Types of Conflict in a Story, With Examples

A girl wants to join the soccer team. She tries out, makes it, and plays great. The end. Nobody would finish that story, because nothing stands in her way. Now give her a coach who doesn't want girls on the team, a best friend who got cut, and a fear of letting her dad down. Suddenly there's a story. That's conflict at work. This guide covers the types of conflict in a story, and if you want to see them in action, an AI story generator can write a quick story around any conflict you choose.

Quick answer: Conflict in a story is the struggle between a character and something that stands in the way of what they want. The six main types of conflict in a story are character vs. character, character vs. self, character vs. society, character vs. nature, character vs. technology and character vs. the supernatural. They split into internal and external conflict.

Key takeaways

Conflict is a character's want blocked by an obstacle.
Internal conflict happens inside a character's mind. External conflict comes from outside.
The six classic types are vs. character, self, society, nature, technology and the supernatural.
The strongest stories layer an external conflict with an internal one.
Every scene needs its own small conflict, not just the story as a whole.

What is conflict in a story?

Conflict in a story is the problem or struggle that keeps the main character from easily getting what they want. It creates tension, forces choices, and gives the plot a reason to move. Without conflict, there's nothing for the character to overcome.

Conflict has two parts:

A want: The character's goal. "I want to win the bake-off."
An obstacle: What blocks it. "My rival sabotages my oven," or "I panic under pressure."

Conflict is one of the core elements of a story, alongside character, setting, plot and theme. It's also the engine of plot itself: each time a character pushes against an obstacle, something happens, and that chain of events becomes the plot. Our complete guide to what a plot is explains how conflict drives the five stages of plot, from exposition to resolution.

What is the difference between internal and external conflict?

Internal conflict is a struggle inside a character's own mind, such as fear, guilt or a hard decision. External conflict is a struggle against an outside force, such as another person, nature or society. Most good stories use both at once.

	Internal conflict	External conflict
Where it happens	Inside the character	Outside the character
Opponent	Fear, doubt, desire, guilt, values	People, groups, nature, machines, monsters
Types	Character vs. self	Character vs. character, society, nature, technology, supernatural
Example	A boy wants to tell the truth but fears losing his friends	A storm traps a family in a mountain cabin
What it reveals	Who the character really is	What the character is capable of

Here's how they work together. A firefighter battling a wildfire has an external conflict (vs. nature). If she also blames herself for a partner's injury last season, she has an internal conflict too. The fire tests her body. The guilt tests her heart. The climax works best when she has to beat both.

What are the 6 types of conflict in a story?

The six types of conflict in a story are character vs. character, character vs. self, character vs. society, character vs. nature, character vs. technology and character vs. the supernatural. Older textbooks often say "man vs." instead of "character vs." Each type below has a definition, a well-known example and an original example.

1. Character vs. character

Character vs. character is an external conflict where the main character struggles against another person, such as a villain, rival or bully. Both sides want something, and only one can win.

Well-known example: In Harry Potter, Harry and Voldemort are locked in a long battle that runs across the whole series.
Original example: Two sisters both want to inherit their grandmother's bakery, and only one can run it.

A great opponent makes this type of conflict much stronger. Our guide on how to write a villain shows how to give your antagonist real motives.

2. Character vs. self

Character vs. self is an internal conflict where the main character struggles with their own fears, flaws, desires or beliefs. The opponent is inside them.

Well-known example: In Shakespeare's Hamlet, the prince can't stop doubting and delaying his plan for revenge.
Original example: A talented singer must decide whether to perform at her school's big show, knowing her stage fright made her freeze last year.

3. Character vs. society

Character vs. society is an external conflict where the main character pushes against laws, customs, traditions or a group that holds power. The opponent is a system, not one person.

Well-known example: In The Hunger Games, Katniss defies a government that forces children to fight to the death.
Original example: In a town where everyone must work in the family trade, a blacksmith's son secretly trains to become a dancer.

4. Character vs. nature

Character vs. nature is an external conflict where the main character fights to survive a natural force, like a storm, wilderness, animal or disease.

Well-known example: In Jack London's story "To Build a Fire," a man struggles against deadly cold in the Yukon.
Original example: Two hikers lose the trail as snow closes in, and the younger one has to lead for the first time.

5. Character vs. technology

Character vs. technology is an external conflict where the main character faces a machine, artificial intelligence or invention that threatens them or slips out of control.

Well-known example: In 2001: A Space Odyssey, astronauts must deal with HAL 9000, a ship computer that turns against them.
Original example: A family's new smart home starts locking doors and refusing to let anyone leave "for their safety."

6. Character vs. the supernatural

Character vs. the supernatural is an external conflict where the main character faces ghosts, monsters, gods, magic or fate. Some lists call a version of this "character vs. fate."

Well-known example: In Bram Stoker's Dracula, a group of friends hunts a vampire who threatens their lives.
Original example: A girl discovers that every wish she writes in her late uncle's notebook comes true, but each one costs a memory.

Which type of conflict is the most common?

Character vs. character is the most familiar type of conflict in a story, because a clear opponent is easy for readers to picture and root against. But the stories people remember usually pair it with character vs. self. A hero who beats a villain is satisfying. A hero who beats a villain by finally facing their own fear is unforgettable.

How do you build conflict into a story?

You build conflict into a story by giving your character a clear want, putting a strong obstacle in the way, and making each attempt to win cost something. These six steps work for any genre.

Name the want. Write one specific sentence. "Jade wants to find her missing cat before the move on Saturday."
Pick an external obstacle. Who or what blocks the want? A neighbor who swears he hasn't seen the cat.
Add an internal obstacle. What inside the character makes it harder? Jade's afraid to talk to adults she doesn't know.
Raise the stakes. What happens if she fails? The family leaves without the cat forever.
Force choices. Make her pick between two things she wants. Skip her best friend's goodbye party, or keep searching.
Resolve both conflicts at the climax. Jade finds the courage to knock on the neighbor's door and discovers he's been feeding her cat all week.

Resolving both conflicts in one scene is what makes an ending feel earned; our guide on how to end a story shows eight ways to do it. Need a starting point? The story plot generator can give you a premise with a built-in conflict.

How do you add conflict to every scene?

You add conflict to every scene by giving the point-of-view character a small goal for that scene and putting something in the way. Scene conflict doesn't need to be dramatic. It can be an argument, a locked door, a secret or an awkward silence.

Before and after: adding conflict to a flat scene

Before (no conflict):

Ben walked into the kitchen. His mom was making pancakes. They talked about school, and he ate breakfast. Then he left for the bus.

After (small conflict):

Ben needed his mom to sign the field trip form before the bus came. She was making pancakes and humming, which meant she was in a good mood, which meant this was his only chance. He slid the form next to her plate. She glanced at it. "Overnight?" she said. The bus horn honked outside.

Same characters, same kitchen. The second version has a goal (get the signature), an obstacle (Mom's hesitation) and a ticking clock (the bus).

If your middle chapters feel slow, missing scene conflict is often the reason. Our guide on how to fix a boring middle has more ways to keep tension rising.

What are common mistakes with story conflict?

The most common mistakes with story conflict are conflict that's too easy to solve, conflict that comes from misunderstandings a single conversation would fix, and conflict that doesn't connect to the character's want.

Too easy: The obstacle disappears the first time the hero tries. Make the first attempt fail.
Silly misunderstanding: Two characters could fix everything by talking for one minute. If you use this, give them a strong reason not to talk.
Random conflict: A car crash or a storm that has nothing to do with the hero's goal. Tie every obstacle to the want.
No internal side: The hero is perfect and never doubts. Give them a flaw that makes the external fight harder.

Try it on storygenerator.io

Want to practice spotting conflict types? Open the free AI story generator and try:

Genre: Adventure for character vs. nature, or Moral Story for character vs. self
Length: Short (about 400 words)
Tone: Serious or Suspenseful
Point of view: Third person
Reader age: Middle grade or Teens
Prompt idea: "Two hikers lose the trail in a snowstorm, and the younger one, who's always followed, has to lead."

Label the internal and external conflict in the result. Then copy the story into your own document and add a second conflict type and see how it changes the stakes.

Frequently asked questions about conflict in a story

What are the 4 main types of conflict?

The four types of conflict most often taught in school are character vs. character, character vs. self, character vs. society and character vs. nature. Many teachers and writers add two more, character vs. technology and character vs. the supernatural, for six in total. All of them are either internal or external conflict.

What is an example of internal conflict?

An example of internal conflict is a student who finds the answers to tomorrow's test and has to decide whether to look. Nobody is stopping her. The struggle is between her wish to pass and her sense of what's right. Internal conflict shows readers who a character really is when no one is watching.

Can a story have more than one type of conflict?

Yes, most strong stories have more than one type of conflict. A survival story might mix character vs. nature with character vs. self, as the hero fights the cold while battling panic. Layering conflicts gives the story depth and lets the climax resolve the outside problem and the inner struggle together.

Why is conflict important in a story?

Conflict is important in a story because it creates tension, drives the plot and reveals character. When a character faces an obstacle, they have to make choices, and those choices show readers who they are. Without conflict, nothing happens, and readers have no reason to wonder how the story will end.

What is the difference between conflict and plot?

Conflict is the struggle at the center of a story, while plot is the series of events that grows out of that struggle. Conflict is the problem. Plot is everything the characters do about it, from the first attempt to the final climax and resolution. You can think of conflict as the fuel and plot as the trip it powers.

What Is Conflict? 6 Types of Conflict in a Story (With Examples)