Now that we’ve gone over internal conflict (7 Common Types of Internal Conflict in Story), it’s time to zoom out and take a look at external conflict.
While internal conflict happens inside your character’s head, external conflict is influenced by the world around them. This is what helps push the plot forwards.
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6 Types of External Conflict:
- Man vs. Nature
- Man vs. Man
- Man vs. Society
- Man vs. Fate
- Man vs. Supernatural
- Man vs. Technology
Man vs. Nature
Man vs. Nature happens when the character’s main “opponent” is Mother Nature herself. This often shows up as a natural disaster, a disease, or an animal. A great example of the is “The Revenant.” In this movie, Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) is attacked by a bear and has to fight his way through snowy terrain to get back to civilization.
Man vs. Man
Man vs. Man happens when two characters directly oppose each other. This can be anything from a battle scenario to a high school nemesis. A great example of this is in “Dragonfly in Amber.” Jamie Fraser finds himself face to face with Black Jack Randall and challenges him to a duel. Overall, their relationship through the first couple books is a good example of man vs. man.
Man vs. Society
Man vs. Society occurs when the character finds themself going against the grain of society. This type of external conflict is often used in Dystopian novels. In “Divergent,” during an aptitude test, Tris finds out that she’s Divergent and that she’ll be killed if she’s discovered. She tries to hide her test results, but eventually starts a revolution to overthrow the corrupt society.
Man vs. Fate
Man vs. Fate takes place when the character has to fight against their “destiny.” This form of external conflict typically takes place in Mythology and Fantasy novels. A good example occurs throughout the Percy Jackson series. There’s a cryptic prophecy saying that something bad will happen when a child of the Big 3 turns 16. Thalia (daughter of Zeus), joins the Artemis in the hunt which stops her from aging to prevent her from fulfilling the prophecy. This in turn makes it where Percy has to face the prophecy – unable to change his destiny no matter how hard he tries to stop it.
Man vs. Supernatural
Man vs. Supernatural happens when a character has to face the supernatural – a ghost, a ghoul, etc. This type of external conflict is often used in horror and fantasy. A great example of this in TV is “Supernatural,” where Sam & Dean have to face supernatural forces in every episode.
Man vs. Technology
Man vs. Technology occurs when a character has to fight against technology. This type of external conflict is usually used in Sci-Fi. A great example of this is the Matrix series. The characters are constantly on the run from and fighting against the machines which search for humans who escaped the Matrix.
In the comments below, let me know what form of external conflict you’re using in your manuscript!
