The novel begins with a brief preface called “1924,” but the real action starts six years later, in the chapter called “Las Uvas: Grapes.” And the final chapter, which you’re about to read? “Las Uvas: Grapes” again!
Why? Esperanza’s story is coming full circle like the harvest year. The conflicts that began with one grape harvest will be resolved in the next grape harvest. Take a moment to review the elements of plot by clicking through each of the following slides.
As the story begins, readers get exposition—that is, information about the story’s characters before the conflict begins. Then, an inciting incident occurs to kick the story's conflict into motion. The conflict and all the fallout problems it generates drive the story's action from that point on. Think of it as the beginning of a long, grueling hike—one that no one planned to take, but now, they have no choice but to put on their boots and packs and start climbing.
The climax is the highest point of the story’s tension. All the events of the rising action lead to this point in the story. Sometimes, readers think of it as the story’s turning point because after this event or cluster of related events, the story’s tension begins to release, and the characters move quickly toward the happy or not-so-happy ending of their story. You could think of it this way: When the weary hikers finally reach the high point on the trail, there’s only one way to go—down to the bottom again.
The falling action is the part of the story that reveals the solutions to mysteries, provides answers to readers' questions, and points to the final resolution of the story's conflict or conflicts. The story's pace and tension often begin to relax or decrease in this section. The characters aren’t facing new problems but instead are understanding better the conflicts they have endured. It’s like the hikers taking a gently winding path down, walking easily and knowing that the hard work of hiking the steep path is done—for now, at least.
The story’s resolution is similar to its exposition. Both exposition—the stable world of the characters before the conflict throws them into something new—and resolution are states of rest. The resolution shows the “new normal” of the characters’ world. It’s the world they inhabit because they have faced the problems that the conflict created. They can now look back at what they’ve been through, like hikers resting and looking back up to the peak they climbed. The characters are now more prepared for the next time they have to gear up to face a conflict.
Based on your review of story structure, what do you predict readers will learn in the last chapter of Esperanza Rising?
