短篇小说(2/7)

Most stories are set in present day, but settings of place vary from rural to urban. The reader follows the main character or protagonist in a conflict with another character or antagonist or in an internal conflict with his own antagonistic psychological or spiritual force. Characters range from familiar stereotypes, such as the aggressive businessman or the lonely housewife, to archetypal characters, such as the rebel, the scapegoat, the alter ego, and those engaged in some sort of search. The subject of a short story is often mistaken for its theme. Common subjects for modern short fiction include race, ethnic status, gender, class, and social issues such as poverty, drugs, violence, and divorce. These subjects allow the writer to comment upon the larger theme that is the heart of the fictional work. Some of the major themes of 20th century short stories, as well as longer forms of fiction, are human isolation, alienation, and personal trauma, such as anxiety, love and hate, male or female relationships, family and the conflict of generations, mortality, spiritual struggles, and even the relationship between life and art.

大部分的短篇小说都是以当前为背景,但背景环境从农村到城市各不相同。读者跟随主角或主人公与另一个角色或对手起冲突，或与他自己的敌对心理或精神力量相抗衡。小说的角色从熟悉的刻板印象,例如咄咄逼人的商人和寂寞的家庭主妇,到原型人物,比如叛军,替罪羊,另一个自我,和那些从事某种调查的人物。小说的主题常常被误认为是其主旨。现代短篇小说的一般主题包括种族、民族身份、性别、阶级和社会问题,如贫困、毒品、暴力和离婚。这些主题允许作者评论更广泛的作为虚构作品的核心的主旨。一些20世纪的短篇小说的主旨内容,以及长篇小说,是关于人类隔离、精神错乱和个人心理创伤的,如焦虑、爱和恨,男性或女性的关系,家庭和代沟、死亡、精神斗争,甚至是生活和艺术之间的关系。