Universal Principles of Storytelling for Designers

Literary Device

Exposition

An introduction to a story’s critical background information.

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Exposition acquaints an audience with essential background details, including characters, locations, props, materials, and the overarching tone and tenor of a narrative. It imparts just enough information to establish an emotional and cognitive connection between the audience and the story. The absence of exposition may lead to misguided assumptions about a story’s theme, resulting in confusion and disengagement.

Achieving a delicate balance is essential—too much expositional information breeds apathy, while too few details leave audiences adrift, ...