This book is intended to give both the general reader and the beginning student of literature a comprehensive, though basic, approach to understanding fiction. It provides explanations of primary elements of fiction - point of view, description, narration, character, plot, language, meaning, and theme, and examines some of the more subtle and elusive components of fiction, including metaphor, imagery, symbolism, subject, tone, and mood. Five short works of fiction - Odour of Chrysanthemums , by D.H. Lawrence; The Chrysanthemums , by John Steinbeck; The Destructors , by Graham Greene; Patricia, Edith, and Arnold , by Dylan Thomas, and Maggie: A Girl of the Streets , by Stephen Crane - are used to integrate and support the discussions of fictional elements. The text includes exercises for class discussion and writing exercises, and an appendix listing both the fundamentals of fiction in 50 short stories and exercises for use with them.