Final answer:
The STEAL method involves analyzing characters through their Speech, Thoughts, and Effects on others, representing the first three elements of this indirect characterization tool.
Step-by-step explanation:
The STEAL method is a tool used in literature analysis to understand characters in a story indirectly through their Speech, Thoughts, Effects on others, Actions, and Looks (appearance). However, since the question requests only the first three elements of the STEAL acronym for indirect characterization, they are Speech, which shows what the character says and how they express themselves; Thoughts, revealing what is going on in the character's mind; and Effects on others, presenting how other characters react to the character in question.