Although novels and short stories are works of fiction, they often mirror reality. A good short story interweaves a strong plot. The protagonist or main character is faced with a debilitating problem. He or she may face an external conflict against elements of nature, a human opponent, or an internal conflict within his or her own mind. Often the protagonist uses sheer will, determination, human ingenuity, and even relies on divine intervention to overcome his challenges.
This scenario pretty much sums up the human condition. As humans, we are often faced with life’s challenges. Like the protagonist in the short story, we must not fold easily, but face life’s challenges head on knowing that good always triumphs over evil.
Real life novels and short stories also play out on a macroscopic level over hundreds of years. Sometimes, entire races or groups of people face challenges but rise stronger from the ashes of their former reality. Some examples include the African people who were enslaved over hundreds of years by other groups, including Whites, Arabs, and other Africans, who practiced slavery. Through sheer strength, resilience, and determination, the Africans broke the shackles of slavery and reclaimed their rightful place in human society.
The Jewish people were persecuted by the Germans during the holocaust, resulting in the torturous deaths of millions of Jews. In a miraculous turn of events often interpreted as divine intervention, the axis nations won the war against the Nazis and stopped the Jewish genocide. Today, the Jews are among the most prosperous and protected people on earth.
The White Race of the Northern United States faced both an external and internal conflict when they chose to take up arms and fight against their own brothers of the South to free the African slaves. For white Americans, this was one of the most mind-rattling decisions to make. During the American Civil War, more than 500,000 white Americans died to outlaw slavery. Today, White dominated countries such as the United States, Europe, and Canada enforce laws that prohibit slavery and other forms of human rights abuses.
Just as the protagonist in a short story must overcome challenges, so the antagonist seeks to destroy the protagonist. Often in life, people may dislike you for unjustifiable reasons, or “hate you without a cause.” These troublemakers may throw obstacles in your way and even try to harm you.
An overt enemy is one who makes himself known and is easier to fight or defeat, but the most dangerous of all enemies is the covert enemy, also called a traitor. They are like serpents, slithering in the grass and hard to detect. The covert enemy sometimes takes the form of family or friends: even your mother, father, sister, brother, neighbor, husband, or wife.
Like the protagonist of a good short story, we must be wise, strong-willed, and determined to rise above our challenges knowing that good triumphs over evil with the same consistency, certainty, and intensity that light outshines darkness.
Copyright 2026 by Patrick Carpen. All Rights Reserved.