Casa ESL · B2 Upper Intermediate · Unit 16 of 20 · Step 2
Narrative voice and advanced narrative tenses
Name
Date
Vocabulary
prose
nounWritten or spoken language in its ordinary form, without the structure of verse.
"Her prose was admired for its clarity and emotional depth."
protagonist
nounThe leading character in a story, play, or film.
"The protagonist had been searching for meaning throughout the entire novel."
evocative
adjectiveBringing strong images, memories, or feelings to mind.
"The author's evocative descriptions transported readers to another era."
allegory
nounA story in which characters and events symbolise deeper moral or political meanings.
"Animal Farm is an allegory for the Russian Revolution."
narrative
nounA spoken or written account of connected events; a story.
"The narrative shifts between past and present with remarkable fluidity."
foreshadow
verbTo give an indication of a future event in a story.
"The opening chapter foreshadowed the tragedy that would unfold later."
ambiguity
nounThe quality of being open to more than one interpretation.
"The ambiguity of the ending left readers debating its meaning for years."
compelling
adjectiveEvoking interest or attention in a powerfully irresistible way.
"The novel told a compelling story of love and loss."
Grammar Focus
Narrative tenses: past perfect continuous and 'would' for past habit
The past perfect continuous (had been + -ing) establishes background actions in progress before the main narrative events: 'She had been writing for hours when the power went out.' In narratives, 'would + infinitive' describes repeated past actions or habits: 'Every evening, she would sit by the window and read.' Combining these tenses creates rich, layered storytelling.
He had been walking through the rain for over an hour when he finally reached the village.
Every morning, she would wake before dawn and write in her journal.
The river had been rising steadily, and the villagers knew the bridge would not hold.
He would often sit alone in the café, watching the world pass by the window.
Exercises
Exercise 1
Complete each sentence with the correct narrative tense form of the verb in brackets.
1. She (read) for three hours when the phone finally rang.
2. Every evening, the old man (walk) to the end of the pier and watch the sunset.
3. The snow (fall) all night, and by morning the roads were impassable.
4. As a child, he (spend) hours in the library, lost in adventure stories.
5. They (travel) for six months before they finally settled in the small coastal town.
Exercise 2
Match each narrative opening with its appropriate continuation.
Reading
The Letter
Clara had been living alone in the old house for nearly five years. Every morning she would rise at six, make a pot of strong coffee, and sit at the kitchen table where the light was best. She had been working on a novel — a story about her grandmother's life during the war — but progress had been slow. Some days she would write for hours and produce only a single paragraph she was willing to keep. The house had been her grandmother's, and its rooms were filled with traces of a life Clara had only half known. One afternoon, while sorting through a box she had been meaning to open for months, she found a letter. It was addressed to someone she had never heard of, in handwriting she recognised as her grandmother's. The letter had been sealed but never posted. Clara held it for a long time before opening it. What she read inside would change the direction of both her novel and her understanding of her own family. She had been telling the wrong story all along.
1. What had Clara been doing in the house for five years?
2. How did the discovery of the letter affect Clara?
Speaking
Discuss these questions with a partner or your teacher.
Writing
Write the opening paragraph of a short story (8–10 sentences). Set the scene using past perfect continuous and describe a character's habits using 'would'. End with a moment that disrupts the routine.
Example: James had been living in the village for as long as anyone could remember. He would open his bookshop at exactly nine o'clock each morning and close it at five. He had been following this routine for thirty years. But one cold November evening, a stranger walked in five minutes before closing and placed a very unusual request.
Answer Key — For Teacher Use
Exercise 1
1. had been reading · 2. would walk · 3. had been falling · 4. would spend · 5. had been travelling
Exercise 2
1. She had been waiting at the station for over an hour → when the last train of the evening finally arrived. · 2. Every Sunday without fail, → he would take the same path through the woods. · 3. The wind had been howling since midnight, → and not a single person had slept. · 4. Throughout her childhood, → she would invent elaborate stories for her younger siblings. · 5. He had been working on the manuscript for years → before anyone agreed to publish it.
Reading Comprehension
1. Clara had been living alone and working on a novel about her grandmother's life during the war, though progress had been slow. · 2. The letter changed the direction of both her novel and her understanding of her family — she realised she had been telling the wrong story all along.