Connecting Conflict and Inference

Connecting Conflict and Inference

Let's Review the Types of Conflict:

Internal Conflict: struggle happening within a character’s mind and body

External Conflict: struggle between a character and an outside force

Identify the Conflict!

On the next few practice questions, read through the scenario and select which kind of conflict is represented in the scenario.

Multiple Choice

Justin didn't want to get involved in the fight for civil rights. He just wanted to go to school. Unfortunately, many people in the community did not want Justin to go to their school because of his African American heritage. A simple walk to school becomes a powerful march for rights as Justin, a group of civil rights leaders, and millions of supporters make Justin's experience the center in a passionate fight for equal rights.

• Individual vs. Supernatural

• Individual vs. Individual

• Individual vs. Technology

• Individual vs. Society

Multiple Choice

Scott Martin is having a rough year. After a serious car accident, Scott is left in a wheelchair and has had to adjust his whole life. He has a hard time doing the things he once loved and he feels like a burden everywhere he goes. Scott's basketball coach urged him to still try out and that they can work together to ensure he can play. Now Scott has to make a decision for himself- will he decide to try out for the team?

• Individual vs. Individual

• Individual vs. Self

• Individual vs. Technology

• Individual vs. Nature

Knowing the conflict in a text helps us make inferences about what is happening or what will happen next

• The conflict in a story influences the action and events

• Therefore - the events in a story are directly related to the conflict

• When we make inferences as readers, we want to use the conflict to make sense of the story.

Example:

• Conflict (Individual vs. Individual) - Katie and Jake are partners for a project. They divide work evenly to complete over the weekend, but Jake doesn't do his half of the work, and Katie gets upset with Jake as a result.

• Likely Inference - Jake and Katie get in a fight. They decide not to be friends anymore and they are unable to finish their project in time for the deadline.

• Unlikely Inference - It turns out that Jake got re-programmed by a robot over the weekend, which is why he didn't do his project.

It is true that stories can have unexpected twists and turns, but...

It is always important to understand the conflict in a story in order to make logical inferences about what is happening and what might happen next. Let's do a little practice!

Multiple Choice

Conflict (Individual vs. Nature) - Trevor had saved up for years to buy the beach house of his dreams. Everything was going great, until he realized that the house had termites. At first it was just a few, but soon there were thousands nibbling away at the back porch.

Which of these is the most likely inference for what could happen next?

• All the termites grouped together to become one mega-termite and they devoured Trevor in one bite.

• In addition to termites, the house was also haunted by a vampire, and Trevor was captured, bitten, and then he also turned into a vampire.

• The termites eventually make their way from the porch to the first floor of the house. Trevor can't control the termites, so he moves out of the house.

• The termites were no match for Trevor's powerful robot. The robot was able to zap them all with the press of a button!

Multiple Choice

Conflict (Individual vs. Supernatural) - In the small town of Snoozeville, everything was always predictable and boring, until one day the town is attacked by zombies. Everyone in the town has to fight to survive, or else they could be in danger of being captured and then turned into zombies, too.

Which of these is the most likely inference for what could happen next?

• The mayor of the town creates a law which bans the zombies from the town.

• The people in the town quickly ran out of supplies and resources. Eventually, everyone in the town was turned into zombies and they moved on to the next small town.

• It turns out the zombies weren't actually real - they were actors in costume practicing for their upcoming movie.

• A huge tornado blew into the town and swept up all the zombies in its path.