit on his mouth so that she might
not spoil her beautiful feathers with mud.

5. Resolution: Also known as the denouement, the resolution is like a concluding

paragraph that resolves any remaining issues and ends the story.

Example: The crocodile made a good dinner of his wife.

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II. What is Setting?
Setting is the time and place (or when and where) of the story. It’s a literary
element of literature used in novels, short stories, plays, films, etc., and usually introduced
during the exposition (beginning) of the story, along with the characters. The setting may
also include the environment of the story, which can be made up of the physical location,
climate, weather, or social situation and cultural surroundings.
There are various ways that the time and place indicate setting. Time can cover
many areas, such as the character’s time of life, the time of the day, time of the year, time
period such as the past, present, or future, etc. Place also covers a lot of areas such as
certain building, country, city, beach, in a mode of transport such as car, bus, boat,
indoors or out, etc. The setting of a story can change throughout the plot. The environment
includes geographical location such as beach or mountains, the climate and weather, and
the social or cultural aspects such as a school, theatre, meeting, club, etc.

Example:
place – in the bank of the Pasig River
time - one day

REMEMBER:

How you choose to describe your setting will affect the way your reader feels about
your piece. Do you want the reader to feel fear or tension? Or do you want them to
feel warm and happy? Determine the mood you want to create before take on the
task of describing your setting.

III. What is Characterization?

Characterization in literature is the process authors use to develop

characters and create images of the characters for the audience.

There are two different approaches to characterization:

1. Direct characterization- the author tells us what he or she wants us to know

about the character.
2. Indirect characterization - the author shows us things about the character to help
us have an understanding of the character's personality and effect on other
characters.

Five Methods of Characterization

An acronym, PAIRS, can help you recall the five methods of characterization: physical
description, action, inner thoughts, reactions, and speech.

1. Physical description - the character's physical appearance is described. For

example, characters might be described as tall, thin, fat, pretty, etc. We might be
told the color of hair or something about the clothing of the character. How the
character dresses might reveal something about the character. Does the
character wear old, dirty clothing, or stylish, expensive clothing?

Example:
crocodile– rough skin with big eyes
peahen– with beautiful feathers

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2. Action/attitude/behavior - What the character does tells us a lot about him/her, as
well as how the character behaves and his or her attitude. Is the character a good
person or a bad person? Is the character helpful to others or selfish?
Example: crocodile – He ate the peahen.
peahen – She listened carefully and began to examine the
crocodile’s looks.

3. Inner thoughts - What the character thinks reveals things about the character.
We discover things about their personalities and feelings, which sometimes
helps us understand the character's actions.
Example: crocodile– He thought of getting married.
peahen– He thought that the big eyes of the crocodile were
diamonds.

4. Reactions - Effect on others or what the other characters say and feel about this
character. We learn about the relationships among the characters. How does the
character make the other characters feel? Do they feel scared, happy, or
confused? This helps the reader have a better understanding of all the
characters.
Example: peahen– “I should be the happiest wife in the world.”

5. Speech - What the character says provides a great deal of insight for the reader.
The character might speak in a shy, quiet manner or in a nervous manner. The
character might speak intelligently or in a rude manner.
Example: crocodile– He said aloud “I will give all that I have.”
peahen– She said to herself “ will marry the crocodile.”

-It refers to the most exciting part of the story where

1. X L M I C A a major event happens in which the main character
faces challenge.

-It refers to the last paragraph that resolves the

2. I S T R L U E O O N
issues and ends the story.

3. L A N L I C G F I O N T A -It refers to the part where story begins to slow down

- It refers to the beginning part of the story where the

4. N O P E T X I S I O characters, setting, and main conflict are introduced.

- It refers to the part where the main character faces

5. I A N S I C G R O N T I
the crisis and the story becomes complicated.

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INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT 1: MATCHING TIME!
Directions: Analyze each word in column A and match it with the definition in column B and
example in column C. Write you answer on the space provided before the number.

COLUMN A COLUMN B COLUMN C

1. SPEECH A. it is what the character A. “Schooling would never do

thinks me any good.”

2. ACTION B. it is what the character B. Itong grew taller by the

say and feel about the width of a palm and he
other character became much narrower.
3. PHYSICAL C. it is what and how the C. Itong began to cry and
DESCRIPTION character say something tears crept down on his
cheeks.

D. it is how the character D. Inciang thought despite all

4. INNER the ache of her heart, she
behaves and shows his/
THOUGHT could not keep Itong forever.
her attitude
E. it is the appearance of E. Inciang fold Itong’s khaki
5. REACTION the character and how he/ shirt carefully band pack it into
she dresses the rattan tampipi.

INDEPENDENT ACTIVITY
2: TIME AFTER TIME
Directions: Create a timeline of the important events for the story “Big Sister”.

How did the connected events contribute to totality of the story?

____________________________________________________________

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INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT 2: WHAT’S THE GIST?
Directions: After reading the story “Big Sister”, fill in the story elements sections below of
your answer.

CHARACTER: (Describe INCIANG)

Physical Description:

Action:

Inner Thought:

Reaction:

Speech:

SETTING:
CHARACTER: (Describe ITONG)
Time:
Physical Description:
Place:
Action:
Social Situation:
Inner Thought:

Reaction:

Speech:

PLOT: What happened in the

story?

Beginning:
__________________________

Middle:

__________________________

End:

__________________________

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 INDEPENDENT ACTIVITY 3: CONTENT CREATOR
Directions: Infer the characteristics of the illustrations below. Consider the “PAIRS”
method in doing this activity.

1. police officer

2. tattoo artist

3. broadcaster

4. doctor

BRGY. LIGA

5. basketball player

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INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT 3: I BELIEVE I CAN WRITE
Directions: Using your answers from the Independent Activity 3, develop an event that
involves all the characters using the setting drawn below.

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

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 You are almost there! Let me know some of your learnings and your queries about
this lesson. Write them down.

The things that I learned are: The questions I have are:

_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________

We can say that we are blessed for having a chance

to see and live in this wonderful world. We can also say, that we are beyond blessed
for being surrounded by people who wholeheartedly help us grow and learn as we get
ages and people who unconditionally love us despite of our shortcomings.
Lucky we are for having them. This is the most perfect time to show our appreciation for
all the things they do for us.
To show your gratitude, write a three-paragraph “Thank You” letter to the one who
raised you up. It can be for your parents, grandparents, and siblings who help a lot in
your life. Remember to include the different parts of a letter and to observe correct
grammar and spelling in your work. Your work will be graded according to the rubric
below:
Letter Writing Rubric
Content 10 points
Structure 5 points
Spelling 5 points
Grammar 5 points
TOTAL 25 points

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Directions: Read each question carefully. Choose the letter of the best answer and write it
on the space provided before each number
1. Which element of the story refers to the social situation, time, and place the story
happened?
a. character c. plot
b. exposition d. setting
2. Which of the following is part of a story’s setting?
a. the action c. the physical description
b. the character d. the social situation
3. Which of the following settings would promote camaraderie among teenager boys?
a. basketball court c. convenient store
b. concert venue d. library
4. What kind of character would fit in the stated setting below?
Complete Setting: Boracay, Philippines, the summer of 2020, in the midst of
COVID-19 Pandemic.
a. A person who loves adventure and thrills
b. A person who wears a pair of trendy clothes during summer.
c. A person who brings his/her luggage full of summer essentials.
d. A person who stays in her house to be safe and practice social distancing
5. Which of the following settings would be a place for grieving scenario?
a. in beach party
b. in funeral party
c. in wedding reception
d. in the hospital nursery room
6. Which element of the story refers to the untangling of events in the story.
a. climax c. falling action
b. exposition d. resolution
7. Which of the following is a method of characterization?
a. action c. exposition
b. climax d. resolution
8. Which of the following is the correct arrangement of the plot diagram?
a. exposition, climax, rising action, resolution and falling action
b. exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution
c. rising action, climax, exposition, falling action and resolution
d. rising action, exposition, falling action. Climax and resolution
9. Which of the following sentence describes a character’s physical description?
a. The peddler shouted, “Tahoooooooo! Tahoooooo!”
b. Isidra thinks that Jenjen is really good at playing ‘luksong tinik’.
c. Kimpoy has a perfect brown complexion and a pair of almond shaped eyes.
d. Jenna was screaming out of her lungs when the ghost appeared in the
television screen.
10. Which of the following sentence shows a character’s reaction?
a. Jeff left the bibingka cake in the store.
b. Gelay helped old Mrs. Magbintang with her bags.
c. Jopay puffed and rolled her eyes when Che-che asked for some favors.
d. Edna failed to attend her Araling Panlipunan class because she was brought
to the infirmary.

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Read the short dialogue below and answer the questions that follow.

Jolina: Oh! Look at the long line queue up at the ticket booth!
Melay: Do you think we’ll get in?
Jolina: I think so. I guess some of these people already have tickets.
Melay: How much each ticket costs?
Jolina: Only two hundred and ten pesos only. I will pay for ours.
Melay: Thank you. And I will buy popcorn, milk tea and your favorite gulaman
juice.
Jolina: Oh that’s great! Anyway, we will take the last full show schedule.
Melay: Sure, I am excited to watch that 5D movie. This is my first time!

11. What is the complete setting of the event?

a. in the amusement park’s entrance; at noon; in the 19th century
b. in the cinema’s waiting area; in the evening; in the 21st century
c. in the concert venue; in the afternoon; in the 21 st century
d. in the school’s auditorium; early in the morning; in the 20 th century
12. What attribute was exhibited by Melay and Jolina in their conversation?
a.loving c. cheerful
b.generous d. humble
13. Which sentence best describes Melay’s reaction on the event?
a. Do you think we’ll get in?
b. How much each ticket costs?
c. I am excited to watch that 5D movie.
d. And I will buy us popcorn, milk tea and your favorite gulaman juice.
14. This refers to the characterization that can be verified through observing the
character’s thought process, behavior, way of talking, appearance, and manner of
communication.
a. direct characterization c. indirect characterization
b. direct speech d. indirect speech
15. Which of the following sentence shows a character’s action?
a. Gelay helped old Mrs. Magbintang with her bags.
b. The sepak takraw player was from a prestige university in Manila.
c. Kimpoy has a perfect brown complexion and a pair of almond shaped eyes.
d. Edna failed to attend her Araling Panlipunan class because she was brought to
infirmary.

You did a great job! You’ve just unlocked another achievement. You did not just
learn the plot, setting, and characterization but you also found out the value of those story
elements in achieving the purpose of a literary piece. To intensify what you have learned,
write a slogan that will help and encourage other people to cope with change.

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 22
Independent Assessment 2:
Pre-Assessment
Setting
A. B. C. Time: past
1.A 6. C 11. A Place: in a province
2.A 7. D 12. C Social Condition: simple way of living
3.B 8. C 13. B
4.D 9. A 14. C CHARACTER: (Describe INCIANG)
5.D 10. C 15. D Physical Description: typical girl / sister
Action: prepared everything for Itong
Inner Thought: cares a lot for Itong
Reaction: amazed by Itong’s developement
Speech: soft spoken
WHAT’S IN
ANSWERS MAY VARY.
ANSWERS MAY VARY.
CHARACTER: (Describe ITONG)
Physical Description: decent looking boy
Action: afraid but had his guts to study in Vigan
WHAT’S NEW
Inner Thought: loves his family & Nena
Guide Questions Reaction: happy
Speech: firm
1.Inciang. It is entitled that way be- ANSWERS MAY VARY.
cause Inciang literally and fifuratively
served as a Big Sister to Itong. PLOT: What happened in the story?
2.She sacrificed all her life to Itong. Beginning:________________________
Middle___________________________
3. The time period of the story is in the End:_____________________________
past. ANSWERS MAY VARY.
4. Itong had grown up and became taller &
narrower. He also became secretive to Independent Activity 3:
Inciang especially to his love life.
5. Inciang could not accept the change that ANSWERS MAY VARY.
had happened to Itong like his actions and
his attention to Nena. Independent Assessment 3:
Independent Activity 1:
ANSWERS MAY VARY.
1.CLIMAX
2. RESOLUTION Assessment:
3. FALLING ACTION Post Test
4. EXPOSITION
5. RISING ACTION
Independent Assessment 1:
1.B,A
2. D,E 1.D 6. C 11. B
3.E,B 2. D 7. A 12. B
4.A,D 3. A 8. B 13. C
5.C,C
4. D 9. C 14. C
AD-
5. B 10. C 15. A
Independent Activity 2:
ANSWERS MAY VARY. DITIONAL ACTIVITY:
ANSWERS MAY VARY.
REFERENCES

Almonte, L.. et,al (2015). Celebrating Diversity through World Literature—Department of

Education, Republic of the Philippines
“Big Sister”,Borje,C.
https://www.sushidog.com/bpss/stories/sister.htm/
“Elements of a Story”,
https://literaryterms.net/plot/
“Five Methods of Characterization”, Wilkerson, Ginna, 2015,
https://study.com/academy/lesson/methods-of-characterization-in-literature/
“The Crocodile and the Peahen”,
https://www.kapitbisig.com/philippines/english-version-of-fables-mga-pabula-the-
crocodile-and-the-peahen-animal-fable_925.html

23
 For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:
For inquiries
Department or feedback,
of Education, please
Schools write
Division or call:
of Bulacan
Curriculum Implementation Division
Department of Education – Region III
Learning Resource Management and Development System (LRMDS)
Learning Resource Management Section (LRMS)
Capitol Compound, Guinhawa St., City of Malolos, Bulacan
Diosdado Macapagal Government Center
Email address: lrmdsbulacan@deped.gov.ph
Maimpis, City of San Fernando (P)

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