Freytag’s Pyramid Reimagined: Storytelling’s Ancient Secret Weapon Gets a Makeover
Freytag’s Pyramid, originally designed for tragedy, remains a powerful storytelling tool. Learn how to use its five stages—exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution—to craft compelling narratives, with modern twists for all genres.
Freytag’s Pyramid Reimagined: Storytelling’s Ancient Secret Weapon Gets a Makeover
Picture this: You’re deep into a novel, heart pounding as the tension rises, and then—BAM!—the story delivers a jaw-dropping climax that makes you rethink everything. You race through the pages, desperate to see how it all plays out. That, my friend, is the magic of Freytag’s Pyramid, a storytelling structure that’s been shaping unforgettable narratives for centuries.
But what if I told you that Freytag’s model wasn’t originally designed for the stories we love today? That it was actually meant for tragedy? That’s right—this famous plot structure, with its neat five-act progression, was initially built to ensure that your main character definitely ends up dead, ruined, or emotionally shattered by the end.
So, why does this centuries-old framework still hold up in modern storytelling, even in stories that don’t end in doom and gloom? Let’s take a deep dive into what Freytag got right, where we’ve rebelled against his ideas, and how you can use (or bend) his storytelling pyramid to craft your next gripping tale.
Who Was Freytag, and Why Did He Invent This Pyramid?
Before we get into how you can wield Freytag’s Pyramid like a storytelling sword, let’s take a moment to meet the man behind the model.
Gustav Freytag was a 19th-century German writer who took Aristotle’s beginning, middle, and end structure and leveled it up. He examined classical Greek tragedies and Shakespearean plays, searching for the blueprint that made them so powerful.
His conclusion? The best stories follow a five-stage arc:
Exposition – Set the stage, introduce the protagonist, and establish the world.
Rising Action – Throw in complications, conflicts, and dramatic stakes.
Climax – The BIG moment—the emotional and narrative peak.
Falling Action – The aftermath, where things start unraveling.
Catastrophe (Resolution/Denouement) – Traditionally, everything falls apart. But today? Not always.
Sounds simple, right? Well, it is… and isn’t.
While Freytag nailed the rhythm of a compelling narrative, modern storytelling has evolved past his tragic tendencies. Today, we’ve adapted his framework into a tool that works for all genres, not just heartbreaking Shakespearean-style dramas.
So, how can YOU use (and improve on) Freytag’s Pyramid?
The Five Stages of Freytag’s Pyramid—With a Twist
1. Exposition: The Art of the Setup (Without the Boring Stuff)
The exposition is where we set the stage. This is where your protagonist exists in their ordinary world before everything goes haywire.
But here’s where many writers go wrong: They dump too much information.
Freytag’s Pyramid asks us to introduce:
The protagonist
The setting
The central conflict (or at least hint at it)
What it doesn’t ask for is pages of backstory, family trees, or a full history of the kingdom of Eldoria dating back 1,000 years (unless it’s absolutely necessary).
✅ Better way to do it? Start in medias res—right in the middle of an event or a small conflict. Show your protagonist doing something that highlights their world and personality without dumping a textbook onto the reader.
Examples of Strong Exposition:
The Hunger Games: Katniss wakes up in District 12, hunts for food, and interacts with her family—immediately showing her world, personality, and struggles.
The Great Gatsby: Nick Carraway gives us a glimpse of his world and hints at the mysterious Gatsby before we even meet him.
🚀 Pro Tip: If your exposition is slowing down your story, you’re probably telling too much instead of showing. Trim it down and make sure something happens to pull the reader forward.
2. Rising Action: The Rollercoaster Begins
If the exposition is the calm before the storm, the rising action is where we hear the distant thunder—and run straight into it.
This is the longest part of the story, where tension builds, stakes rise, and every decision makes things harder for the protagonist.
Key ingredients of great rising action:
✅ Obstacles that force the protagonist to make tough choices
✅ Secondary characters that add complications (allies or enemies)
✅ Hints at the bigger why behind the conflict
✅ Small victories that feel earned—but also setbacks that raise the stakes
Examples of Strong Rising Action:
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: Harry discovers he’s a wizard, enters Hogwarts, makes friends (and enemies), and starts uncovering the mystery of the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Jurassic Park: The park seems amazing—until things start going wrong (hello, T-Rex).
🚀 Pro Tip: The key to an engaging rising action is pacing. If your story drags, ask yourself: Am I introducing meaningful conflicts, or just throwing random obstacles at my protagonist?
3. The Climax: The “Oh Crap” Moment
This is THE moment—the peak of the pyramid. Everything has built to this turning point where the protagonist must face their biggest test.
Freytag believed the climax was not just any dramatic moment, but the point of no return. After this, things must change.
Great climaxes have:
🔥 High emotional stakes
🔥 An impossible choice
🔥 A direct payoff for all the rising action
Examples of Strong Climax Moments:
The Empire Strikes Back: “I am your father.” Enough said.
The Lord of the Rings: Frodo reaches Mount Doom—but struggles with his final choice.
Breaking Bad: Walter White’s moment of ultimate transformation (This is not meth.)
🚀 Pro Tip: A climax shouldn’t feel random—it should be inevitable based on everything that came before it. If it feels unearned, your rising action needs tweaking.
4. Falling Action: When the Dust Settles… Or Gets Worse
In Freytag’s day, this was the beginning of the end—tragedy creeping closer. Today? This is where modern stories play with the formula.
In a tragedy: The protagonist’s choices have doomed them.
In a modern hero’s journey: This is the moment of reckoning, where they rise stronger.
Examples of Falling Action:
Romeo and Juliet: Juliet finds Romeo dead—tragedy locked in.
Avengers: Endgame: The aftermath of the battle against Thanos.
🚀 Pro Tip: If your story’s falling action feels too drawn out, trim it. If it feels too rushed, expand on the emotional impact of the climax.
5. Resolution: Tying It All Together (or Breaking Everything Apart)
The final moment where your story closes—whether in victory, tragedy, or ambiguity.
Freytag called this the catastrophe (yikes). Today, it’s more often called the denouement—the final “breath” of the story.
Types of Resolutions:
✅ Happy ending (Victory!)
✅ Bittersweet (They won, but at what cost?)
✅ Open-ended (Wait… did they actually survive?)
Examples:
The Dark Knight: Gotham is saved, but Batman must become a fugitive.
The Great Gatsby: Nick reflects on the American Dream—and Gatsby’s tragic downfall.
Inception: Does the spinning top fall? We’ll never know.
🚀 Pro Tip: Your resolution should echo your theme. If your story is about redemption, the resolution should reinforce it. If it’s about loss, don’t sugarcoat the ending.
Final Thoughts: The Pyramid is a Guide—Not a Rulebook
Freytag’s Pyramid is not a law you must obey—it’s a tool you can use (or break) to craft compelling narratives. Whether you’re writing a fantasy epic, a psychological thriller, or a rom-com, this structure can help give your story rhythm and impact.
Now, over to you—what’s your favorite climax in a story?
