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Falling Action
• The ffalling
alling ac
action
tion some
sometimes
times intr
introduc
oduces
es a ne
neww cconflic
onflictt. Many
DEFINITION people think of the falling action as the section of the story
devoted exclusively to de-escalating the conflict that was built up
What is falling action? Here’s a quick and simple definition:
during the rising action. And while this is one of the main
purposes of the falling action, plot twists and new conflicts can
The falling action of a story is the section of the
also be introduced during the falling action.
plot following the climax, in which the tension stemming
from the story's central conflict decreases and the story ◦ For example, it's common for writers to use falling action to
moves toward its conclusion. For instance, the traditional describe the hero's journey back home after they succeed in
"good vs. evil" story (like many superhero movies) doesn't their quest. But just because the climax has already occurred
end as soon as the force of evil has been thwarted. Rather, doesn't mean the trip home has to be uneventful; often,
there tends to be a portion of the story in which the hero characters face new problems (albeit smaller ones) during the
must restore regular order to the world, clean up the mess falling action, which can be a good way of adding interest and
they made, or make a return journey home. This is all part of suspense. The falling action can also show how the
the "falling action." protagonist has grown (as they may now deal with obstacles
differently than they did before the rising action and climax).
Some additional key details about falling action:
◦ As another example, if the story's hero died saving the world
• Falling action is just one part of the structure of a story's overall during the climax, it might be revealed during the falling
plot. The falling action follows the climax, or the moment of peak action that it was all part of their plan, and they actually
tension in the story. survived.
• Falling action is often confused for dénouement, the final part of ◦ Similarly, sometimes the antagonist is defeated during the
the story. They're similar, but not the same. We'll explain the key story's falling action rather than its climax.
differences in this entry. • The ffalling
alling ac
action
tion ends with a rresolution.
esolution. The end of the falling
• The opposite of falling action is rising action, which occurs before action is marked by the resolution of the story's main conflict.
the climax and in which the story's main conflict unfolds and What this looks like in practice depends on what the main conflict
tension builds. of the story was: in a mystery, the criminal might be thrown in jail,
while in a romance, the lovers might get married. Resolutions
aren't always happy, and sometimes they don't give the audience
Falling Ac
Action
tion E
Explained
xplained
a feeling of complete closure, but they always makes it clear that
The falling action is an important but often overlooked part of plot the story is drawing to an end.
structure in which the central conflict of the story is moved toward
complete resolution. Generally speaking, most works of writing that
Falling Ac
Action
tion vs. Dénouement
have a plot can be said to have a section of falling action. But not
every story has a falling action—and even for stories that do contain Falling action is often confused with dénouement, a separate part of
it, the falling action isn't always well-defined or easy to identify. Here the structure of plot. The dénouement is part of the general process
are a few of the key defining features of falling action to help you of bringing the story to a point of resolution, so it's easy to see why it
identify it: would be confused with falling action, but the two parts have some
very specific, key differences that are important to understand.
• The ffalling
alling ac
action
tion be
begins
gins with the climax
climax.. The climax often
answers the story's biggest question (such as "Who did it?" or "Will • Dénouement is the final part of the story, in which loose ends are
they win?"), but it doesn't answer all the questions or resolve the tied up, and the effect or "outcome" of the events of the story is
story's main problem completely. Rather, the climax makes that hinted at, if not shown.
process or resolution possible. In other words, the falling action ◦ For example, the dénouement might give the audience a
can't begin until after the climax. sense for what the future will hold for the characters, or how
• The ffalling
alling ac
action
tion "winds do
down"
wn" the ttension.
ension. After so much time they were changed by the story.
has been devoted, in the rising action, to building up the story's ◦ This part of the story is usually quite brief, even compared to
central conflict, it's important in the wake of the climax to the falling action: the most well-known dénouement is "and
dispel some of the built-up tension. So it's common, during the they lived happily ever after."
falling action, to see the characters themselves relax a little, with
the end of their struggle now in sight.

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• Dénouements, by definition, occur after the resolution that marks

the end of the falling action. Whereas the falling action results in
the resolution of the major plot point, the dénouement resolves
issues or conflicts that are of a secondary nature to the main issue
of the story.
• Like an epilogue, the dénouement may also show how the events
of the story fit into the broader scheme of history or the lives of
those involved.

To fully understand what makes dénouements different from falling

action, take a look through our entry on dénouement, where you can
find some clear examples.
Freyt
ytag'
ag'ss Pyr
Pyramid
amid Doesn't Fit All Plo
Plotts
Falling Ac
Action
tion and FFrreyt
ytag'
ag'ss Pyr
Pyramid
amid While Freytag's pyramid is very handy, not every work of literature fits
neatly into its structure. In fact, many modernist and post-modern
One of the first and most influential people to create a framework for
writers intentionally subvert the standard narrative and plot structure
analyzing plots was 19th-century German writer Gustav Freytag, who
that Freytag's pyramid represents. We mention this here because
argued that all plots can be broken down into five stages:
falling action is often spoken about in relation to other parts of
• Exposition Freytag's pyramid, and because understanding where
the falling action typically occurs within a narrative may help
• Rising action
you identify it. So while the falling action is often spoken about in
• Climax relation to other parts of Freytag's pyramid, there may be times when
• Falling action it's easier to determine what part of a story is the falling action based
• Dénouement on criteria other than its position relative to other sections of the
plot, such as what part of the narrative winds down tension or
suspense.
Freytag originally developed this theory as a way of describing the
plots of plays at a time when most plays were divided into five acts,
but his five-layered "pyramid" can also be used to analyze the plots of
other kinds of stories, including novels, short stories, films, and
EX
EXAMPLES
AMPLES
television shows. Here's the pyramid as originally defined by Freytag: In the examples that follow, we'll explain each story's falling action in
relation to its overall plot so you have a full understanding of how
falling action operates within the story.

Falling Ac
Action
tion in "Lit
"Little
tle R
Red
ed Riding Hood"
Here's a simple example from a story that almost everyone is familiar
with. In "Little Red Riding Hood," the climax occurs when the wolf,
disguised as the grandmother, eats Little Red Riding Hood. During the
falling action, a nearby woodsman (having heard Little Red Riding
Hood's cries of distress) comes to her rescue, cutting open the wolf
and saving both Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother. This is
a story in which the antagonist (the wolf) is defeated during the falling
One important thing to note about the shape of Freytag's pyramid is action rather than the climax—a reminder that the falling action isn't
that it shows all parts of the story as having equal length, with climax always devoid of significant plot developments.
at the very center of the diagram. However, this is actually a bit
misleading, since the falling action is usually much shorter than the
rising action, and begins close to the story's end rather than in the Falling Ac tion in A S
Action Str
tree
eettcar Named Desir
Desiree
middle. Therefore, a slightly more accurate version of Freytag's In Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, the rising action
pyramid (modified to show a shorter, later falling action) might look begins when Blanche Dubois arrives at the home of her sister, Stella,
something like this: and reveals that she has, under mysterious circumstances, lost
possession of their childhood home. Stanley, Stella's husband, is
immediately suspicious of Blanche, who in turn is very critical of
Stanley and derides him constantly for his low class and "primitive"

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ways. The tension between these three characters grows over the
course of the months that Blanche stays with the couple in their tiny WHY WRITER
WRITERSSU
USE
SE IT
apartment, and the mystery around the circumstances prompting
Not all pieces of writing that have plots also make use of falling
Blanche's visit also continues to grow, until one day Stanley tells
action—some plots end very suddenly after the climax, for
Stella everything he has heard about Blanche's sordid past from
example—but most plots do have a section in which the action
others: that she was fired from her teaching job for having an affair
"unwinds." That's because the falling action serves many different
with a seventeen-year-old boy, and began working as a prostitute at
purposes in a story. Here are some of the main reasons a writer might
a local hotel. Tension reaches a new height after this revelation, as it's
build their plot with a section of falling action:
unclear how all the various characters will respond to the new
information. The play reaches a climax when Stanley finally confronts • To carry the plot from its climax to a resolution.
Blanche and, it's strongly suggested, rapes her.
• To allow time for "unwinding" or de-escalating some of the
In the following scene, weeks have passed, and Blanche's mental tension that was built up during the rising action by showing the
state has deteriorated completely. It seems that she has told Stella characters going through the process of re-ordering their lives or
about her rape, but that Stella doesn't believe her. It's revealed restoring the natural balance.
that Stella and Stanley have made arrangements to have Blanche
• To keep the audience engaged after the climax by introducing one
committed to a mental asylum. A doctor and nurse arrive to take
or more smaller conflicts during the falling action.
Blanche away. Seeming to have only the vaguest understanding of
what's happening, Blanche reluctantly agrees to go with the
doctor. The scene constitutes the entirety of the play's falling action,
ending with the resolution (a direct consequence of the climax):
OTHER RESOURCES
Blanche has lost her mind. • The Wikipedia Entr
Entryy on Dr
Drama
amatic
tic S
Struc
tructur
ture:
e: This page covers
basic plot structure, including a section on falling action.
Falling Ac tion in The LLor
Action ordd of the Rings • The Dic
Dictionar
tionaryy Definition of FFalling
alling Ac
Action:
tion: A basic definition.
J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy tells the story of Frodo, • One of the final scscenes
enes fr
from
om the "L
"Lor
ord
d of the Rings" trilog
trilogy:
y: This
a hobbit who must journey to a dangerous and faraway land in order scene might seem "climactic," but it's actually just one part of the
to throw a magical ring into a volcano and, in doing so, destroy film's falling action sequence.
Sauron, a major force of evil that threatens the entire world, including
everyone he loves. People often say that the final book (or film) of the
trilogy ends with one climax after another, in a seemingly endless
succession. But this is actually a mistake. While it's true that the plot
HO
HOWWT
TO
O CITE
of the film continues for quite some time after the climax (in which
the ring and Sauron are destroyed), it is not the case that each new ML
MLAA
plot development that occurs after the film's climax is a climax in its Bergman, Bennet. "Falling Action." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 5 May
own right. Rather, many of the seemingly "climactic" plot 2017. Web. 14 Sep 2017.
developments that follow the actual climax are part of the falling
action, in which the heroes must make the long journey home. Chic
Chicag
ago
o Manual
For instance, the scene immediately following the climax—in which Bergman, Bennet. "Falling Action." LitCharts LLC, May 5, 2017.
the volcano erupts and the heroes must escape—is part of the falling Retrieved September 14, 2017. http://www.litcharts.com/literary-
action sequence. The tension stemming from the central conflict has devices-and-terms/falling-action.
already been dispelled, but some tension remains surrounding the
question of how and whether the heroes will get home.

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