¿Qué es el CUENTO FANTÁSTICO? Características, elementos, estructura y ejemplos

A fantastic tale is a literary narrative that consists of telling stories

that are far from reality. Another way of defining it is as a text that recounts

a succession of supernatural and extraordinary events that do not occur in the

real world, therefore they may seem illogical, incoherent and irrational.

The fantastic story can incorporate real elements or actions of

everyday life, but it will always be oriented to trigger surprising,

imaginary and inexplicable situations. The purpose of this type of narration is to arouse curiosity,

provide different visions of things and leave a lesson.

The fantastic tale mixes the real with the unreal. On the one hand, the characters

show credible characteristics and even the receiver can identify with them,

while the imaginary and unusual is manifested in the experiences that occur to the

protagonists. These stories are usually aimed at children and young people.

Characteristics of the fantastic

tale The fantastic tale has the following characteristics:

- It is a short story. - It must have a plot or

argument that logically sequences the story. - It has extraordinary elements and circumstances

that defy natural laws or the real world. - Supernatural events happen to

characters who usually have real characteristics.

- The fantastic story must have an environment in which the characters carry out their

actions. The setting of the story can combine real and fictional elements.

- For the fantastic story to have reason to exist, there must be a reader who believes,

gets involved or is momentarily an accomplice of what happens in the narration.

Structure Beginning

It is the part that begins the fantastic story. In this section, the characters

and their main characteristics are revealed, and the environment where

the actions take place is also described. At the beginning, the situations that lead the story to

the knot or conflict are presented. Development

Development exposes conflicts or unexpected events in the narrative. In this part of

the fantastic tale there is a breakdown of the facts stated at the beginning. This phase of the

story is the most substantial, expected and attractive because it is the most relevant part of the story.

Final

In the fantastic story the end refers to the end or outcome of the story. In this part

, the problems or conflicts that originated in the development are resolved. In general,

the culmination of the narrative is characterized by the triumph of good over evil.

Elements Characters

They are the ones who carry out the actions within the fantastic story and to whom the

extraordinary situations happen . The characters can be represented by human beings,

animals, plants or objects. In the narratives, the participants have characteristics that

differentiate them from others. Environment

The environment in fantastic stories is related to the place where the

characters unfold and the events take place. Time

Time is related to the time or year in which the story takes place. In addition,

it refers to the duration of events, if they happen in hours,

in a day, in months or years. Atmosphere

Atmosphere is related to the feeling and the “air” that prevails

in the different circumstances of the narrative. This means that the story can have

moments of emotion, sadness, anguish, mystery, loneliness or another emotional state.

Plot In the fantastic story the plot

refers to the conflict that motivates the development of the narrative. The plot is what gives way to the drama,

the tension and the attractive power of the story. Examples of fantastic stories for children

- The frog prince. - Sleeping Beauty.

- Snow White. - Rapunzel.

- Cinderella. - Hansel and Gretel.

- Little Red Riding Hood. - The three Little Pigs.

- Tom Thumb. - Alice in Wonderland.