1. Types of Conflict
Night School
2013

2. What is conflict?
Every story has conflict – it’s what drives the plot.
Conflict usually gets introduced in the rising action…
Is faced in the climax…
Starts to wind down in the falling action…
And is resolved in the resolution.

3. It all starts with the protagonist, a.k.a. the “good guy”
The protagonist of a story can be a man, woman, child, dog, robot, alien, etc…
To keep it simple, we’ll just call it “Man.”

4. So, what are some basic types of conflict?

5. Man vs. Man This is an external conflict.
In this type of conflict, Man struggles against one or more people.
Man is the protagonist, the other guy is the antagonist.

6. Man vs. Man Examples: “The Screaming Woman” by Ray Bradbury
“Harry Potter” series by J.K. Rowling
Most superhero stories.

7. Man vs. Society This is another external conflict.
This conflict involves Man fighting against social norms and rules.
Many dystopian stories contain this type of conflict.

8. Man vs. Society Examples:
“The Hunger Games” series by Suzanne Collins
“Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare
Real life example: any civil rights movement or revolution.

9. Man vs. Nature This is also an external conflict.
This is when Man has to fight against natural elements, usually for survival.

10. Man vs. Nature Examples:
“Hatchet” by Gary Paulsen
“Into the Wild” by Jon Krakauer
“Cast Away”
“Lost”

11. Man vs. Self This is an internal conflict.
In this type of conflict, Man faces his own inner problems.
This can include choosing between good and evil, between logic and emotion, etc.

12. Man vs. Self Examples:
“Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson
“The Dark Knight” trilogy
“Fight Club” by Chuck Palahniuk

13. Now, think of your own examples for each type of conflict.
Man vs. Man
Man vs. Society
Man vs. Nature
Man vs. Self